London Fashion Week attracted more than 5,000 visitors from 25 countries and broke previous records to generate £21 million for the capital’s economy tomorrow, according to the event’s organisers.
Fashion Week generates orders of £100 million. The event itself contributes £21 million to the London economy in terms of direct spend. It attracts visitors from many countries including the US, China, Russia and the Middle East.
London Fashion Week (LFW) was one of the busiest and most upbeat the city has seen in recent years.
Just as shoppers are beginning to think about buying spring clothes, the fashion industry is turning its attention to autumn 2012.
The week saw a mixture of big British fashion labels, such as Burberry Prorsum, Stella McCartney, Mulberry, and Vivienne Westwood, as well as myriad smaller brands and complete newcomers, such as Simone Rocha, Antipodium, Tata-Naka, Martine Rose and Matthew Miller. McQ by Alexander McQueen will debut a runway show for the first time.
Antonia Wesseloh, 16, a model who is appearing on runways for several LFW shows such as Daks, says: “It’s such an exciting event and everyone is buzzing because of the glamour, amazing styles and diverse people.”
She adds: “London Fashion Week is definitely crazier than New York, because people dare to show off their extraordinary, but unique style. Londoners are more bold when it comes to expressing fashion.”
LFW at Somerset House puts British Fashion firmly on the global stage. Digital technologies and social media are playing an increasingly important role. Live-stream shows and mobile apps are making it possible for consumers to watch runway events from their laptops and mobile phones.
Robyn Kotze, a senior fashion editor from InStyle, says: “Fashion week is absolutely amazing because it brings together smaller brands with the big names. It’s exciting to see how each label sets the styles of tomorrow and is trying to establish a name for themselves in the industry.”
While editors-in-chief from upmarket fashion magazines and international fashion buyers watch the shows from the front rows, the public can now watch it live on the Internet.
In 2011, Burberry streamed its LFW show live to 150 countries from a digital screen in Piccadilly Circus. Commuters got daily updates on screens at more than 60 stations on the London Underground.
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One of the most exciting parts of LFW is finding small designers who have the promise and potential to make a mark in the industry. The event is dedicated to showcasing new talent, and emerging designers are to be found everywhere.
During LFW, Fashion East, will host a catwalk show of emerging new talents in the British fashion industry. Each season Fashion East gives young designers a bursary, catwalk show-production and PR support to help them launch their labels.
Fashion East has been credited with kick-starting the careers of some of the UK’s most prolific design talents including Jonathan Saunders and House of Holland. This year, Fashion East is supporting James Long, Marques Almeida and Maarten van der Horst.
It is a unique event allowing both established and new designers a platform to display their latest collections.