Paris

Paris – October 21, 2026 -- Apple's second Designers of Tomorrow exhibition, created with Design Miami, opens today at Hôtel de Maisons in Paris, showing four original works built around the theme of presence.

Curator Rodman Primack, former longtime creative director of Design Miami, says the theme grew out of how busy modern life has become. The featured designers are Salem S. Charabi, Isabel Rower, Yoonjeong Lee, and the studio Parafernalia, run by Genki Matsumura and Sebastián Zorrilla. A jury of global design voices, including Apple's Molly Anderson, picked them for storytelling, material innovation, and craft.

Taipei – October 19, 2026 -- JUBILEE Biomedical's JUBI Plasma cold plasma skincare device has won the Brands & Retail category at the 2026 COSMETIC 360 Awards in Paris. The Taiwanese company says one mode, running below 40°C, targets nine skincare areas.

Six main-category winners emerged from about 260 exhibitors

COSMETIC VALLEY, a French government-recognized competitiveness cluster, organizes COSMETIC 360 each year at the Carrousel du Louvre. The event connects startups with groups such as L'Oréal, LVMH Research and Estée Lauder. This year's edition drew about 260 exhibitors from more than 20 countries. Only six main-category winners were chosen, roughly 2% of the total.

Houston – October 13, 2026 -- Visual Comfort & Co. is launching the first lighting collection from Paris-based designer Verena Brausch, with four product families covering chandeliers, pendants, wall sconces, and table lamps. The collection debuts at Fall High Point Market.

Brausch pairs solid and translucent materials throughout the collection

Brausch trained in transportation design and built her career at BMW and Mercedes-Benz. She also has a background in industrial, furniture, and interior design. Across the range, she contrasts solid and translucent materials, using etched glass and natural alabaster to soften and diffuse the light.

Sean Lavin, Chief Design Officer of Visual Comfort & Co., said the company was drawn to her point of view. He said her attention to proportion and materials gives each piece a strong visual presence, with the quality of light central to every design.

Graz – October 07, 2026 -- XPENG's Next-Gen AI Flagship SUV G9L has completed its first production trial at Magna's vehicle facility in Graz, Austria, becoming the fourth XPENG model built in Europe alongside the G6, G9 and P7+.

The pre-production G9L will drive 1,324 kilometers from Graz to Paris before its global launch

The journey, undertaken ahead of the vehicle's global premiere at the Paris Motor Show on October 12, is designed to test the SUV's charging capability, safety systems and driving performance under real-world conditions.

Cologne – October 07, 2026 -- Segway unveiled two new e-scooters, the ZT3 MAX and MAX G3 Pro, at simultaneous launch events in Cologne and Paris, alongside a new standard for verifying advertised range claims.

Segway targets two common rider complaints with new models

The ZT3 MAX is built for mixed terrain and urban roads, using a new Intelligent Combined Braking System (ICBS) for more stable stopping on uneven surfaces. The MAX G3 Pro targets longer daily commutes with a high-capacity battery and built-in fast charging.

Stockholm – September 29, 2026 -- Visit Sweden has launched The Introvert Travel Agency, a new service designed to help travelers plan trips with minimal social pressure and more control over solo time.

Survey data shows most travelers want optional, not expected, socializing

A YouGov survey commissioned by Visit Sweden found that 67% of travelers prefer destinations where social interaction feels optional. The same research shows 53% would pay extra for more peace, privacy or fewer crowds, while 41% of respondents identify as introverts, 45% as a mix of both, and only 14% as extroverts. Nearly half of respondents said they sometimes need a "vacation from their vacation" to recover after traveling.

Albuquerque, N.M. – September 20, 2026 -- Shelby Steudle, president of Pavlus Travel & Cruise, will christen Viking's new river ship, the Viking Fjolvar, at an official ceremony in Amsterdam on October 15. Viking selected Steudle as the vessel's "godmother," a maritime tradition dating back thousands of years meant to bless a ship and protect those who sail aboard it.

Seven new Viking vessels will be named that day in Amsterdam, with Steudle and six other godparents each christening one ship. The 168-passenger Viking Fjolvar will sail Seine River itineraries between Paris and Normandy, while the other new vessels will operate on the Rhine, Main, and Danube rivers in Europe, and on Egypt's Nile River.

Paris – September 19, 2026 -- Chinese sportswear brand ANTA has unveiled ANTA FOLD, an origami-inspired midsole technology, at the China Creative Pavilion during Paris Design Week.

The launch centered on "From Plane to Rebound," a large-scale installation made entirely from a single sheet of paper, folded into 720 triangular tessellation units without any cutting or glue. The piece reveals the silhouette of a running shoe through natural deformation, illustrating how a fragile material can withstand heavy loads through structural transformation alone.

New York – September 16, 2026 -- New York fashion label HIROMI ASAI will present its Spring/Summer 2027 men's collection, "Akatsuki — Before the Dawn," at New York Fashion Week on Sunday, September 13, 2026, at 4:00 PM EDT.

The show, staged as a Flying Solo Show on a Midtown Manhattan rooftop, is invitation only. Designer Hiromi Asai has worked with Japanese kimono artisans since 2017, translating traditional textile craftsmanship into contemporary menswear; Asai first showed authentic kimonos at NYFW in 2016.

Eight looks trace the shift from night to first light

The collection's title refers to akatsuki, the Japanese word for the moment just before dawn. Its eight looks move through deep navy, charcoal and earthy tones before easing into soft whites and luminous neutrals.

Cognac – September 13, 2026 -- LOUIS XIII Cognac has launched BLACK PEARL: TRIBUTE TO THE BIRTHPLACE OF LOUIS XIII, a new limited-edition expression priced at $28,000 per decanter and capped at just 398 bottles worldwide.

The release is inspired by Le Grollet, the historic cellar where the LOUIS XIII story began. Cellar Master Baptiste Loiseau selected an extraordinary eau-de-vie from the House's collection of demijohns -- the only one identified as carrying the distinct signature of Le Grollet, a trait passed down from his predecessor, Pierrette Trichet. Loiseau infused it into a single, hand-selected tierçon to create the blend.