China’s fashion week scorecard: Paris vs London vs Milan vs New York

A fortnight on from the big four European fashion week Spring 2026 showcases, their online impact has emerged. Once again, the events underscore China’s pivotal role in shaping the global fashion conversation. From front-row celebrity moments to viral social posts and Xiaohongshu-driven amplification, Chinese audiences are increasingly dominating online engagement for Western luxury houses. According to Launchmetrics, the software, data, and insights company, Media Impact Value (MIV) has become the standard currency for quantifying that influence. Recognized as the fashion industry’s leading and standardized metric, MIV converts social media mentions, engagement, and reach into an estimated dollar value equivalent to paid advertising. Through exclusive China-focused data, Launchmetrics has provided Jing Daily with insights into how luxury brands’ fashion week strategies resonate within one of the world’s most complex and influential digital ecosystems. By quantifying the impact of every post, partnership, and mention across both Western and Chinese platforms, the company’s data helps luxury houses pinpoint their most valuable local ambassadors, tailor storytelling to Chinese consumer behavior, and benchmark their visibility against global competitors. Below is a breakdown of each fashion week’s performance in China. New York Fashion Week New York Fashion Week (NYFW) generated a record $408.2 million in global MIV for its Spring 2026 season. According to Launchmetrics data, brands that strategically engaged Chinese and APAC celebrities and media drove much of the region’s social resonance. In the China-focused rankings, influencers and media were the top-performing voices, accounting for 37% and 53% of total MIV, respectively. Key local amplifiers included social accounts, such as Huang Jin Jie Ji Ka, which generated $102,000 in MIV, and platforms like Harper’s Bazaar China and Fashion Sina. Content on Xiaohongshu from these voices represented the top placements by value, demonstrating the critical role of localized social platforms in driving engagement. The data reveals a distinct media ecosystem for NYFW in China compared to other global fashion capitals. While China ranked 14th globally for NYFW coverage, generating $4.2 million in MIV, the voice distribution showed influencers capturing 37% of total value versus just 4% for celebrities. This contrasts sharply with London Fashion Week’s China performance, where celebrities drove 27% of MIV, suggesting different engagement patterns across fashion weeks. American brands achieved notable penetration in the Chinese market through strategic celebrity placements. Tory Burch led with $420,000 MIV from China, followed by Calvin Klein ($396,000) and Cos ($315,000). These brands successfully deployed the dual power of media titles and digital influencers to maximize their reach, with content from Huang Jin Jie Ji Ka and Ralph Lauren’s Chinese channels ranking as top value-generated voices. Globally, the impact of APAC celebrities was particularly pronounced for specific brands. Cos, which broke into the top five most powerful brands at NYFW with $15.8 million in MIV, ranked first among all participants for celebrity-driven MIV. This was largely fueled by Thai actresses Tipnaree Weerawatnodom and Pruk Panich, who delivered a combined $3.6 million in MIV. Similarly, Calvin Klein’s show, which led all brands with $57.4 million in MIV, was significantly boosted by BTS’ Jungkook, who drove 53% of the brand’s show performance through viral media coverage, despite not posting personally. Ralph Lauren also garnered significant mentions in China after K-pop star Winter of Aespa attended its show. London Fashion Week Trailblazing emerging designer cultivation, London Fashion Week (LFW) might not have as many blockbuster luxury houses as Milan, Paris or New York, but there were some commercial moments from H&M and Kent & Curwen that racked up engagement in China. According to Launchmetrics, the total MIV of the event was higher than New York, though, at $7.9 million. But the reach of Paris ($80.5 million) or Milan ($42 million), illustrates that there is more to be done in terms of engaging with the market. Burberry’s star-studded affair garnered the highest MIV at $2.1 million. From Wu Lei, to Stray Kids’ Seungmin and Bright Vachirawit, the Asian stars in attendance sparked conversation among fashion netizens. The British luxury house was followed by supermodel Hu Bing’s Selects’ Spring 2026 show, its second edition, at MIV of $1.1 million — the Chinese actor