Giorgio Armani SpA has cancelled two major fashion shows in coming weeks due to a surge in COVID-19 cases surge in Europe. As per a Wall Street Journal Report, the Italian luxury fashion house cancelled its planned runway shows at Milan Men’s Fashion Week and Paris Haute Couture Week later this month.

Led by Giorgio Armani, Founder, the company made this decision due to the worsening epidemiological situation. Europe is experiencing a wave of new coronavirus infections driven by the Omicron variant, which has brought renewed chaos to global travel, disrupted supply chains and derailed some companies’ plans to start returning staff to the office.

The surge has also clouded the prospects for large in-person events. Italy and France, which are due to host the coming fashion shows, have both registered record numbers of daily cases in recent days, topping 100,000 and 200,000, respectively, far more than in previous waves of the pandemic. Other luxury brands, including Italy’s Dolce & Gabbana, Prada and Zegna, are still due to present new collections at the show in Milan, which runs from January 14 to 18. The Paris show, which opens on January 24, also has a packed schedule, with brands including Chanel and Christian Dior set to take part.