But First, Champagne! Designers Kick Off NYFW With Saks Before The Busy Week

Fashion Week kicked off with a designer roll call at Saks Fifth Avenue’s fête at Le Chalet at L Avenue at Saks. Wes Gordon, Thom Browne, Prabal Gurung, Sabyasachi, and Laura Kim and Fernando Garcia treated the night less like a schmooze and more like a reunion—an easy exhale before the sprint of shows.

This year, Saks moved its bash to Le Chalet—downstairs from the usual L’Avenue perch. The haunt below offered something different: an immersive, cabin-style space filled with plush upholstery; Saks-branded blankets draped over low-slung seating; cozy textures layered against bold leopard prints; and nods to fall’s prevailing trends tucked throughout. (“They’re Easter eggs!” a Saks rep told me.) In one corner, sequin-spangled dancers whirled; in another, a gleaming champagne tower was doused from the top down.

But the real draw wasn’t just the setting—it was the sense of community. Designers, many in the throes of prepping their own shows, showed up not to network but to breathe, to laugh, to toast with friends. Wes Gordon of Carolina Herrera, among the guests, told Vogue that the night has become a tradition: “It’s a night we look forward to all year. Everyone’s together, drinking, laughing, celebrating—it feels like the one moment in Fashion Week where you get to pause and actually enjoy it.”

That idea of family echoed across the room. Prabal Gurung, who has shown collections in New York for more than a decade, called the gathering essential to Fashion Week’s rhythm. “The Saks party really brings the fashion family together,” he said. “We’re oftentimes siloed, doing our own thing. But a moment like this—with the designers, the creatives, the people behind the scenes—is when we can all come together to start the month-long craziness that is fashion month.”

“It’s all about community,” said Roopal Patel, SVP, Fashion Director, Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus. Her look for the night? A shimmying V-neck Diotima dress—an obvious choice after a buzzy week for the brand, she noted. Having first clocked founder Rachel Scott’s talent through her work with the CFDA, Patel added that it’s been thrilling to champion her over the years—a reminder that Saks is always in tune with those defining fashion’s next chapter.

The feeling is mutual, per Gurung: “Saks was my first home when I started my collection,” he reflected. “It has been a home that has really helped me grow up, sheltered me, and given me an identity—because without Saks, I wouldn’t be here.”

The room mirrored that warmth. Curled around the logo-stamped, leopard-print pool table, guests raised coupe glasses and traded laughs—Thom Browne slipping in for a hello, Sabyasachi sharing hugs, Laura Kim Fernando Garcia catching up with friends—stealing moments on the dance floor and in the photo booth. By the time the last bottle was uncorked, the mood felt less about exclusivity and more about belonging—a private club where fashion’s most frenetic week momentarily slowed down.