London Fashion Week Continues to Attract Local Talent

The Jing Daily Fashion Week score moves with the circuit, this time touching down in London, which again is being presented as a hybrid of physical events, showrooms, and digital outings across five days. Although Burberry was sadly missing, the schedule made up for its gaps with plenty of glamorous parties, attended by guests like Anna Wintour and new tennis poster child Emma Radacanu, fresh off her US open win a brand ambassador appointment by Tiffany. London has long been a draw for young creatives, and this schedule affirmed that status. Hotly tipped names like Nensi Dojaka debuted, as did Harris Reed, S.S. Daley, and more recognizable early-stage names like Richard Malone, who collaborated with Mulberry, and Richard Quinn, tapped by whiskey brand Royal Salute. Chinese label Pronounce returned to the runway, wooing guests thrilled to be seeing fashion up close while Yuhan Wang delivered an equally assured lineup. A new addition to the agenda was BFC’s Newgen TikTok Show Space, which held a series of workshops and panel discussions. In light of the continued difficulties facing brands this season, Jing Daily focuses even more closely on its scoring methodology, based on the below parameters. As such, we offer readers deeper insights into a brand’s China footprint (both physical stores and online presence), how well they are representing consumers, and how it is engaging with Chinese audiences. Then, we evaluate how well these initiatives worked overall. Again, the score ranks a curated selection of any global luxury name on the schedule alongside Chinese brands, analyzing how both connect with valuable Mainland shoppers. London continues to attract a substantial amount of labels from China that crave an entrance into its creative ecosystem and cultural position. Spring 2022 saw a boost in the number of local names opting for the digital schedule, and a whopping nine emerging local names joined the event overall. Methodology: Model representation: evaluates representation of Asian models on the runway. Digital impact: evaluates Chinese netizen reception and engagement on leading social media platforms, including Weibo, WeChat, and Xiaohongshu. KOL & celebrity visibility: consider the star power associated with the brand through strategic KOL and celebrity partnerships. Special brand efforts: consider special programs or efforts on a brand’s part to speak to the Chinese audience. Company or brand contributions toward the ongoing virus crisis are also considered. Design context: a qualitative assessment of how the brand’s collection will speak to the Chinese audience based on current trends and preferences. Brand history: considers existing brand history in China, including overall presence, social reach, number of stores, earning trends, and brand missteps. Simone Rocha Brand History: Actively dressing local celebrities and collaborating with magazines means the brand has gathered an organic following of over 2,200 on Weibo. The label is currently stocked at both I.T. and Galeries Lafayette. Model Representation: 6/35 looks Influencer Impressions: Thanks to the coverage of local fashion media outlets @SinaFashio, @IfFashion, and fashion KOL @Dipsy迪西, the brand's social posts have reached 54 million netizens in total. Netizen Reaction: Overall highly positive. Simone Rocha’s romantic, retro vibe was further accentuated in its Spring 2022 collection. Netizens stated that they couldn’t wait to buy the extravagant pieces, heavily layered with tulle, lace embroidery, and pearl jewelry — perfectly suited to netizen tastes, with @Xigu3yearold demanding to know "when it would be released in-store?" The verdict Launching just before H&M's cancellation, the Swedish multinational's collaboration with Rocha crashed its website in China, indicating the brand's huge potential in the market. Rocha’s girlish and heavily adorned style is much beloved by local consumers. Further efforts such as expanding sales channels, hosting events, and promoting the collection on multiple popular social platforms may help consolidate its positioning. Pronounce Brand History: Founded by Yushan Li and Jun Zhou, Pronounce has established a strong presence on Chinese social media platforms, garnering a combined following of 33,000 followers on Weibo and Xiaohongshu. The rising star has stockists distributed all over China, from Tier-1, Tier-2, and Tier-3 cities, including major multi-brand stores like Réel, I.T, and Labelhood. Model Representation: 4/35 looks Influencer Impressions: Thanks to local fashion media outlets @ID-China and @Hypebeast posting about the show, social posts reached 14 million netizens in total. Netizen Reaction: Overall Positive. Continuing the theme of the brand's Fall 2021 Fragment Porcelain collection, this group explores the restoration of this material via the astute fusion of Western aesthetics and Chinese sensibilities. Weibo was full of life