and model has been an ambassador of the British Fashion Council since 2015. H&M followed with $372,000, Kent & Curwen with $195,000, and Taiwanese designer Ray Chu with $182,000. That data is somewhat surprising, seeing as on Xiaohongshu #raychu has only 119,200 reads, while other Chinese designers on the LFW schedule such as Susan Fang or Mithridate. Despite the increasing number of Chinese designers showing, the event evidently needs to amp up its impact in China. On a global scale, Douyin came out top for content-efficiency at $10,000 in MIV, while TikTok followed at $8,700, proving the influence of Chinese netizens for LFW. On a regional scale, China was the least engaged market, at $7.9 million MIV, while the U.K. topped the chart with $47 million, followed by the U.S. ($35.1 million), Italy ($9 million), and France ($8.8 million). Milan Fashion Week Milan Fashion Week’s Spring 2026 season solidified the strategic importance of Asia-Pacific celebrities and influencers, with the region generating 44% of the event’s total MIV of $570.1 million. APAC-based celebrities alone drove 14 times more MIV than their European counterparts, according to Launchmetrics data. South Korea emerged as the leading force, contributing 14% of total MFW’s MIV and accounting for half of all global celebrity MIV. The K-pop group Enhypen was the most powerful voice, generating $25.2 million in MIV and capturing one-third of all impact originating from South Korea. Other key APAC celebrities included Karina of Aespa ($4.27 million MIV), Faye Peraya ($4.26 million MIV), and NCT ($3.66 million MIV). Chinese voices also demonstrated significant influence, with actress Bai Lu ranking as the top individual voice in the China-focused analysis, generating $1.4 million in MIV. She was followed by Vogueplus China ($1.3 million MIV) and actor Song Weilong ($874,000 MIV). Instagram and Xiaohongshu were the leading platforms. Brands made use of this regional influence. Prada’s show, which topped the brand rankings with $94.8 million in MIV, derived 94% of its celebrity MIV from APAC ambassadors, with Enhypen alone contributing 27% of the brand’s total value. Gucci, ranking second with $78.3 million in MIV, activated BTS’ Jin as a global ambassador, who drove 30% of the show’s total impact through owned content and third-party amplification. The concentration of value extends beyond celebrities to media channels. The Milan Fashion Week data reveals a turning point for media on TikTok, where publications generated an unprecedented 65% of the platform’s total MIV. This shift indicates how fashion content is consumed and amplified in key Asian markets. This media-celebrity combination delivers outsized returns for brands seeking APAC consumer engagement. Paris Fashion Week Paris Fashion Week Spring 2026 reinforced the event’s stature as the industry’s global pinnacle, but its MIV performance in China highlighted some opportunities and disparities in engagement. According to Launchmetrics, China ranked fifth among global markets, contributing $80.5 million in MIV and accounting for 7% of total global coverage. The figure underscores China’s continued relevance as a digital engagement powerhouse. In the brand rankings, Dior led with a commanding $11.7 million in total MIV, followed by Miu Miu ($5.9 million), Loewe ($5.5 million), Chanel ($3.9 million), and Celine ($3.8 million). Each utilized high-profile Chinese celebrity attendance and social amplification to sustain visibility across local platforms such as Weibo, Xiaohongshu, and Douyin. Notably, once-cancelled, now-thriving popstar Cai Xukun’s Instagram post from the Mugler show emerged as the top individual post of the season, attracting over 1 million likes, while Chinese actress and singer Dilraba Dilmurat’s appearance post ranked second, achieving similar engagement — reaffirming the global pull of Chinese talent, even on Western platforms. While Milan and New York relied on localized influencer ecosystems and regional ambassadors to drive conversation, Paris’ MIV strength came from the enduring prestige of heritage maisons and global celebrity moments. However, the data suggests a growing appetite among Chinese audiences for fresh narratives and direct digital engagement rather than legacy-driven visibility. As PFW continues to command aspirational allure, the next frontier lies in deepening two-way resonance with China’s increasingly sophisticated and content-driven fashion consumers.

Inside China’s influence on Spring 2026 fashion weeks

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Inside China’s influence on Spring 2026 fashion weeks