Diotima’s founder steps into one of New York’s marquee roles, with her first Proenza runway slated for February 2026.
Proenza Schouler has a new hand on the wheel. Rachel Scott, the designer behind Diotima, is taking the creative reins of the New York label known for sharp craft and a modern take on American luxury. It is a natural next move for a house that has long prized rigor and polish.
Scott has already been in the room this year, consulting with the Proenza Schouler studio on Spring Summer 2026. That collection offers a first look at her thinking, a preface before the fuller statement comes in February when she debuts as creative director with Fall Winter 2026.
Leadership frames the choice as both continuity and reset. Shira Suveyke Snyder points to Scott’s technical fluency and a distinctly female point of view that lines up with the brand’s codes. Founders Lazaro Hernandez and Jack McCollough, now board members, underline respect for her trajectory and welcome the next chapter of the story they started.
Scott’s path is global and grounded. Born in Jamaica, she studied fashion design at Istituto Marangoni in Milan and cut her teeth at Costume National. A move to New York led to Rachel Comey, where she rose to vice president of design. In 2021 she launched Diotima, the label that quickly drew industry attention. The accolades followed, including the CFDA Emerging Designer of the Year in 2023, American Womenswear Designer of the Year in 2024, and the Fashion Trust U.S. 2025 Ready to Wear Award.
What does this mean for Proenza Schouler right now? Expect the same attention to construction, movement, and material, but with Scott’s perspective guiding how those codes evolve season to season.
She speaks of admiration for the world Hernandez and McCollough built and of adding her perspective to it. The brief is ambitious yet clear. Keep the line smart. Keep the details exact. Make clothes that live in the city and last in the closet.
The runway will tell the fuller story in February 2026.
