“When I started, the energy was so ecstatic around menswear in London. I don’t know what happened for that to change. I just wish it could go back to how it was,” says London-based menswear designer Robyn Lynch.
It’s a sentiment echoed by many longtime London Fashion Week (LFW) attendees. It’s hard to put your finger on it: maybe there was more money, maybe the parties were better, maybe trade opportunities were more plentiful pre-Brexit. Some of that is admittedly nostalgia, but it’s clear that London’s menswear scene is in flux.
In April, the British Fashion Council (BFC) announced that it was cancelling the June edition of LFW and would focus on its showroom in Paris instead, which is running from 26 June to 1 July. The LFW June edition was initially launched in 2012 as a men’s fashion week, and there was also a men’s edition held in January. In its heyday, brands such as JW Anderson, Wales Bonner, Craig Green, Martine Rose and Kiko Kostadinov drew in an international audience. In 2020, amid pandemic disruptions, the January edition was cancelled, and the June event became co-ed as more shows began shifting that way. After two digitally presented June editions, it returned to a physical format in 2022 with a small but buzzy edition featuring the likes of Ahluwalia and Labrum London, as well as an off-schedule show from Martine Rose. The following year, the schedule shrunk considerably and only featured a few shows, and in 2024, the BFC trialled a new format with a couple of shows along with panel talks and events celebrating the queer, South Asian and Black communities.
“Fewer designers showing led to fewer press and buyers travelling, which led to even fewer designers feeling it was worth the effort, and skipping London presentations to head straight to Paris,” says London menswear designer Luke Derrick.
Despite their nostalgia for the menswear seasons of the past, designers and buyers commend the BFC’s decision to cancel the June edition this year and focus on a showroom. Harry Fisher, founder and director of London store and agency Htown, says the BFC showrooms tend to be better than most he comes across. “The BFC showroom is actually really good, I’m a firm believer in it. It’s a good space to meet people, it’s affordable to take part in, and top people do actually come to look at the collections,” says Fisher. The BFC says that its foundation, which supports the showroom, has increased its financial commitment by over 80 per cent this year to allow designers subsidised fees, but declined to share the specific rate.
Nevertheless, the move raises a question about the place that menswear should have in the London schedule going forward. And it’s an opportune time to discuss the future: Caroline Rush has just exited after almost 16 years as BFC chief executive, to be replaced by Laura Weir.
Designers and buyers have mixed views. Some say that the February and September LFW shows don’t make sense for menswear as they are misaligned with the traditionally earlier buying window. Many London menswear designers have already moved away from London, instead opting to show in Milan or Paris, where they benefit from a bigger audience.
Others point to the benefit of hosting a show in a city where you have connections, and buyers note the energy when viewing a brand in the cultural context of its home country. “Paris is my home for fashion week, it’s where I want my brand to be taken seriously, and where I see the brand flourishing long-term. But London still has my heart. Paris feels like climbing the ladder; London feels like dancing with the people who helped me build it,” says designer Charles Jeffrey, who presented his collection in London earlier this month. He showed his AW25 show in Paris and also trialled Milan back in 2023. For small to medium-sized London brands showing in Paris or Milan, they can be a small fish in a big pond, so they risk buyers and press skipping their show to prioritise bigger brands.
Aligning with the menswear calendar
While many London designers present co-ed shows or gender-neutral designs, they still feel that the biggest barrier to showing at the two remaining LFW editions is the timing. “The way fashion weeks are evolving — with some combining men’s and women’s presentations and others not — timing becomes really important for business,” says Saul Nash, who showed in Milan for a second time this season. Having a dedicated space for menswear in London could be valuable, especially for brands that aren’t strictly aligned with the womenswear calendar.” At LFW’s most recent edition in February, only one brand on schedule presented solely menswear (Denzilpatrick) while others, such as SS Daley, Labrum London and Lueder, presented co-ed collections.
The London calendar presents trade-offs for some. Lynch recalls her SS23 show, which was presented in June 2022, performed the best commercially with wholesale clients, while her AW23 show, presented in September 2023, received more press attention. “Our wholesale plummeted because we were trying to sell in the menswear market prior to having a show. It sounds fickle, but some buyers really look at Instagram traction and audience attendance at the shows of emerging designers if they’re on the fence about placing an order,” Lynch says, adding that she believes the mismatch has been “detrimental” to her business.
