Digital fashion and virtual shows: an overview of the new pace of fashion

As Paris closes its first 100% digital haute couture Fashion Week, we take a look at what fashion has in store for us in this “new world”.

In Scandinavia, it’s business as usual

It was one of the first fashion weeks to be announced: Danish fashion shows will be held in person or not at all. The result? Copenhagen fashion week will indeed take place from 9 to 12 August, in a capital relatively spared by the pandemic. “We’re fortunate that Danish society is opening up much more quickly than expected,” commented Cecilie Thorsmark, CEO of Copenhagen Fashion Week. This opportunity is shared by Stockholm fashion week, which, after two seasons cancelled due to a lack of funding, is once again inviting journalists and buyers from all over the world to discover the new style suggestions from these young designers from 26 to 28 August.

September, the month full of questions

The first to kick off the daunting fashion month is New York, which is still in the midst of an unprecedented wave of contagions and has officially gone for a digital version of its fashion week. In line with the new social distancing rules, certain designers have nonetheless confirmed their desire to stand out in video format, which has become widely popular in this time of crisis. One such designer is Kerby Jean-Raymond, founder of the label Pyer Moss, who is in the habit of staging spectacular shows. He was the first to start the ball rolling with the announcement of an exceptional event: the screening of his new film “American, Also”, not in a cinema but in drive-in mode. It’s the same thing for Proenza Schouler and Collina Strada, who are counting on really marking the occasion at this next Fashion Week, after long and difficult months. In France, the FHCM is playing the optimism card. Despite the risks of a second wave in the autumn, it immediately announced that Paris Fashion Week will be held in due form from 28 September to 6 October, while ensuring that strict health measures are put in place. A bold move followed by the Camera Della Moda in Milan, which, however, states that its fashion shows will be held subject to final approval by the authorities, while launching a collaborative digital platform in parallel. Just in case.

A busy month of January

Due to Covid, certain key spring events were immediately postponed until next year. This is the case of Pitti Uomo, which will consequently organise its physical presentations in January 2021 after a digital event in July:  Pitti Connect. At the beginning of the year, we will also find Giorgio Armani, who will present a Privé couture show to a small group at the Palazzo Orsini, along with Chitose Abe, the founder of Sacai, who will deliver her first couture collection for Jean Paul Gaultier as guest designer. It’s the same thing for Balenciaga, which, however, has not yet confirmed the new date following its absence from the digital couture Fashion Week. As for Off-White, the brand will experiment with see now, buy now under the leadership of Virgil Abloh and will also show its spring/summer 2021 ready-to-wear for men and women next January.