SHANGHAI — After being forced to go digital due to Shanghai’s two-month lockdown last season, Shanghai Fashion Week returns with a physical edition.
From Thursday through September 30, SFW’s Spring 2023 edition will host more than 64 shows with a focus on local designers.
Chinese model Lu Yan’s contemporary brand Comme Moi, experienced local designer brands 8on8, Nume, Xu Zhi, Staffonly, Mayali and Garçon by Garçon will perform at the official venue of Taiping Lake Park near Xintiandi.
SFW will continue its partnership with Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, with live streams and post-show runway video releases.
To celebrate its 20th anniversary, SFW will host a series of talks, including the China Fashion Industry Forum in association with McKinsey & Co., and the SFW She Power: Fashion Women Forum II.
Some 12 showrooms and trade shows, including a smaller version of Mode, SFW’s official trade show, will continue as planned.
Labelhood, the Shanghai-based emerging designer support platform, will return to The Bund, occupying two historic buildings in Rock Bund, a shopping mall complex.
M Essential Noir, Annenono, Ao Yes, Un Morceau, MTG, Yiben Chen and Yehua Fan will make their runway debut.
“For us, being able to host the event is already a success,” said Tasha Liu, founder of Labelhood.
Stricter screening protocols have been put in place as China sticks to its zero COVID-19 policy. Show staff must show proof of 24-hour COVID-19 testing for five consecutive days prior to the event, while fashion show attendees will need to show valid 24-hour COVID-19 test results to enter venues of SFW.
At Ontimeshow, the largest fashion trade show during SFW, sites will be sanitized daily.
For many brands, hosting off-site fashion shows became a popular option in previous seasons, but as the hurdle in getting the event approved by local authorities became very difficult due to COVID-related restrictions. 19, staying in official places became the safest option.
Ontimeshow will expand to nine show venues covering more than 29,000 square meters. Its Room Room showroom will feature nine new brands, including Self-Portrait, Qiuhao and Private Policy.
According to Aroma Xie, co-founder and chief marketing officer of Ontimeshow, after noticing an uptick in lifestyle brands in the market, Room Room will feature 14 fragrance brands in its showroom.
Zemira Xu, founder of Tube Showroom, said the showroom will re-introduce brands launched during last season of alternative Hangzhou Showroom, including Bad Binch Tongtong, Office H and Structura.
“We’ll see how this season fares in terms of buyer attendance before deciding if we should do a pop-up showroom in another city,” Xu said. “At this point, no one is planning ahead anymore.”
Source: wwd.com