From dim lights to colorful knits, Copenhagen Fashion Week didn’t disappoint. For three busy days, fourth-year Undergraduate in Fashion Marketing and Management students got to explore the Danish capital during one of the most exciting weeks of the year. For this journal, we wanted to give you an insight into what our trip looked like. Filled with laughter and good company, we had an amazing time getting to know new people and companies. We’d like to thank everyone that opened the doors of their offices, showrooms, and fashion events, especially because of how enthusiastic they were to welcome us into their universes.
We arrived in a rainy Copenhagen at 2 pm in the afternoon. Our class is small, only ten people and none of us had ever been to this city. We quickly got ready and went to our first fashion show, P.L.N.Â
P.L.N, an acronym for the founder’s name Peter Lundvald Nielsen, was our first show in the Danish capital. We arrived at Copenhagen’s Bella Center and were immediately greeted by a spacious, dim-lit room. As for the collection, we could see the contrast between different polarities through the distressed pieces, their juxtapositions and fringes. But also, we were surprised by the cohesiveness also expressed through the beauty – with hip-length hair and chin-length eyelashes. As for our sentiment toward the collection, we felt the environment as being the physical representation of a cool goth aesthetic and we appreciated the rawness of the collection and how much we could visualize its future evolution.Â
The next day we were off to the Frama Showroom and offices. A beautiful space, they welcomed us into their offices and we even got to meet their dog. At Frama, we got a visual representation of hygge. Rustic walls, warm wood, and touches of steel gave us a cozy introduction to the sought-after Danish aesthetic.Â
Founded in 2011, Frama is a multi-disciplinary brand that focuses on creating products that are the direct convergence and interplay of their four primary experiential influences: travel, nature, space, and stories. At their flagship store in Copenhagen, you can experience everything from their fragrances to their linens. It also houses Apotek 57, one of the coolest cafes in town. Through their minimalist design, we understood how the curation of natural materials and simple geometries can create extraordinary products with uncompromising quality.Â
After Frama, we find ourselves in Strøget, Europe’s longest shopping street. A few blocks down we enter the Filippa K flagship store. Taking up a whole corner, we got to enter into a physical representation of the thought-provoking minimalism the brand has pioneered since 1993. Hot espressos and cozy shearling-covered furniture welcomed us into the space where the brand’s Wholesale Vice-President was waiting for us. After an introduction to the brand, we had an intimate conversation where we asked all about the company and where they were headed in the future.
Moreover, we had an insightful view of how sustainability is all about different perspectives, the choices that will best align with the DNA of the brand and cause the least impact on the environment around us. For example, a sustainable choice for them was working with leather as a bioproduct from the food industry. Filippa K has always been a pioneer of Scandinavian fashion, creating timeless yet contemporary pieces that exude a warm air of minimalism and sensuality while also pushing the boundaries of what a sustainable business can look like. After we left the store, the thought-provoking conversations were inspiring to us, especially considering that they showed us how a business is able to navigate through different points of view in order to find innovative solutions to ordinary problems.
