As the runway shows hit their stride in Europe, Asia is busy preparing for its own fashion weeks. But unlike London, Milan and Paris, each Asian capital is operating on its own trajectory, seemingly oblivious of other cities’ plans.
Tokyo, Shanghai and Seoul fashion weeks all have overlapping dates this season. Tokyo’s fashion week runs Oct. 12 to Oct. 17, Seoul’s from Oct. 15 to Oct. 21 and Shanghai’s Oct. 13 to Oct. 21. Beijing is playing the lone wolf, wrapping up the season Oct. 25 to Nov. 2.
While seasons past might have meant a day or two of overlap among the cities, this season’s calendar is particularly convoluted.
It’s true that all three weeks are very much domestically focused affairs featuring local brands. They attract distinct crowds of buyers and attendees with very little overlap between them. Similarly, the shows in each city rely almost entirely on local talents in terms of hair, makeup and show production. Still, the lack of coordination between the cities reveals the disjointed nature of the Asian fashion system. Perhaps that only makes sense given the complex history and geopolitical rivalries between China, Japan and South Korea — even as Chinese consumers are increasingly influenced by South Korean trends in fashion and pop culture.
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The situation is certainly a far cry from the Western world’s circuit of shows in New York, London, Paris and Milan.
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“It’s not a very good system to force people to decide to attend only one [of these fashion week events],” observed Cindy Hahn, founder of the fashion and retail focused Hahn Global branding agency, and a former organizer of Seoul Fashion Week. “I feel there needs to be a definite movement for [coordination between the cities] to happen because we’ve recently seen the Asia fashion influence rise globally. Therefore we hope more European and U.S. press have the opportunity to come see all three Asia-based fashion week events evenly.”
A spokeswoman from the Seoul Design Foundation, which organizes Seoul Fashion Week, said the organization has tried to reach out to Shanghai and Tokyo to discuss possible fashion week collaborations but no agreement was reached because each city wanted to be the headliner and wanted the others to follow.
A spokeswoman for Tokyo Fashion Week and a spokesman for Shanghai Fashion Week each said they were unaware of the overlaps in the schedule. She said she had not been in contact with Seoul Fashion Week since a recent change at the helm of the organization. The sudden departure of key organizers at the Council of Fashion Designers of Korea has complicated the planning of this season’s events.
The spokeswoman said she was less concerned with Shanghai Fashion Week because it has a lower profile.
“We have to organize with Seoul Fashion Week,” said the Tokyo spokeswoman, adding that she would try to avoid an overlap next season. “I’ll try…we’ll see.”
Shanghai Fashion Week organizing committee spokesman Landon Du said his organization was not aware of the scheduling issue.
“Actually we totally did not realize this date-overlap. [It wouldn’t have mattered before because] many media and buyers from Europe and America have not set Shanghai as one of their stops in Asia in the past, but maybe now there are some who begin to follow Shanghai and China with interest,” he said. “We did not pay much attention to Tokyo and Seoul, as they did not do so too.”
As anyone in the fashion industry knows, haggling over calendars can be tricky. Even if the channels of communication between the various fashion week organizers were open, a consensus could prove illusive. Complicating matters, local and national government-backed organizations are involved in the planning and execution of fashion weeks in China, Japan and South Korea.
“Everyone wants to hold their event right after Paris Fashion Week — and no one wants to wait until other cities are finished to begin their fashion week. If we actually tried to work with other cities, politically — it would be very tricky. This also creates a lot of headache for the individual designers as they can only choose one Asian fashion week to participate in,” said an insider linked to Seoul Fashion Week, who requested anonymity.
On the flip side, the close proximity of the various weeks — and even potential overlap of dates — could have a positive impact in some ways. For example, Vogue international editor Suzy Menkes confirmed she plans to attend some of the shows in both Tokyo and Seoul this season.
Shanghai-based designer Zhang Na from Fake Natoo and Reclothing Bank said the current schedule could bode well for business.
“I think it’s a good idea for these three fashion weeks to be held very closely together, as it means buyers can see lots of shows in one trip. If Shanghai Fashion Week was held any later, buyers might have already spent their budget by the time they come here, if they come at all,” she said.
This upcoming season in Tokyo will feature runway shows from recurring participants like Mint Designs, Dresscamp and Facestasm as well as a few group shows from young designers hailing from Japan and the rest of Asia. Todd Synder will recap his spring show as part of the festivities.
Some of the most highly anticipated shows in Seoul include those from JKoo and Munsoo Kwon, the winners of the Woolmark Asia prizes for women’s and men’s wear, respectively.
Shanghai will showcase the work of local designers such as Content, Fake Natoo, Nicole Zhang and Hui by Eran Hui. Running concurrently is the Shanghai International Fashion Showcase at the Exhibition Center in Nanjing Xi Lu. It will feature runway shows from international designers like Ports 1961, Prabal Gurung, Costume National and Ermanno Scervino.