This weekend marked the beginning of the spring/summer 2025 season, though you would be forgiven for having been unaware. – a rebranded format of 2012’s buzzed-about London Collections: Men and 2017’s London Fashion Week Men’s – played host to a reduced number of shows organised around a cultural programme of panel talks, pop-up stores and press dinners. Though noble in its attempts to broaden the cultural scope of fashion week – an exhibition at the Institute of Contemporary Arts celebrated the contributions Black, South Asian and queer communities have made to fashion – most of the capital’s design talents still choose to debut their collections in September and February when international guests are more likely to travel to London while en route to Milan and Paris.
Does the industry need another standalone fashion week? “We are spotlighting culture to highlight London’s point of difference during men’s fashion month,” said the British Fashion Council’s CEO Caroline Rush in an interview ahead of the event. “This is a city of unparalleled creativity and culture, and we want to honour the designers, brands and communities that make a rich and significant contribution to the British fashion industry.” That much is obvious: ’s open-air spectacle at Somerset House was evidence of the success that London designers can experience when talent, community and financial support converge.
’s presentation at Wormwood Scrubs Pony Centre – a tongue-in-c.
