"If it's a good idea, why wouldn't you make 2,000 of them? I don't get up in the morning and think about making clothes for only two people. I'm interested in actually having an influence." Jasper Conran
When we get up in the morning and decide what to wear, we're
making a conscious fashion decision, whether we realise it or not. We are
influenced by fashion.
We might prefer to imagine that we are the agents of our own
sartorial free will.
Yet, for many of us, it is undeniable that how we choose to
dress ourselves each morning is the result of countless hours of trend
forecasters, industry analysis and designer innovation that has trickled down
from the catwalk to the High Street.
London Fashion Week February 2015
Originally the site of a Tudor palace, Somerset House was
designed by Sir William Chambers in 1776, and was further extended with
Victorian wings to the north and south.
Twice a year, London's grand neoclassical setting off the
Strand, attracts a host of fashion designers and their models dressed in their
best glad rags.
The courtyard becomes the centre of London Fashion Week - a
far cry from the building's past as home
to the Inland Revenue!
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| Spectacular Specs! |
This year was the event's 61st year
More than 250 designers showcased their collections for
autumn and winter to a global audience.
The fashion sector plays a significant role in the UK
economy - it generates £26bn for the UK each year, rakes in £10.7bn from
consumers and supports almost 800,000 jobs.
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| Elegance |
Sales of c. £100m are placed in the five days.
London Fashion Week is a crucial element in this, as orders
of approximately £100m are placed during the five days - and the shows are
watched on line by audiences in 190 countries worldwide.
It's the showcase of the very best of British businesses to
an international audience
Filter-down trends
The spectacular clothes worn by models on the catwalk can
appear impractical, unaffordable and sometimes ridiculous. So will they really
affect what we wear, come this September?
Traditionally, the idea has been that the clothes and styles
adopted by the richest in society eventually filter through and influence the
rest of us.
Street fashion
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| Purposeful stride with style |
Since the social upheavals of the 1960s, an opposite process
has evolved, whereby designers have been increasingly inspired by the clothes
people wear on the streets.
So although the trickle-down progression might not be as
clear-cut as it once was - when designers dictated the trends and people
dutifully followed - it is still in evidence today.
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| Panache |
The eyes and ears out
for all the apparel brands in the FTSE 500 during the week
Internet acts as a catalyst
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| Classy faux fur |
We may not wear the exact look that we see coming down the
runway on a model, but we will pick up little things.
There's always something
reflected in the High Street that comes through from London Fashion Week.
The Internet acts as a catalyst to speed up the process and
democratise fashion even further.
Collections that were once viewed only by the ticketed few
appear on line later the same day and on social media, instantaneously.
The transition
from Catwalk to High Street
As everyone can now see what is being shown, this has meant
that the procedure of translating catwalk designs to the High Street has accelerated.
Back in the day, it could take six months to a year for
runway trends to hit the High Street. Now it can be as short as three weeks. (
maybe even a day see * Knyttan)
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| Carrying literature, equipment and products over the neoclassical cobbles is perilous! |
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| Models herald their entrance to Somerset Square with the clatter of wheeled suitcases over the cobbled entrance for London Fashion Week February 2015 |
Related links
*Knyttan One stop shop design pop up
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