Buyers also say that the January and June calendars work better for them, not just for menswear brands, but also for womenswear brands that are selling pre-season. “I prefer to buy brands in June and July rather than in September and October because the time from delivery to how long we have to sell a product from one season to the next is longer,” says Stavros Karelis, founder and buying director at London concept store Machine-A.
If LFW’s June edition remains cancelled for the foreseeable future, there could be opportunities for the BFC to increase its partnerships in Milan and Paris. Fisher recalls a partnership between the BFC and Camera Nazionale della Moda in January 2020, where the BFC brought its London showroom to Milan for the first time. It featured British and Italian menswear designers selected by both organisations. “It was really cool because it brought the London energy but with the ability to sell in Milan,” says Fisher.
Most emerging and independent brands seem to be putting their limited budgets into showrooms over shows these days, says Karelis. The benefit is that there are more overt commercial opportunities here, but the key is to pick the right showroom to ensure visibility is maximised (which it seems the BFC’s showroom will be able to deliver, according to longtime attendees like Fisher). Designers who forego a show in favour of a showroom could use the platform to stand out by adding immersive elements through set design or music, creating a hybrid between the commercial opportunities offered through a standard showroom and the storytelling offered through a show. The downside to brands foregoing shows in London in favour of a Paris or Milan showroom is that it may reinforce that LFW is one to skip.
Still, designers and buyers are on the fence about whether it would make sense to bring back the LFW January and June shows (the BFC declined to comment on whether it would consider bringing back the June edition, and under which conditions). Some say a new format is needed. “Social media has created ecosystems where labels can exist entirely outside the official schedule, and still build respect within their own niche, perhaps beyond luxury, perhaps inventing new business models completely independent of the seasonal wholesale model that fashion weeks support,” says Derrick. “Maybe the question is less regarding the nature of the space needed, but what we define as credible within that space.”
Awakening London’s menswear scene
London has a reputation for birthing some of the most creative and exciting brands. The problem is that they often leave because it’s hard to scale a business in the UK. “With Milan, there’s a structure and seriousness that allows the work to breathe,” says Jordan Bowen, co-founder of London-based menswear brand Jordanluca, which usually shows in Milan. “You’re not taken as seriously in London because we don’t have the infrastructure. It feels like your wings are clipped and you’re only ever allowed to be an emerging brand.”
Karelis would like to see more established menswear designers return to London, even if it’s not every season. “This is where the BFC can play an important part in inviting them back to London and supporting them in creating these big moments,” says Karelis. He also points to Pitti’s guest designer format, which could be an avenue for inviting exciting brands to show in London. The same goes for covering attendance for international press and buyers. “If London wants to remain competitive, we have to see the power in investing in those relationships.”
The BFC acknowledges that securing international attendance is integral to the success of LFW. “We are looking at new ways to refresh and boost the programme,” says a representative.
The main challenge is Brexit. “People aren’t buying British brands because they don’t want to deal with shipments from the UK because of the duties and taxes, so then it becomes a matter of warehousing, production issues and where you keep your stock,” says Jordanluca co-founder Luca Marchetto.
“We are regularly engaging with colleagues in both the UK government and EU Commission on issues of concern to British Fashion Brands and, working together, hope to address issues of concern,” says the BFC spokesperson, adding that it aligns its voice with other EU markets through its participation in the European Fashion Alliance, and has also actively supported calls to join the Pan-Euro-Mediterranean convention customs pact. Earlier this week, the UK government released the Creative Industries Sector Plan, which aims to support the sector as economic growth drivers with investments in innovation and skills. “We will be working to ensure that fashion businesses trading into the EU are recognised in that work,” says the BFC spokesperson.
There are also calls to reawaken British fashion’s industrial backbone. “There’s no shortage of talent here; we have the schools, the culture, the history. But we’ve lost the infrastructure,” says Jeffrey. “In Milan, designers are supported by the local industry. Here, you’re expected to magically make a business out of vibes and duct tape. I’d love to see government-backed initiatives that merge tech innovation with heritage craft. Imagine reviving our old mills and factories as hubs for experimental fashion tech. That’s how you create jobs and culture. That’s how you make London a capital again, not just a destination.”
Comments, questions or feedback? Email us at feedback@voguebusiness.com.
British Fashion Council cancels London Fashion Week June edition
What the BFC Foundation is doing to support independent brands