as the oeuvre's rich details & references were greatly appreciated by netizens. @catherineyang76867 wished to experience the show "in real life." The verdict From inspirational images to the fitting process, Pronounce made its followers take part in the backstage of a fashion show this time via its Xiaohongshu livestream. As a result, netizens were amused by the brand and paid close attention to the collection. Plus, the brand cleverly offered ten tickets for Shanghai Fashion Week to lucky followers who liked all their show posts. Yuhan Wang Brand History : The Chinese designer brand was slow to enter China but is now stocked by seven multi-brand stores in Greater China, including well-known names such as Lane Crawford, Labelhood, and SND. Model Representation: 3/33 looks Influencer Impressions: Thanks to local fashion media outlets like Harper's Bazaar and KOLs such as Queenie Yang posting about the show, the label’s Spring 2022 physical presentation garnered a viewership of nearly 47 million in total. Netizen Reaction: Overall positive. Wang’s credible balance of Western and Eastern cultural representations, with an exquisite offsetting of softness and strength, has greatly resonated with Chinese netizens. More importantly, her approach to women’s issues has empowered her consumers. The verdict Wang made a bold diversion from her highly romanticized themes, and this season, she took a more political stance, exploring the dark side of society, especially violence against women. This shift, along with inspirations from previous collections, is reaching local audiences via fashion media outlets. However, as a local designer label, it has room to strengthen its storytelling via WeChat and Weibo. Erdem Brand History: Although Erdem has stores in Taiwan and Hong Kong, the company has yet to establish a presence in Mainland China, where it records no sales channels. Moreover, its official account on Weibo has as little as 400 followers, and, in 2020, it ceased activity. Model Representation: 5/43 looks Influencer Impressions: With influencers like @ElephantKingdom and @FashionBangz_ posting about the show, social posts reached 39 million netizens in total. Netizen Reaction: Overall highly positive. Featuring the style of an 18th-century British lady, the beautiful prints in Erdem’s Spring 2022 collection, with their exquisite embroidery, elegant contours, and romantic details, were highly praised by netizens. @QiaoMeiTakesPoint commented: "This is so gorgeous.” The verdict The show marks Erdem’s 15th anniversary and its first physical show since the pandemic began. The collection has received considerable exposure thanks to local bloggers and media outlets. Yet, the dressing of Emma Raducanu for Tiffany & Co.’s endorsement announcement further bolstered market awareness. Given the high appreciation from domestic consumers, it is time for the London-based brand to consider debuting in the Mainland and placing more effort on social media to increase its reach. Feng Chen Wang Brand History: Feng Chen Wang is a Chinese-born, London-based designer and one of the younger generation's leading talents to emerge from China. The brand is on both Weibo and Xiaohongshu, where it has a combined following of 165,000 followers. In China, it works with over 25 renowned multibrand stores, including Lane Crawford, DSM, and The Balancing. Model Representation: 0/6 looks Influencer Impressions: The brand’s digital presentation (in the format of a short film) hasn’t secured the attention of media outlets and influencers yet. Netizen Reaction: Feng Chen Wang’s Spring 2022 collection was based on community and diversity, sharing the story of three different couples in the designer’s community. However, the short teaser Feng Chen Wang released on Weibo did not receive any comments and had less than 1,000 views. The verdict Feng Chen Wang’s future modern style and Chinese aesthetic is receiving great appreciation internationally. UGG, Nike, Converse, and Levi’s are all regular collaborators. And the designer is currently very active in Mainland China, attending local variety shows such as “Wow! Mom,” with her garments regularly featured in major magazines. However, the brand should further strengthen its runway promotion on local social media to resonate with more followers. J.W. Anderson Brand History: Irish designer Jonathan Anderson has luxury credentials, and his brand is present on multiple local social media platforms, including Weibo (175.300 followers), WeChat, and Xiaohongshu (4,809 followers). Model Representation: 0/20 looks Influencer Impressions: Influencers like @Mr.