Oprah, Usher, Anna Wintour step out at Ralph Lauren's cozy, intimate fashion show

The designer's namesake brand brought an A-list crowd and the fashion elite uptown to his Madison Avenue office building to debut his spring/summer 2026 collection on Sept. 10, ahead of the official start to New York Fashion Week. But instead of power suits and computer monitors, there was an intimate coziness and undone yet chic comfort to the clothing and the space.

As usual, the front row was a who's who of A-list stars: media icon Oprah Winfrey, her bestie and "CBS Mornings" host Gayle King, Mindy Kaling, Usher (who's the face of a new Ralph Lauren fragrance), Laura Dern and Anna Wintour, in one of her first major public appearances since Vogue's new head of editorial content was announced following her stepping down as editor-in-chief.

Jessica Chastain, Ariana DeBose, Naomi Watts, Nick Jonas and Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Ryan Destiny and Maggie Rogers rounded out the front row.

The Jonases held court with Chastain and DeBose, while Dern chatted nearby before greeting Watts excitedly as she arrived. Usher and his wife, Jennifer Raymond, were seated next to the Jonases, with both singer husbands talking animatedly.

From left: Yao Chen, Mindy Kaling, Jessica Chastain, Naomi Watts, Ariana DeBose, Laura Dern and Jaya Harper attend the Ralph Lauren show on Sept. 10, 2025, in New York City.

Just before showtime, Winfrey and King stepped through the door, the commotion of camera flashes following behind them as they quickly took their seats.

Those seats were actually deep white couches with plush, complementary pillows, and guests cozied up together like they were all in Ralph's house (because, essentially, they were). The office space-turned-runway, hopefully signaling an aspirational level of comfort to corporate workspaces, "was designed for intimate simplicity, keeping the focus firmly on the clothes," the show notes said.

And like everything else in this world, the clothes are "intensely personal," per the show notes.

The designer has shown no signs of slowing down, continuing to helm new collections multiple times a year. For his spring/summer 2026 offerings, it was black, white and red all over.

Black-and-white stripes of all orientations and sizes packed a subtle preppy punch; giant sun hats were paired (expectedly) with breezy dresses and (unexpectedly) with sweater vests, ties and trousers; and bright pops of red infused the collection with intentional excitement. It felt as timeless as it was modern, offering softened new takes on the classics that provide "strength and sensuality" in minimalist form.

In a pair of dark aviator sunglasses and an effortlessly cool brown leather jacket, Ralph Lauren himself, 85, stepped out at the end of the show to wave to his guests, receiving a standing ovation in the process.

Fashion designer Ralph Lauren waves after his spring 2026 collection show during New York Fashion Week in New York City, Sept. 10, 2025.

The brand continues to embody something larger than fashion: It's an iconography of the unrelenting spirit that anything is possible, in spite of an increasingly tumultuous backdrop of the "American dream." You, too, can have a sliver of luxury, one that's slightly lived in but entirely sophisticated.

His April fashion show was equally as starry an affair, with Anne Hathaway, Sadie Sink, Andra Day and more in attendance to take in the moody fall fashions. But the grandeur of September shows in the recent past (a palatial Hamptons estate in 2024 and a massive Brooklyn warehouse in 2023, both transformed into Ralph's world of classic cars, leather and luxury) was in contrast to the more intimate show on Sept. 10.

Models walk the runway during the Ralph Lauren spring 2026 show on Sept. 10, 2025, in New York City.

The show – still larger than his most recent office affair in April 2024 – marked "a 'coming home' for the collection," the notes said.

But then, everywhere feels like home in Ralph Lauren.

Ralph Lauren show photos: Oprah, Usher and more

Oprah Winfrey arrives for the Ralph Lauren fashion show during New York Fashion Week Sept. 10, 2025.

Nick Jonas and Priyanka Chopra Jonas attend Ralph Lauren's New York Fashion Week runway show on Sept. 10, 2025, in New York City.

Usher talks to David Lauren during arrivals for the Ralph Lauren show during New York Fashion Week Sept. 10, 2025.

Laura Dern attends Ralph Lauren's New York Fashion Week runway show on Sept. 10, 2025, in New York City.

Priyanka Chopra Jonas is seen during Ralph Lauren's New York Fashion Week runway show on Sept. 10, 2025, in New York City.

A model presents a creation from the Ralph Lauren spring 2026 collection during New York Fashion Week Sept. 10, 2025.

Ralph Lauren

Anika Reed is USA TODAY's senior news editor, covering all things entertainment and pop culture. Find her on Instagram and TikTok, or send her an email at [email protected].