After Filippa K, we headed towards our second fashion show from the brand The Garment. Running through rainy streets, we arrived at a location filled with cool Scandis taking street-style pictures. The experience we had during the show was completely different from the one we had before, now the place was light with metallic elements and no fog – it was definitely not a post-apocalyptic show! We were delighted by the light fabrics and elegant movement of the garments exhibited on the runway, and the cleaning ness of the environment together with the music transported us to a sober and peaceful place. Something that caught our attention was how the shapes used throughout the collection could be seen in the space through metallic rounded shapes, squared benches and textured beige walls, the coherence among the elements was definitely felt.Â
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The Garment runway show at Copenhagen Fashion WeekÂ
Stine Goya was the next show. We even got to go backstage and have a small interview with the designer, who explained to us how her collection by Hans Christian Andersen’s Snow Queen. During the show, she teleported us into a winter wonderland, with dresses that looked frozen, almost snowed-in and bejeweled snowflakes. Sequined garments caught the futuristic blue lights, giving a playful visual effect to the runway watchers.Â
Since 2006, Danish designer Stine Goya has filled Copenhagen’s streets with colorful prints and playful silhouettes. Quickly becoming a cult brand for fashion followers, the brand is not afraid to experiment with bold textiles – going against the stereotype of minimalist Scandi design.Â
On our last day, we went ahead to Cecile Bahnsen. Arguably the most aesthetically pleasing, the showroom was filled with dreamy lace and fresh flowers. Fortunately, we got a sunny day and the sunlight that entered the room let us appreciate the intricacy of the textile development the brand has. During this visit our class had contact with an interesting approach to sustainability attached to couture – it was astonishing to see how the remaining stock fabrics of the previous collection could become one-of-a-kind pieces of their couture collection.
What’s more, this showroom filled our Instagram feeds and stories due to the minimalistic approach they had to the positioning of the pieces around the room and its design. Then talking to the head of Marketing and Public Relations and the one responsible for the digital communications of the brand, opened our eyes to the challenges when expanding a cult brand into a wider market and how different roles will most likely be performed by everyone in the team during this process.Â
A small group of 30 people makes up the brand that is Cecile Bahnsen. Possibly one of the most important brands from the Nordic region, this brand has gained international fame since its launch in 2015 thanks to its unique concept of creating ready-to-wear couture. Aiming to create highly-crafted and effortless clothes, the brand has created a unique aesthetic of a soft yet empowering romance.
Heliot Emil was the next stop. A bit further away from the center, we found ourselves in an industrial area that reflected the brand’s aesthetics. We got an exclusive sneak peek of the new collection and spoke to the head of design, who introduced us to their work filled with futuristic elements and intricate textiles.
The experience of visiting Heliot Emil gave us the urge to have every piece, from accessories to merchandise, in our personal wardrobe. It was simply beautiful to see the roughness of the pieces having such detailed finishes (some of us reportedly had goosebumps!). Definitely, the level of innovation of the textiles enticed our imagination and after having the most pleasant conversations with the ones responsible for the development and launch of the collection we had a proper understanding of what is the experience of sharing the work with a small group of people. Since 2017, this brand has been at the front of the subversive, monochromatic aesthetic which they hope to expand even further worldwide.
We finished off our trip with the fashion show of Iso.Poetism. Once again at Bella Center, we got to see another emerging designer of this fashion week. This collection was different from the previous ones considering that it was a collaboration with the sports brand Kappa. Yet, for us it was an experience filled with emotions just like the brand proposes, the music replicated a heartbeat being accelerated and slowed down, doing the same to our own hearts. The total vibe of the scenario with the clothes gave us a mix between destruction and protection, the structure had various wires and rocks while the models walked through them with their protective armors – from the fabric to the styling, the pieces were somehow protecting the user.Â
And just in case you’d be thrilled to discover more, check out the latest TikTok on Polimoda, when we’ll guide you through some of the coolest vintage shops in town. As we mentioned before, Copenhagen Fashion Week is all about sustainability and there is nothing more sustainable than shopping what already is.
@polimoda Fashion Marketing Management students discover #Sustainability at #CopenhagenFashionWeek ✨🌿 #cphfw #sustainablefashion #fashionschool #fashionstudent ♬ original sound - Polimoda
Buying vintage allows you to extend the life span of pieces and adds unique garments to your wardrobe. Vintage shops in Copenhagen are beautifully curated, with pieces you can easily see being shown on the latest runways. In this city, sometimes discovering the old can be just as exhilarating as buying into the new.
@polimoda Best 5 #VintageShops in Copenhagen 🇩🇰 by Polimoda students #cphfw #fashionstudent ♬ Fake ID X Walking On A Dream Carter Walsh Remix - CarterWalsh