伪少年K and @Neil王静昌 posted about the show, ensuring the collection reached 14.5M million netizens in total. Netizen Reaction: Photographed by German photographer Juergen Teller, Spring 2022 was presented in the form of a calendar with 26 photo collections. This season marked the sixth consecutive time the house released its collection as prints and marked its fourth collaboration with Teller. And yet, there were few netizen reactions. The verdict JW Anderson’s Chain Loafers and Cap bags are popular items on Xiaohongshu, and the brand has gained over 7,000 UGC instances on the platform. Considering its popularity, the brand should consider leaning on celebrity influence to raise awareness of its latest collection to create the next “IT” bag. Molly Goddard Brand History: Despite the absence of official social accounts and stockists, the London-based designer brand has over 400 UGC posts on Xiaohongshu. Model Representation: 5/34 looks Influencer Impressions: With fashion digital media outlets like if-Fashion and Tencent Fashion and influencers like @Brillianbi and @伪少年Mr.K posting about the show, the brand's social reached 13 million netizens in total. Netizen Reaction: Overall highly positive. Molly Goddard's puffy dresses have been trimmed. And instead, versions of the label’s signature silhouette have been presented for more practical, everyday wear. As Weibo user @Gypsiery commented: “The introduction of wide jeans, knitted sweaters, and even men's clothing has brought more possibilities to the brand, which I really appreciate.” The verdict The brand’s modern, feminine identity has been well received by Chinese shoppers, especially those who pursue niche labels. But the brand needs an official communication channel to deliver its message and consolidate its brand image better for local audiences. Vivienne Westwood Brand History: With 24 boutiques in the Mainland, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, Vivienne Westwood has its mini-network of physical stores in the Chinese market. However, its social engagement is relatively low, especially on some of its posts. Model Representation: 10/59 looks Influencer Impressions: Only two KOLs mentioned the brand’s Spring 2022 presentation on Weibo, in addition to the brand’s official account. Neither of them reviewed the show. Netizen Reaction: Overall neutral. Though KOLs @Xie Xinyan and @Soda posted the show on Weibo, the presentation reached a limited number of viewers and has not yet received any comments. The verdict Similarly to Weibo, the English designer brand’s posts on Xiaohongshu received little attention. However, the official brand site still lists Taiwan as outside China, which is problematic for consumers. According to comments below its first post on Xiaohongshu, netizens claimed that, though they adore the designer’s fashion, its political stance is unacceptable to Chinese shoppers. Danshan Brand History: This emerging menswear brand has built partnerships with 13 stockists in China (including Beijing and Shanghai), as well as Tier-2 cities like Qinhuangdao, Wenzhou, and Taiyuan. Model Representation: 0/21 looks Influencer Impressions: The only Weibo post of the brand’s Spring 2022 collection came from Hypebeast China, which shared the show review with the media outlet’s 2.6 million followers. Netizen Reaction: Low netizen reaction. In the new series, Danshan took a positive outlook on the coming spring and summer of 2022, imagining a coexisting relationship between human beings and nature through the lens of art. However, the collection's inspiration has not been shared with Chinese audiences. The verdict The designer brand has accumulated a social following of 16,500 on Weibo with substantial engagements, thanks to the members of boy group INTO1 getting styled with the brand's products. However, since its campaign storytelling tends to carry less weight than its celebrity endorsement, the label could prioritize this over social traffic. Roksanda Brand History: Chinese consumers can purchase the label from global luxury e-commerce platforms, including Mytheresa, Net-A-Porter, and Farfetch. However, the brand has yet to launch any official social channels in China. Model Representation: 0/47 looks Influencer Impressions: With only two influencers (@Xiaobin and @--Icon) posting about the show on Weibo, the brand's socialization reached limited netizens. Netizen Reaction: Low netizen engagement. The Serbian designer’s “Women in Motion” collection has barely reached Chinese audiences. The highlight of the presentation among the limited reactions was the color palette, which employs extreme contrasts with fluorescent pinks, blues, and yellows. The verdict Elegant and bold colors are the two keywords that have defined Roksanda for Chinese shoppers, indicating a huge untapped opportunity. Since many locals found out about the brand via luxury e-commerce platforms (according to the UGC posts on Xiaohongshu), Roksanda could partner with these titans to expand its China presence. Reported by Agnes Wu, Lisa Nan, and Gemma A. Williams

London Fashion Week Continues to Attract Local Talent

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Published September 23, 2021

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London Fashion Week Continues to Attract Local Talent