KidSuper SS26
PFW gifted us many unforgettable moments this season, but one show soared above them all, literally. Colm Dillane’s KidSuper SS26 presentation, The Boy Who Jumped the Moon, wasn’t just a fashion show. It was a parable, a bedtime story come to life, stitched in fabric and imagination under the grand ceilings of the Musée des Arts Décoratifs. Without hesitation I’ll say it, this was my favorite show of all time.
The story began with a narrator’s voice guiding us as if through the pages of a cherished childhood book. A tale of a boy with impossibly big dreams who set out to touch the stars. What unfolded was a narrative equal parts nostalgic and daring, reminding us of the innocence of childhood and the courage to leap even when you don’t know where you’ll land.
The collection itself was a masterwork of poetic naiveté and bold design. Lunar print tailoring shimmered like sketches scribbled across a night sky. School uniform inspired silhouettes welcomed us back to the classroom of our youth, while whimsical dreamlike palettes captured the hues of bedtime stories and half forgotten fairy tales. Many garments seemed suspended mid flight, frozen in that trembling, exhilarating moment between leaping and landing. The very essence of Dillane’s vision.
KidSuper has always had a gift for turning clothing into narrative, but this season felt particularly tender. It captured that fleeting second of impossible optimism, the one where you still believe everything is possible. Each look was not just styled but felt, as if we were dressing not just for today but for the bold dreams of our child selves. And then came the centerpiece... a collaboration with Mercedes Benz that redefined the idea of spectacle. Dillane transformed the all new Mercedes Benz CLA into something from another planet; a car with turbine wings, balloon-like flourishes, and chrome slingshots lifted straight from childhood imagination. It was both Batmobile and Stempunk Hot Wheels, breathtaking in its mix of humor, nostalgia, artistry and sheer fantasy.
From this dream machine sprouted a 13 piece capsule of ready to wear and accessories that looked equally at home in a gallery or garage. Dillane’s nods to automotive history; mechanic jumpsuits, ghostly silhouettes echoing the Patent Motorwagen, were balanced with the playful wit we’ve come to expect from KidSuper. It was fashion shot through with piston powered daydreams. But KidSuper isn’t KidSuper without eccentric collaborations. Puma returned with a capsule set to debut this fall, including bold football kits designed for the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup. Then, in perhaps the most delicious twist of the evening, Papa Johns appeared on the scene. Together with KidSuper, they produced a limited edition hot bag celebrating the chain’s Croissant Pizza. Call it cheeky, call it surreal, but much like Dillane’s ethos, it proves that bold ideas belong everywhere.
What made The Boy Who Jumped the Moon unforgettable was its honesty. The show was emotional, surreal and incredibly sincere. It was about dreaming too big, failing without fear and finding joy in the leap itself. KidSuper reminded us that we never have to abandon the imaginative bravery of childhood, even as adults weighed down by reality. As Dillane himself put it, “I’ve always wanted to make a children’s book. This is kind of that,except the pages walk.” And walk they did. Down the runway, hand-in-hand with our inner children who still dare to ask impossible questions. Many fashion shows entertain, a rare few inspire, but this one? It made me believe in magic again and left me with a warm fuzzy feeling in my heart.
KidSuper website
