She trained as an architect, built her label from Hong Kong, and a Princess wore her pieces. Now Katerin Theys has made her Paris debut, and her pitch is refreshingly simple: One great piece, worn your way, for years.
Belgian interior architect and fashion designer Katerin Theys makes her Paris debut with an immersive presentation where fashion, architecture, art and music converge. Set within the Residence of the Belgian Ambassador to France, the experience brings together sculptural silhouettes, transformable designs, textiles, performance and artistic expression, reflecting Theys’ vision of fashion as “architecture for the body.” Drawing on her European heritage and life in Asia, her work explores adaptability, craftsmanship, memory and individuality, blurring the boundaries between garment, object and space.
The designer you’ll want to know
There’s a certain kind of woman who reads the label before the price tag. She wants to know who made it, how it was made, and whether it will still feel right in five years. Katerin Theys designs for her.
The Belgian designer made her Paris debut in the middle of Paris Fashion Week. She skipped the runway. Instead, she took over the
Residence of the Ambassador of Belgium to France for an evening of fashion, live music and art. It was the first time Paris saw her work up close. Judging by the room, it won’t be the last.
From floor plans to fashion
Theys didn’t start out in fashion. As an interior architect in Belgium, Katerin moved to Hong Kong in 2013, and built a career designing spaces. Clothes were the lifelong fascination running in the background. In 2019, she finally launched her own label.
It’s a career move a lot of women will recognize: keeping one foot in the work you know while you build the thing you really want.
Theys never left architecture behind. She brought it with her. “For me, it’s my two worlds, my background in architecture and my fashion collection, coming together,” she says.
Then came the royal moment. At the 2025 World Expo in Osaka, the director of the Belgian pavilion wore one of Theys’ pieces. Princess Astrid of Belgium noticed and asked about it. Her stylist visited Theys’ showroom in Belgium, and when the princess led Belgium’s economic mission to California in October 2025, she wore Theys. “Throughout the entire trip she wore my pieces, and I was there joining her, it was incredible”, said Katerin.
Inside the Paris night
Hosted by Ambassador Jo Indekeu and Mrs. Dagmar Indekeu, the evening felt less like a fashion show and more like being invited into someone’s home. Guests moved from room to room, and each one told part of the story.
The soundtrack. Belgian singer-songwriter Selah Sue, who like Theys comes from Leuven, performed live in three of her designs. The two first worked together when Theys dressed her for her European tour, and it’s easy to see why: these are clothes you can actually move in.
The coat, six ways. One coat from Theys’ Winter Garden collection, styled six different ways. The print comes from memories of her grandmother’s garden. It was the clearest proof of her idea that one piece can do a lot of work.
The art. Belgian artist Nicky Myny gave a live demonstration, showing the creative process behind the pieces.
The fabric. A first look at her collaboration with Danish textile company Kvadrat, a reminder that Theys thinks about fabric the way an architect thinks about materials.
Why her clothes make sense for real life
Theys calls her work “architecture for the body.” In practice, that means clothes that do more than one thing. Sketchbook, her upcoming summer collection, is built around architectural coats, reversible silhouettes and caftans that transform. You decide the proportion, the shape and the mood.
She also ignores the seasonal cycle, which may be the most modern thing about her. Pieces are made in small runs, some as one-offs, and designed to evolve with the person who wears them. Fewer pieces, more ways to wear each one, and a wardrobe that collects its own stories over time.
How to think about it:
A reversible piece is two looks in one suitcase. Ideal if you travel for work.
A transformable caftan works from day to evening. Change the styling, not the outfit.
A statement coat is the long-term investment. It’s the piece that earns its place in your wardrobe year after year.
In a fashion week built around what’s next, Theys is quietly making the case for what lasts. Find her at katerintheys.com and on Instagram at @katerintheys.
