The Most Creative AW21 Fashion Month Presentations

While this Fashion Month was far from “normal”, its impact remained unwavering. This season nearly marked the one year anniversary of COVID-19 and with that, a settling into digital show formats.

This season, having a better understanding of what resonates in our current state of being, in tandem with a design house’s own backend capabilities, we saw brands getting more creative with presentation formats.

How does a brand stand out amongst a sea of content? Well, here’s how. We’ve rounded up a few of the most creative and impactful formats design houses used to connect with their audience and present new ideas to the world; they might even inspire you on new ways to connect with your consumer.

Safety-First “Show”: Khaite

When thinking “COVID-friendly”, an event is far from the first format that comes to mind. Given that the label had months to prepare, New York-based Khaite was able to pull off a show that certainly put safety first. A small group of editors, buyers and tastemakers were invited to the Skyline Drive-In, chauffeured in vintage cars, to view a short film celebrating New York in all its raw glory. This format allowed for an experiential differentiator and, most importantly, safety.

“Outside of the Box” PR Package: Loewe

Following up his “show in a box” presentation for SS21, Jonathan Anderson introduced another creative PR package to showcase this season’s collection. Centered around the classic glamour and romanticizing the feeling of dressing up, Loewe sent out a newspaper that acted as a look-book and featured the first chapter of Danielle Steel’s latest fashion-centric novel. Digitally, the brand presented a short film that tied the theme together online.

Destination Presentation: Miu Miu

Miu Miu teased “prepare for the unexpected” in an Instagram post prior to the release of their AW21 digital presentation –- and the show location was certainly unexpected for a luxury fashion collection. The legacy brand took viewers to #MiuMiuMountainClub in a presentation titled Brave Hearts, representing collective strength, a journey through the unknown, and making fantasy a reality. Its essence was certainly captured in a way that a traditional format couldn’t have depicted.

Open Forum: Prada

Although the show wasn’t outside the norms for a digital-first presentation, the aftermath is what really made Prada standout amongst the crowd at Milan Fashion Week. Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons hosted a fireside Q&A with industry influencers, such as Marc Jacobs, Hunter Schafer, Derek Blasberg, and Lee Daniels, to field questions from the virtual audience –- a thoughtful way to engage with brand admirers.

All About the Buzz: Alice + Olivia

XOXO, you know you love… Alice + Olivia? The whimsical contemporary brand channeled the cult-classic television show Gossip Girl for their AW21 presentation. Jumping on the Gossip Girl resurgence bandwagon per sé, the brand hosted a chat with the show’s costume designer Eric Daman and released a video in style of the hit show.