The designer will guide students throughout the creative journey
Barcelona’s new generation of designers will share runway with Stéphane Rolland at BBFW
Barcelona Bridal Fashion Week 2026 and designer Stéphane Rolland have completed the selection process of more than 20 students from Barcelona’s design institutions LCI, IED, and ESDI, to open his runway show at the upcoming Bridal Night next April. This joint initiative led by the French couturier and BBFW, underscores the event’s commitment to emerging talent and offers young designers a unique opportunity to learn from Rolland while showcasing their creations—crafted with fabrics provided by the textile house Gratacós—alongside one of haute couture’s most influential figures.
Under the title Sculpted by Nature, Stéphane Rolland and Pierre Martinez, Vice President of STEPHANE ROLLAND Haute Couture, have challenged the students to develop proposals conceived exclusively for this occasion, exploring the relationship between nature, volume and form through an organic sensibility and a sculptural vision of elegance. Beyond the conceptual framework, the designer has placed particular emphasis on craftsmanship, excellence in execution and mastery of technique, understood as the very essence of fashion and the foundation upon which haute couture is built.
After an initial briefing and project presentations, the top proposals were selected to take part in the runway show by the renowned designer during Barcelona Bridal Night 2026, the tradeshow’s gala evening, to be held on April 22 at Hall 8 of the Montjuïc venue, before an audience of more than 1,000 industry professionals, buyers and international media.
A shared goal by Paris and Barcelona
The project was born after a BBFW team attended a Stéphane Rolland show in Paris that featured creations by young talents from the French capital’s two leading design schools. That experience—rich in emotion and meaning—highlighted the powerful impact emerging talent can have when integrated into an internationally renowned runway, inspiring BBFW to bring an initiative of equal significance to Barcelona.
To this end, BBFW sought to bring this concept to Barcelona, an idea the designer eagerly embraced. As Rolland himself states, “It is essential to provide a stage to the future. Youth is energy and inspiration; their participation in the Barcelona show reminds us that fashion is built through many voices, and theirs is indispensable.”
Albasarí Caro, Director of BBFW, adds: “We were deeply moved to discover Pierre Martinez and Stéphane Rolland’s proposal in Paris, which gave visibility to young talent, and to realize that we shared a common goal: to empower new generations and offer them a real space within a high-level professional context. At BBFW,” Caro continues, “wherever we are, we constantly think how to transform the things that inspire us into projects that bring value to Barcelona. Stéphane Rolland has been the perfect ally in making this initiative a reality to support emerging talent, whose fresh, free and conscious perspective enriches the industry and anticipates the evolution of contemporary fashion.”
A Haute Couture Exercise
The three participating schools—LCI Barcelona (LCI International), IED Barcelona (Istituto Europeo di Design) and ESDI (Escola Superior de Disseny)— made an initial internal selection. From 60 initial applications, 20 per school, eight were selected from each to comprise the final group.
The jury—composed of Stéphane Rolland, Pierre Martinez, Albasarí Caro, Director of Barcelona Bridal Fashion Week, and Aida Molano, Partnerships Manager at Gratacós—reviewed drafts, conceptual approaches and technical tests in person, placing special value on rigor, dedication and the connection of projects to the traditions of haute couture.
The judges highlighted the students’ outstanding technical quality and their ability to bring fresh perspectives to fashion and the bridal universe through highly personal sensibilities, confirming the strong educational foundations offered by Barcelona’s design schools and strengthening the city’s position as a major international hub for creative talent.
From Mentorship to the Runway
Following the selection, the students will embark on a creative journey guided directly by Stéphane Rolland through three in-person sessions in Barcelona, focused on mentorship, volume definition and technical guidance. The schools will make their ateliers available for the creation of the garments, overseeing the entire process through to the final fitting.
The looks will be crafted using materials personally selected by Stéphane Rolland and supplied by the historic Barcelona-based textile company Gratacós, ranging from high-quality plain fabrics to embroidered details and creative proposals specific to bridal fashion. Students will receive guidance from the French master as well as from the Gratacós team on the properties of each fabric and its suitability for each design. This collaboration strengthens the bond between the textile industry and fashion education, bringing new generations closer to real-world production processes.
Organized by Fira de Barcelona with the support of the Ministry of Business and Labor of the Government of Catalonia, Barcelona Bridal Fashion Week— the leading event and international epicentre of bridal fashion— is preparing a new edition with a special focus on gala and red-carpet creations. Featuring collections from more than 400 brands, 80% of them international, and runway shows by 40 designers, BBFW will take place from April 22 to 26, 2026, at the Montjuïc venue, transforming Barcelona into the capital of trends, business and emotion of fashion and its creators.
Barcelona, January 15, 2026
Images of the student selection process HERE
Images from BBFW 2025 HERE
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