Exciting debuts, triumphant returns and lots and lots of bonnets. A strong season for Copenhagen Fashion Week (CPHFW) drew to a close on Friday in the Danish town of Aalborg, where Stine Goya staged a one-off show in the Kunsten Museum of Modern Art.
The schedule looked a little different for Autumn/Winter 2025, due in large part to the recent closure of key labels (Di)vision and Saks Potts. “The mood this season was a mixed bag,” says Allyson Shiffman, print editor of Vogue Scandinavia. “There’s a lot of chatter about Saks Potts exiting the chat, people are still discussing the absence of Ganni. But young designers really brought their A game this season. There was a lot of creativity and a lot of optimism.”
With the change in the fashion calendar this season, CPHFW clashed with couture week, which meant some of the usual buyers weren’t in town. CPHFW content, which usually gets its own moment on social media, was also competing with juggernauts like Kylie Jenner and Chanel in Paris. “It definitely affected me and the team,” says Shiffman. “It’s nice for us to focus solely on Copenhagen Fashion Week on all our channels as it’s our local fashion week. Clashing with couture muddied the digital narrative a little.”
However, several brands reported an uptick in business after a couple of tough seasons. “It feels really promising. The vibe is good, and positivity is coming back,” says Frederik Berner Kühl, founder of emerging brand Berner Kühl, which held its AW25 presentation on Wednesday. “We do most of the sales in Paris [at the showroom], but here in Copenhagen, we talk to a lot of press, as well as some buyers. I think the combination of the two is good because here you get the chance to talk to people who might be too busy in Paris.”
“Even though 2024 was an unprecedentedly difficult year for our industry and 2025 has started off under deeply troubling circumstances, the sense I’m getting is that our industry is determined to rise above these challenges. So all in all, a quite surprisingly, very buzzing and optimistic fashion week this time,” says CPHFW CEO Cecilie Thorsmark.
Designers raised the bar on creativity and storytelling
Copenhagen Fashion Week has become known for its contemporary, more commercial fashion — and this season delivered oodles of chic, wearable collections from the likes of Gestuz, Baum und Pferdgarten, Herskind and The Garment. But amid a luxury slowdown, where the mid-level consumer is spending less, some designers explored more creative showpieces or experimented with new aesthetics this season, to inspire interest and world-building.
On Monday, Danish knitwear designer A Roege Hove staged a runway show in a warehouse space in the east of the city. Founder Amalie Røge Hove has had a rocky journey: she closed and then reopened her brand last year, amid financial struggles. This season, she wanted to experiment and let loose her creativity to generate excitement. Alongside her usual layered bodycon knits, the designer presented a few showpieces for the first time, including a boned grey dress with a pannier skirt.
“We allowed ourselves to go a little bit more crazy in the studio. I wanted some more story,” the designer said backstage after the show. “For this season, we have been trying to navigate the balance between what we want to do creatively and what we will sell. Before, I very much felt everything had to go into production. With the grey dress, it’s one of those pieces where we’re like, ‘Let’s see what happens!’”
Later that day, rising star Nicklas Skovgaard returned to the runway with a high-energy show, which blended his signature ’80s silhouettes, panniers and jersey-draped eveningwear with new styles, like heavy-duty biker jackets, structured knits with flowing skirts, and mini dresses with asymmetrical flared hems. Unlike his previous, more performance-based shows, which typically featured models dancing, this was a more traditional runway affair that underlined his design prowess, experts agree (albeit with a club soundtrack by local band Fame Hunter). Maud Pupato, buying director for luxury womenswear, accessories and footwear at Printemps, notes the show as a highlight, describing it as “punchy and creative”.
Womenswear brand Rotate, meanwhile, incorporated sculptural skirts created by Danish multimedia artist and experimental knitwear designer Sofia Linnemann (whose own brand Heste Jente is stocked by Ssense), lending drama to the show, which closed out day four of fashion week.
“Brands propose even more qualitative and elevated pieces season after season [in Copenhagen],” says Pupato. “The Garment or A Roege Hove proposed a new vision of minimalism, with more texture and a playful use of accessories, hats as well as a big focus on gloves.”
Emerging talent Alectra Rothschild’s Monday night show featured and celebrated Rothschild’s trans and queer community. It began with a voiceover of President Donald Trump discussing reversing trans rights — a powerful reminder of the dangers trans and queer people are currently facing, and a rare political statement for CPHFW. “A highlight for me was Alectra Rothschild’s trans rage show that reminded us it’s a messed-up world out there and we can’t live in a fashion bubble,” Vogue Scandinavia’s Shiffman says.
Pupato was also struck by MKDT Studio, which is now under creative director Caroline Engelgaar following the departure of founder Mark Kenly Domino Tan in 2022. “It was absolutely stunning, the venue was the right place to showcase these white and beige tones [surrounded by] sculptural statues. There was reinvented tailoring, pleated skirts and delicate pearls necklaces in the back — one of my favourites,” she says.
Pan-Nordic representation
CPHFW continues to expand its representation of brands from the broader Nordics, to the delight of many attendees.
Icelandic outerwear label 66North took over a vast warehouse space on Tuesday to celebrate its 99th birthday, demonstrating archival pieces from the brand’s rich history. During Vogue Business’s visit, CEO Helgi Óskarsson pointed out a 1920s fisherman jacket and a 1950s raincoat that a fan of 66North kindly donated after finding it in her grandmother’s home. The presentation is part of 66North’s mission to expand globally, Óskarsson says.
