The collection is what you’d imagine wearing to a resort in the Maldives, or even for a busy day in New York.
The Michael Kors Spring/Summer 2026 collection is telling you it’s time to pack your bags and book that flight.
A brand known for its jet-set style, Michael Kors kicked off New York Fashion Week with a collection that highlights the allure of wanderlust and freedom. Its new laid-back offering embodies “earthly elegance” inspired by the 66-year-old designer’s own travels.
“I really started with the whole idea that this was all focused on this blend of the earthy and the elegant. Why can’t you have both?” Kors said in an interview with Reuters. He noted how locals in Indonesia, French Polynesia, and Morroco would dress in wrap-around skirts and relaxed trousers, adding “But how do we bring that into the city? Because most of my customers spend most of their lives in big cities around the world. So it’s really the hybrid of the two.”
Kors brought his love of easy, nature-inspired travel to urban New York City through relaxed silhouettes and earth tones of brown, white, and black. “I’m always thinking about new ways of ‘how do you wear your black,’ ‘how do you wear gray,’ how do you wear neutral colors?” he noted. “Because if you’re busy, and you’re on the go and you travel and you are working and you’ve got a hectic life, you’re going to depend on those black pieces and there’s always new ways to interpret it.”
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The collection, which the designer described as “laid-back but elegant, sensual but not shrink-wrap sexy,” presents the yin-yang balance of natural beauty and glamour of fashion. It was unveiled at Manhattan’s Terminal House on Sept. 11, where guests were transported from New York City to a beach house enveloped by the warm sun, expansive blue skies, and clear and inviting water.
The opening look featured an oversized white Georgette Boyfriend Shirt paired with a loose black silk trouser, and accessorized with a long brown belt and a necklace with a small leather pouch as a pendant. An oversized Thalitta clutch was on her right hand, and flat leather sandals adorned her feet. The look set the tone for the collection that’s relaxed and well-accessorized.
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It was followed by a sleeveless black dress with a sheer asymmetric skirt, criss-cross heels, a large pendant necklace, belted cuff bracelets, and a scrunched-up Maggie clutch.
The rest are what you would also imagine to be packing in a suitcase bound for a resort in Maldives, French Riviera, or the Caribbean Islands: bermuda shorts paired with trench coats, short-sleeve T-shirts and low-rise wrap skirts, a mesh camper dress, loose trouser cinched at the ankle, polo tunics, flowy dresses, and collarless suits.
The wanderlust spirit continued to live through the closing looks, featuring a gold metallic trench coat, a semi-sheer sequin one-shoulder asymmetric dress, and sequined balloon trousers with a bra top and button-down shirt.
Statement accessories added dimension and texture to the collection. Metal necklaces were large enough to reflect light, crinkled leather bags no longer worn as a crossbody but held as clutches instead, and for those times that you don’t want to bring a bag at all, you can wear your wallet on a long strap instead.
The Michael Kors Spring/Summer 2026 runway show is part of New York Fashion Week, which features over 60 designers. It runs until September 17 (Manila time). Watch the full show below.
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