International stars have been lured by the city’s pop culture heritage, but fashion week is keeping its idiosyncratic edge
Fashion week is now in the entertainment business. Designers of today crave fans, not customers. London – home of the Abbey Road zebra crossing, of 221B Baker Street and of platform 9 3/4 at King’s Cross station – has world-class heritage as a city where pop culture history gets made. This blockbuster reputation has lured more big beasts of the industry to London than ever before. Giorgio Armani and Tommy Hilfiger are joining Donatella Versace on the catwalk schedule, and Rihanna will visit to showcase her Fenty Beauty line.
Hilfiger, the ultimate stars-and-stripes American designer – his logo even resembles the flag – has previously shown in New York and Los Angeles. This season, his show at the Roundhouse in Camden will serve as the closing party for London fashion week. “London has the most inspiring heritage as a city, and the Roundhouse itself is part of rock’n’roll history,” Hilfiger explains over the phone while preparing to travel to London. The venue has hosted legendary gigs including Jimi Hendrix in 1967 (his Fender Stratocaster was stolen from the side of the stage) and the Ramones in 1976. “The catwalk is just another kind of stage. Fashion has to go beyond clothes and be an experience. This is me taking the brand on the road for a world tour.”
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