Shanghai Fashion Week finds its voice

Shanghai Fashion Week’s Fall/Winter 2025 edition arrived with sparks of creativity and a quiet sense of conviction — rekindling excitement across the industry. Held under the theme “Rebuild the Unknown,” this season’s showcase leaned into firsts — especially debuts. Taking place March 26 through yesterday, the event comprised nearly 100 runway debuts, close to 1,000 exhibitions, and dozens of global collaborations. But behind the bright stage lights lies a darker reality. With the global economy coming under mounting pressures, China’s emerging designers face increasingly difficult odds. Because of shrinking budgets and limited resources, many young brands opted out of full-scale runway shows in favor of more flexible presentations. This season retained the traditional big-stage format, and introduced a wider range of alternative show formats to give younger designers room to speak — and be seen. In spite of the headwinds, a new generation of Chinese designers is pressing forward. Ao Yes: Defining ‘new Eastern’ aesthetics Founded in 2022 with a commitment to “new Eastern” aesthetics, Ao Yes has in just three years captured the imagination of both critics and younger consumers. This year, the brand partnered with fast fashion giant Zara for a capsule collection, infusing Eastern restraint and wisdom into contemporary silhouettes, and offering up a vision of “Chinese elegance” that is both intellectual and stylish. Ao Yes is far from the exception. More and more independent labels are using Shanghai Fashion Week as a stage to define their voice. Private Policy, a label known for its presence at New York Fashion Week, returned to Shanghai this year with a mission. “We’ve always believed that fashion is about dreaming,” said co-founder Haoran Li. “Especially in a time of economic uncertainty, designers have a responsibility to speak up — to bring hope, to inspire. By returning to Shanghai, we wanted to show our support for this platform and channel energy back into Chinese fashion in our own way.” Here are four runway shows from Shanghai Fashion Week that stood out for their creative language, aesthetics, and marketing strategy. EP Yaying: When art meets heritage EP Yaying opened Shanghai Fashion Week on the evening of March 25 with a show centered on the theme of “elegance.” Inspired by China’s rich cultural heritage, the brand wove peony motifs throughout the collection, collaborating with master artisans including Suzhou embroidery expert Zou Yingzi and Miao paper-cutting artist Yang Jinqiu. Together, they reinterpreted traditional patterns through the lens of modern craftsmanship. Through the clash of soft purples and steely grays, and the delicacy of silk embroidery and pleated detailing, a quietly powerful vision of the modern East Asian woman emerged. Virtual artist Cao Yuxi’s digital installation Pixel Pollen and Xu Fei’s real-life peony sculptures further blurred the line between tradition and future, creating a space that felt unshakably rooted. The appearance of brand ambassadors actresses Tang Yan and Du Juan in the audience added another layer of resonance. Their effortless poise echoed the core philosophy EP Yaying has long championed: elegance not just as a surface trait, but as an inner strength — calm, assured, and forward-looking. Mark Gong: In praise of the ‘Bad Girl’ If Shushu/Tong stands for sweet rebellion, then Mark Gong is its unapologetically seductive counterpart. Blackpink’s Lisa wore a Mark Gong gown to the Oscars last month, creating a breakout moment for Chinese designer brands on the global stage. The designer’s runways are some of the most anticipated at Shanghai Fashion Week. To the pulsing beat of Britney Spears’ Gimme More, Gong’s Fall/Winter 2025 collection hit the runway with a bold tonal shift. Departing from his signature streetwear roots, Gong opted for a sleeker, more pared-down aesthetic. The set featured mirrored installations and yellowing copies of The Markgong News — fake tabloids designed by the brand, printed with outrageous headlines and blurred paparazzi shots. The imagery was inspired by early-2000s celebrity tabloid culture, a time when “bad girls” were both idolized and torn apart. With this staging, Gong offered a quiet but pointed critique of a society too quick to label and judge, especially women. Those once mocked as “bad girls” are recast here as bold, unapologetic individuals, reclaiming identity through style, and refusing to be defined by anyone but themselves. NMTG x Unitree Robotics: When robots walk the runway In one of Shanghai Fashion Week’s most unexpected yet exhilarating moments, a humanoid robot from Unitree Robotics appeared alongside human models in NMTG’s Fall/Winter 2025 show. This season, the avant-garde label drew inspiration from the concept of a “future city,” exploring the symbiosis between humans and technology. Through bold silhouettes and cybernetic accessories, the brand envisioned a world where fashion and artificial intelligence co-exist. G1, the humanoid robot, didn’t just add a jolt of sci-fi spectacle — it became part of the narrative, interacting fluidly with models in what felt like a live vision of tomorrow. The humanoid robot shared the runway with AI-powered robot dogs and a “cyber horse” sculpture installation. The crowd roared with applause. After the show, attendees lined up to take photos with the bots, especially the robot dogs, whose cute expressions and reactive motions stole the spotlight. Disney: A grown-up fairy tale reimagined Leave it to Disney to remind us that childhood never really leaves us. In celebration of Toy Story’s 30th anniversary, Disney China staged a visually extravagant fashion show, partnering with 10 Chinese designer brands under the theme “Infinite Play.” The collection reinterpreted beloved toy characters into high fashion pieces, giving nostalgic magic a grown-up silhouette. The show was transformed into a surreal toy universe. It opened with a digital installation that turned Andy’s wallpaper into a cosmic galaxy, followed by models strutting out to an electronic remix of You’ve Got a Friend in Me. From Li-Ning’s Buzz Lightyear-inspired neon-stitched down jacket and Ponder.Er’s 3D-printed Slinky Dog silhouettes, to Short Sentence’s LED-embellished shepherd girl knits, each look reanimated memories through fashion. The hashtag #ToyStory30th has garnered over 302,000 views and nearly 5,000 discussions on Xiaohongshu (also known as RedNote). Beyond the runway: Shanghai’s growing commercial influence Beyond the runway spectacle, Shanghai Fashion Week continues to consolidate its identity as Asia’s largest fashion ordering season. With over 50,000 sqm dedicated to trade shows, the event attracted top-tier department stores, leading buyer boutiques, and global distributors. Showrooms like Mode, Ontimeshow and Tube also hosted buying sessions across the city’s major fashion hubs. “Compared to last season, there are clearly more buyers — and the overall vibe is more dynamic,” says Sashalex, founder of designer shoe brand Hovanki. This reflects not only the commercial strength of the platform, but also the growing pull of China’s independent design scene. “The market is at a delicate moment. Luxury giants are under pressure, but that creates opportunity for emerging designers,” Deray Raphael, senior buyer for menswear at Printemps Paris, tells Jing Daily. “Today’s consumers crave individuality — and brands with a strong, differentiated identity will stand out.”

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Shanghai Fashion Week finds its voice