Swedish brand Filippa K hosted a presentation in its Copenhagen store, where models posed together, laughing and drinking wine. It was a chance to get to know CEO Marie Forssenius and creative director Anna Teurnell (both of whom were appointed around a year ago), and see the first full collection developed under Teurnell’s eye.
Malmö-based menswear label Cmmn Swdn also returned to CPHFW, introducing womenswear to its offering with a show in Thorvaldsens Museum.
“This season has welcomed so many brilliant Danish and Nordic additions to the schedule — from Cmmn Swdn and 66 North, to Alis and Filippa K — and it has been a joy to experience them,” says Thorsmark. She adds: “It is essential that we come together as a Nordic collective, as we are truly stronger together. We deeply value our collaboration with the Swedish Fashion Council, Oslo Runway, Fashion in Helsinki and the Icelandic Fashion Council, and look forward to strengthening these connections.”
Vive la presentation!
For a few seasons now, editors have questioned whether every Copenhagen brand needs a show, when many of the more commercial Scandi brands lend themselves better to a presentation format — allowing attendees to get up close and personal with the pieces. CPHFW added presentations to the official schedule last season, with Filippa K and 66North the only brands to take advantage for AW25.
Stamm — which is part of CPHFW’s New Talent programme, alongside Alectra Rothschild and Berner Kühl among others — created an immersive presentation on Monday that felt like stepping into a woodland. A Stamm bride lay across the floor, writing love letters; a cauldron bubbled and emitted mist from the centre of the room; models lounged in windows, sporting the brand’s cool, tonal streetwear. The young designer has reorganised her business since last season, and it felt right to stage a presentation this time to allow people to get closer to the clothes.
Elsewhere, Ukrainian designer TG Botanical held an off-schedule presentation on Thursday morning, in lieu of a show, where guests could see models having their makeup done before they sauntered around the space in the brand’s earth-toned, textured dresses and separates (also displayed on a rail). Designer Tetyana Chumak said it was important this season to allow people to touch the clothes and see up close how they’re made — with care — in Ukraine.
New Balance continued its sweep of small-scale community activations in Copenhagen this time around. Many editors took time out of their schedules to visit the Niko June x New Balance 700-metre-square custom-built skatepark with huge skateable installations, created by Soulland creative director Silas Adler and art director Tom Botwid. It was open to the public Tuesday and Wednesday, hosting a skate competition on the Tuesday night.
New talents emerge, new brands thrive
Stel, the new contemporary womenswear brand by former London menswear designer Astrid Andersen, launched last season, took over Saks Potts’s Monday night slot to make its runway debut with a show in the headquarters of Danish architecture firm Big. Guests sipped Pet-Nat and sat on fluffy cream sofas as local music artist Hilarii sang velvety pop-soul. Post-show, Andersen and the models joined attendees for a drink. “We’re definitely not just a show brand, I wanted people to get up close to the clothes after and see how they feel,” the designer said.
Upcycled tailoring brand Bonnetje, founded by Anna Myntekær and Yoko Maja Hansen, made its runway debut on Monday night, after graduating from the CPHFW One to Watch mentoring scheme to its funded New Talent programme. The brand showed its upcycled, structural suiting (aptly) in an old-fashioned office space, ceiling tiles and all. A highlight was skirts and dresses made from vertical office blinds.
Another newcomer, Danish-Korean label Birrot, made a well-received runway debut on Monday, where well-made separates and knitwear were on full display. Young streetwear label Fine Chaos — which is building a strong business in Asia, with stockists in Tokyo, Chengdu and Seoul — staged an otherworldly show in Werkstatt nightclub, accompanied by a live performance by Danish electro-pop music group Kind Mod Kind.
Artisanal Nigerian label Iamsigo’s Bubu Ogisi won the third edition of the Zalando Visionary Award, announced at a glamorous dinner on Wednesday evening. As part of the prize, Iamsigo will show in Copenhagen in the summer, supported by the German retailer.
Trends to note
Copenhagen is a great place to spot the trends that will dominate the upcoming womenswear season, ahead of New York, London, Paris and Milan.
As we saw at Milan men’s, fur is big for AW25. We spotted voluminous fur coats at Munthe; floor-length, high-drama fur coats and stoles at Rotate, in shades of burgundy, brown and cream; as well as furry hats at Cmmn Swdn. Off the runway, show-goers throughout the week paired fur coats of all lengths with tailoring or dresses and heels, from brands such as Rotate and OpéraSport.
Plaid is another trend that’s lingered from the menswear shows, spotted at men’s brand Cmmn Swdn’s first-ever co-ed show featuring its new womenswear range, as well as Caro Editions and Henrik Vibskov.
Pantone’s Colour of the Year, mocha mousse, was omnipresent, as were other earthy tones like olive green. This palette was seen across several shows, from dresses and separates at TG Botanical, to brown outerwear and tailoring at MKDT, to the high-glamour brown, burgundy and olive green used at Gestuz. Munthe, Skall Studio and The Garment also leant into nature-adjacent hues.
There were strong trends in terms of accessories, too, Printemps’s Pupato adds. “I always feel that Copenhagen is one of the most creative fashion weeks in terms of layering and styling, and this season that was still the case,” she says. “The use of accessories like scarves as belts were everywhere but different, offering so many possibilities and inviting the customer to explore and be unique.” Wool bonnets were a major trend among the street style set, as were neckties, skinny scarves and conventional ties. “Everyone was wearing a suit and tie, including me,” Shiffman says. “It’s a very Scandi thing to blend femininity and masculinity that way.”
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