London Fashion Week AW24: “Evolving To Stay Relevant”:
“Its The ‘Fab 40!’ proclaimed the Evening Standard on its front page on 19th February. The newspaper was extolling the fact that the latest London Fashion Week AW24 (16th-20th February) also marked four decades of “shining a light on the talent, diversity and creativity of the capital”. However, on the first day of the event, Rikki Loftus, a senior journalist with PA Media, had pointed out in the Irish News that the world has changed a great deal since 1984, so (she queried), is there still a place for LFW?
Even Lynne Franks, the “public relations legend” attributed as one of the masterminds behind the launching of LFW, acknowledged to the Euronews correspondent Estelle Nilsson-Julien on 17th February that she is now a little unsure exactly what is the purpose of fashion week and whether so many collections (in February and September each year) are really necessary. Sustainability (which has emerged since its inception as a major issue due to climate change) wasn’t, she admitted, something she used to think about back then: “It was about having fun and getting designers to stay in business”.
The fashion journalist and critic for Vogue Runway, Sarah Mower, conceded in the Sunday Times Style magazine on 11th February that “forty might seem an unbelievably establishment kind of age”. Nevertheless, she noted, that still makes us, the British, the youngest and hence to some extent the most innovative of the big four fashion capitals: The Paris shows began in the 1880’s, New York’s in the mid-1940’s, Milan’s in 1958, but none of these, she believes, can emulate London’s “superpower”, which is derived from it’s inclusiveness with designers from multiple backgrounds bringing cultural inspirations from Caribbean and African countries, India, Afghanistan, Iran, Ethiopia, Yemen and beyond.
Dr Benjamin Wild, senior lecturer of Fashion Narratives at Manchester Metropolitan University, likewise (he told Loftus)considers LFW still has value and “captures something that is quintessentially British by being a bit rebellious, playful and defying the norms”, but that it needs to increase its focus on environmental impact and accessibility factors.
On 16th February, the BBC’s culture reporters, Alex Taylor and Charlotte Gallagher, highlighted the concern expressed by the British Fashion Council (BFC) chair, David Pemsel, on the corporation’s “Breakfast” TV programme that the cost-of-living crisis, interest rates and the repercussions of Brexit were all creating difficulties for designers and fashion houses. Despite this, the anniversary edition of LFW hosted 67 designers across 46 catwalks and 36 events, with star attractions including Preen, Richard Quinn, Simone Rocha, Harris Reed, 16Arlington and Emilia Wickstead. According to the latest BFC industry bulletin, LFW contributes £21 billion to the UK economy and employs more than 900,000 people, while Mintel data shows that in 2023, sales of womenswear were valued at an estimated £30.9 billion and for men at £15 billion.
Just a few hours after Caroline Rush, the BFC Chief Executive, had opened LFW AW24 at the London Stock Exchange, the Conservative Government confirmed that the UK had entered a recession. A collapse of retail, the Guardian’s fashion editor Jess Cartner-Morley observed wryly on 17th February, was “not the ideal mood music to get this dressiest of birthday parties started”, but (she asserted), as it’s survived 40 years, London Fashion Week’s organisers are bullish about its future.
Caroline Stevenson, Programme Director of Fashion Studies at London College of Fashion UAL, however, at the moment seems rather less convinced. Similar to the BFC’s David Pemsel, she fears that LFW could miss out on talent because young people just can’t afford to participate. A clear example of this, she told Nilsson-Julien, was when, during last season’s autumn/winter LFW, a number of Britain’s hottest emerging designers, including SS Daley, Robyn Lynch and Dilara Findikoglu, decided not to put on catwalk shows because it would be too expensive. Brexit (she contended) has led to an increasing number of young people moving out of the UK due to the high cost of operating here and to the complicated new trade laws: “They may train in London, but a lot of their businesses are abroad and they will come back just for LFW”.
The BFC is acutely aware that, in view of fashion’s “colossal power to influence and guide social trends”, the industry has a unique capacity and responsibility to lead in positive change. Hence, in January it released its first-ever review of the state of “DEI” in the sector. This looked at “Diversity” (who is represented in the workforce), “Equity” (how equality of opportunity is ensured), “Inclusion” (how the workforce experiences the workplace) and “Belonging” (the level of security and comfortability felt by employees).
Among its key findings were that although 50% of Millennials (27 – 42 year olds) say it’s important to choose brands that have a “gender equity stance”. currently only 1% of “executive power roles” in fashion are held by people of colour and 24% by women. On the positive side, the representation of people of colour on catwalks and in advertising campaigns increased from 10%-15% in 2012 to 40%-50% in 2022, a more accurate reflection of London’s population, where most UK fashion companies are based.