In an effort to bolster the fragmented and often under-recognized German fashion scene, this month’s Berlin fashion week will be a meeting of the minds.
Starting next Tuesday, a new group initiative, The Berliner Salon, will bring together a mix of more seasoned German designer labels — many of whom haven’t shown in the capital for years — and the nation’s new guard of emerging fashion talents in the Kronprinzenpalais on Unter den Linden. Spearheaded by Christiane Arp, editor in chief of Vogue Germany, and Marcus Kurz, founder of Nowadays, the Berlin-based photo production/brand management/events agency, the joint presentation aims to sharpen Germany’s fashion profile, both at home and abroad.
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With around 10 trade fairs taking place here, and some 50 runway shows presented each season under the umbrella of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Berlin, one could argue that German fashion has a very well-established base in Berlin. And yet, for assorted reasons, German fashion isn’t generally perceived or acknowledged as such, observers note. Unlike other industries and fields of endeavor, the country doesn’t celebrate its fashion creators, nor are most designers here in the habit of banging their own drum, let alone waving a national flag. There’s been little group spirit to speak of and no designer organization to help foster it. Although Germany is Europe’s largest and strongest apparel market, its strength on both the manufacturing and retail levels tends to fall in the more commercial, mid-market zone. Germany’s fashion image, many argue, is almost invisible.
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“We don’t want people to think there’s no good design in Germany. There is, and it’s in Berlin,” Arp declared. “I see great talents here, and I want to show what we see that others in the world don’t.”
With the Vogue Salon, a curated still-life presentation of young designers instituted in summer 2011, Arp began taking steps to bring Germany’s newer names to the attention of key retailers and fashion players, and to break their isolation. Berlin’s runway shows, especially those of up-and-comers, are not a priority with buyers doing their hectic rounds at the fairs.
Arp said her intention now is to “try to make our young designers less lonesome. And also to ensure that what we see [in Berlin] is also what we really have” in terms of German-based talent.
As Kurz put it, “It’s been everybody for himself. Here. In Paris. Wherever. On the runway or in a showroom. We believe it’s time to come together and show our colors.”
He said The Berliner Salon project essentially addresses two themes: how to raise the perception and appreciation of German fashion, and to improve the standing and identity of Berlin as a fashion venue.
“We want to make Berlin attractive to designers who have migrated to other showplaces and, thereby, strengthen all,” he said.
Hence, next Tuesday, from 2 to 5 p.m., the Kronprinzenpalais will be turned into a sort of open house for buyers and press. The assorted rooms, stairwells and gathering spaces of the late classical building — which was destroyed in World War II and rebuilt in 1968 as East Germany’s official guest house — will now play host to a select contingent of 18 designers all doing their own thing, but doing it together.
It’s not an either/or proposition. The Tuesday round will feature Berlin returnees Odeeh, Talbot Runhof, Allude, Iris von Arnim and René by René Storck, all showing pre-fall prior to their customary fall presentations in Paris. Dorothee Schumacher will jump the gun on her Wednesday show at Villa Elisabeth in Berlin, as will Marina Hoermanseder, who will later close the MBFWB shows at the tent on Brandenburg Gate Thursday night. At the Kronprinzenpalais itself, Dawid Tomaszewski, Perret Schaad, Hien Le and Augustin Teboul will stage additional catwalk shows and presentations there during the week. Also part of the debut Berliner Salon lineup: Haltbar, Isabell de Hillerin, Lala Berlin, Michael Sontag, Tim Labenda and Schacky.
“It’s a time for talking — to our customers and to each other,” noted Jörg Ehrlich, who together with Otto Drögsler, designs and owns Odeeh. The label was launched by the two Rene Lezard veterans in Berlin in 2008, but has been showing in Paris for the last three years.
“We always seem to be talking about German fashion,” he added. “The only thing that gives us a common sense is that we were born or are based in Germany, but the fact is we’re all very versatile. And it’s time to show that versatility.”
For Ehrlich, it’s all in the mix. “I particularly like the idea of combining younger with more established designers. It’s a good collage, and I think buyers will look differently at the younger lines when they’re in a mix,” he said. “I also like that the salon is happening in a general space, where buyers, press and others can just come, have a look and go, with no obligation. The worst thing you can do these days is put people under pressure.”
Berlin fashion week’s early timing has been a problem for Odeeh and the other German labels that have left the city for other showplaces. But as Ehrlich suggested, pre-collections are the “main business these days, so this could be a good collection [season] start.”
“If the right people all come together, maybe something can really happen for Berlin. And for German fashion,” said Adrian Runhof, partner and designer of Talbot Runhof, one of the first German collections to make the switch to Paris.
“The Berliner Salon is not only a platform to show, but for the younger labels, a way to get coaching on what to do when the retailers come. And really, everyone needs coaching — and a viable commercial foundation,” he added, noting this has often been lacking on the emerging Berlin design scene.
“We all contribute a certain relevance, and that’s what it’s all about,” he went on. “I would hope the whole caravan at some point goes on to Paris or New York, but first it’s important to gain practice in Berlin.”
