ELIE SAAB Is Coming to H&M

One of the world’s most recognisable couture houses is bringing its language of glamour, embellishment and refined evening dressing to H&M

ELIE SAAB is the latest designer house to join H&M’s long running collaboration programme, with a new collection set to launch on 22 October 2026 across selected stores in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain, Qatar and Egypt, as well as online. The partnership brings together two very different fashion worlds, pairing H&M’s global reach with the codes of a house built around couture craftsmanship, red carpet dressing and a distinctly polished vision of modern glamour.

Founded in Beirut, ELIE SAAB first became known for refined bridalwear before growing into one of the international names most closely associated with haute couture. Elie Saab later became one of the first international members of France’s Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture, marking an important stage in the house’s ascent from Beirut to the centre of the Paris fashion establishment. Over the years, the label has become synonymous with high impact eveningwear and memorable red carpet moments, while expanding its universe across couture, ready to wear and accessories.

For H&M, the collaboration offers an opportunity to translate that established visual language into a broader wardrobe. According to the announcement, the collection will span womenswear, menswear and accessories, including footwear, with embellished gowns, shimmering separates and sharply cut tailoring among the key pieces. Fine lace, gradient sequins and signature monograms will appear throughout, bringing some of ELIE SAAB’s most recognisable codes into the collection.

The collaboration also appears determined to preserve the sense of occasion traditionally associated with the house. ELIE SAAB has rarely been about anonymity or understatement. Its appeal lies in the transformation that comes with dressing up properly, whether through intricate surface work, a sharply defined silhouette or the sweep and movement of an evening gown. Even within a more accessible format, the intention is clearly to retain that emotional relationship with glamour.

Ann Sofie Johansson, H&M Creative Advisor and Head of Design Womenswear, describes the partnership as a landmark collaboration and points directly to Saab’s journey from bridal designer in Beirut to the centre of Paris fashion. She says customers should expect a collection that is “magical, ornate and glamourous”, a description that places the emphasis firmly on the decorative richness and fantasy that have shaped the house’s identity.

For Elie Saab, however, the project is framed as more than a series of statement evening pieces. He describes the collection as being created for those who already admire the ELIE SAAB world, while also emphasising the collaborative nature of the design process with H&M. Most notably, Saab refers to the result as a complete wardrobe designed to speak to different moments in a woman’s life, suggesting that the partnership will move beyond formalwear alone.

That breadth makes the collection particularly interesting. ELIE SAAB may be best known globally for gowns, bridalwear and red carpet dressing, but the modern house operates across a much wider fashion landscape. Bringing womenswear, menswear, tailoring, separates, footwear and accessories together under one collaboration allows H&M to explore the house as a full fashion proposition rather than reducing it to a single category.

There is also a natural significance to the regional launch. The collection will be available across several major Middle Eastern markets, including Saudi Arabia and the UAE, regions where Elie Saab’s name carries particular familiarity and cultural resonance. For a designer whose story began in Beirut before expanding internationally, the collaboration’s strong regional presence creates a fitting connection between the house’s origins and its global reach.

The first details point towards a collection built around exactly what many followers of the house will hope to see: glamour, polish and visible craftsmanship translated through a more widely accessible format. Lace, sequins, tailoring and embellished gowns are familiar ELIE SAAB territory, but the inclusion of menswear and broader wardrobe pieces suggests a more expansive interpretation of the label’s identity.

When ELIE SAAB H&M arrives this October, the real intrigue will lie in how effectively the collaboration captures the atmosphere of the couture house at a completely different scale. If the early announcement is any indication, the objective is clear: to bring the fantasy of ELIE SAAB into everyday fashion without losing the glamour that made the house famous in the first place.