Givenchy

Givenchy began as womenswear and began with separates. The 1952 debut in Paris was a collection of blouses, skirts and trousers meant to be bought singly and recombined at will — a working wardrobe rather than a matched costume — and that logic still governs how the women's line is drawn.

It shows in pieces built to hold their own line: a blazer cut to keep its shape off the body, a shirt dress falling straight from the shoulder, knitwear kept plain enough to layer or worked in jacquard when it is not. Denim and jersey carry the 4G monogram. Footwear runs from a pointed leather pump to a chunky-soled sneaker, and eveningwear takes the same discipline into fluid cloth.