For Allude creative director Andrea Karg, supporting Germany’s younger designers was also a main motivation to come back to Berlin and participate in the salon. “They need visibility, and when some of the more established German companies with good reputations come together, we can help attract more attention to Berlin — on a quality basis,” she emphasized.
“In this big global fashion world, where’s there’s something on every corner, it’s very important that we pull together,” she said. “Even for companies like Allude that are global operators.”
She suggested Berlin, and German fashion in general, needs time to find “its own character and unique selling points. The Salon is a beginning, and it’s important it starts with a bang, with all of us showing — differently — but on a high level.”
“I didn’t want to miss this new situation,” said Frankfurt-based designer René Storck, who, beyond a three-hour appearance at the Vogue Salon, concentrates his seasonal efforts in Paris. “I’m a German designer, and my style is influenced by my roots, even if I’m also involved and influenced by Paris. But you can’t take away where you’re coming from, and [the Berliner Salon] is very motivating. It could finally be a way to make Berlin a real base for fashion in Germany, not just entertainment or being famous for being famous.
“But I think it needs time,’’ he cautioned, “two to three seasons before it’s taken seriously internationally, or even nationally. Still, the right people are coming together and even if the first season brings no concrete results, it’s an important start.”
A responsibility to close ranks is how Dorothee Schumacher sees it. “Berlin has always been important for Dorothee and Dorothee Schumacher as a brand. We want to show our support,” stated Sabrina Nickelson, head of sales and public relations for the brand in the U.S.
Schumacher’s German origins don’t particularly influence the collection’s acceptance in other markets, Nickelson said.
“We’re a catwalk collection and that’s how we’re seen,” she said.
If the national affiliation does come up, it’s usually in relation to “having reliable delivery schedules, not the look. Yet it’s interesting to see who from the international circuit comes to our show,” she continued. “We’ve had some very interesting stylists attending, so it seems there’s real curiosity to see what’s going on in Berlin.”
The Berliner Salon is poised to boost that interest.
The new group dynamic in Berlin will by no means be limited to the Kronprinzenpalais this season, though it should be noted that events kick off there Monday with Zeitmagazin’s biannual Fashion & Style conference. For the first time, the conference will be presented in cooperation with Vogue Germany. The conference’s theme is “Why we need the fashion city Berlin,” and includes an interview with photographer Mario Testino on how German fashion is seen abroad.
Also joining forces for the first time in January: Premium, Show & Order, Seek and Bright are offering joint ticketing and accreditation. This will allow visitors to preregister with just one of the trade shows and gain access to the other three on the same ticket. Germany’s highly competitive automakers also seem to be in a more cooperative frame of mind, with the Mercedes-Benz and Audi shuttle services offering a comprehensive transport network between the four shows and other selected fashion destinations.
It’ll be a gathering of like minds as well at Bread & Butter’s new work in progress, “Bread & Butter — Back to the Street.” Bread & Butter founder and chief Karl-Heinz Müller said about 40 B&B devotees including Nudie, Denham, Drykorn, Nigel Cabourn, Freitag, Koi and Japan Blue would take over the now-insolvent fair’s offices and neighboring Blue Yard complex in the Hackescher Markt area, Jan. 19 to 22. “It’s about coming home to Bread & Butter’s center, and about talking. Buyers and brands want to speak to me and I want to hear what they have to say about where they think Bread & Butter should go,” Müller said.
It should be noted that the first Bread & Butter, held in Cologne in 2001, was a small-scale union of denim and streetwear brands seeking to find a new approach to apparel fairs. And Back to the Street could well follow in those footsteps, though Müller pointed out that times have changed.
“Today, we’re faced with many different motives. Some are interesting in fairs, though the marketing aspect has diminished as more and more brands have scaled back wholesale operations in favor of their own retail. Others want an opportunity to network, still others, to sell. It’s difficult to bring it all under one roof, but people want to come together and talk. And that’s more important,” he declared, “than just showing the collection.”
Makeup brand Catrice is again sponsoring a joint runway venue, which this season will host Berlin designer label Kaviar Gauche and Antwerp’s Capara, which is showing in Berlin for the first time.
Bikini Berlin’s rotating German designer fashion retail platform LNFA (Live Networking for Fashion & Art) also has plans to bundle several of its currently featured brands in a group show in the concept shopping mall the night before MBFWB begins. At the Sunday press-only event, Esther Perbandt, Aleks Kurkowski, Dune, Thomas Harnisch and Ewa Herzog — most of whom will also take to the MBFWB runway — will circulate three to five outfits in a mini preview. The models will remain at hand’s reach so “not only those in the front row can get a real feel for the clothes,” said LNFA founder Sevil Uguz.
As for Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Berlin, an IMG spokesman also sees the city’s myriad goings-on as a factor that empowers all the participants. “The event will continue to align with the largest trades shows in the region and add the allure of the catwalk to the commerce taking place throughout the city,” he said. “The city’s inspiring energy and various commercial opportunities create the perfect home for emerging and established designers. We are continuously working to expand support for designers and for strengthening the positive perception of the German market globally.”