CIFF trade show welcomed 1,100 exhibitors to its 67th edition, held on 3-5 August at the sprawling Bella Center. Registered UK buyers included Asos, Selfridges and Fenwick.
Copenhagen Fashion Week, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, ran alongside with more than 30 shows and presentations held between 3 and 7 August, up from 21 in January. Attendees were also spoilt with a range of events throughout the week, hosted by brands including Oakley, Havaianas and Ganni, as well as the official opening gala held at the Danish Royal Opera House.
On its catwalks, cottagecore prevailed at the rainy Skall Studio show, as models wafted through grass wearing straw hats and cotton dresses with Peter Pan collars.
Following a trend which began two seasons ago, underwear was still being translated to outerwear and was rife at Anne Sofie Madsen, Sson Studios and Paolina Russo, while impractically long trains prevailed at Gestuz and Studio Constance. Musical performances were widespread, with a female recorder player accompanying proceedings at Anne Sofie Madsen, as well as live singers at both Gestuz and Paolina Russo. British brand Never Fully Dressed also put in an appearance with an off-schedule presentation. This year’s international guest slot was filled by New York-based luxury house Collina Strada, with the show taking place tomorrow (6 August).
Buyer numbers are yet to be disclosed for CIFF, but show director Sofie Dolva told Drapers that pre-registrations are on par with the spring/summer 26 edition last August.
Advertisement
CIFF is currently expanding via international activations and pop-ups, as well as a permanent second home in Paris’s Le Marais, which launched on 23-28 June, with the autumn dates yet to be revealed.
“The reason we’re doing it is because Paris will always be super relevant, and we also want to travel where the buyers are,” she said. Like the Copenhagen edition, CIFF Paris will take place twice per year.
Dolva tells Drapers that this season, there has been an increase in the number of German, Italian and Dutch brands at the show, as well as a rise in buyers from Poland and the Middle East.
In terms of the current market, Dolva didn’t feel that much had changed since last season. “It’s still pretty tough,” she said. “I think actually we see some [brands] that are growing tremendously, and then you have others that are falling a bit behind. You need to be authentic and relevant and you need to have a story, so it’s not just a collection.”
One brand keen to maintain its authenticity is Ed Hardy, as wholesale manager Ruairi Spence told Drapers. “We’re staying true to our heritage while being aware of the climate. We haven’t moved away from what the brand is and still have all the key graphics, but then we build out those newer blocks.”
Advertisement
Spence last attended CIFF in January, but prior to this had not visited the fair since before the Covid-19 pandemic. “CIFF is always well-curated,” he said. “January was my first time back since pre-Covid and you could see how much the show has come on. It’s been quieter [this season] but the quality of buyers has improved and there’s a good mix of [buying] regions.”
Caroline Ekström, founder of Oldstrom Agency, which represents attending brands including Mei Meij, Bitte Kai Rand and Vivere, agreed that the first morning was quiet, but said her brands wrote “loads of orders” that afternoon.
“It’s really good compared with last season,” she said. “We’ve had some star stores come by, including one of the best Irish department stores and some Spanish stores, as well as The Dressing Room and Feather & Stitch in the UK.”
Deryane Tadd, founder and owner of The Dressing Room in St. Albans, felt that the slow first morning was due to the show starting earlier in the week than usual.
“I always find CIFF such a good show,” she said. “There’s a really good energy here. From what I hear the Monday was quieter, but the timing was tricky with starting it on a Monday. It works better to have it midweek as that had an impact on the earlier day.”
However, buyers and brands were not put off by the earlier start, with Tadd excited to discover new brands among the aisles.
“We probably will end up taking on some newness as we always find something at CIFF,” she said, “even if it’s a small, niche accessory brand or footwear or womenswear, we never come away empty handed.
As for current trends, “we’ve noticed a cleaner trend the last few seasons”, said Ekström, “but now buyers are looking for something new whether that be a new detail or different shape, so the design is still clean but there’s more of a statement, maybe [with] the silhouette.”
“We’ve had loads of requests for dresses – there is a trend there – in this weather people want a nice dress, whether that’s occasionwear or just to have something they can throw on,” she continued.
Spence said that buyers were particularly looking at headwear, as well as denims and jerseys.
Pia Metsävaino owns Finnish independent boutique Paratiisipaja and told Drapers she was after colour and pattern this season. “It’s a little bit difficult as the Scandi market can often be quite black and beige but there are several nice brands here,” she said. “The last appointment and order I made was with [Copenhagen-based brand] Munthe, which has lots of colourful options.”
Tadd added that CIFF is also a good opportunity to write orders with existing brands that she already works with.
Metsävaino agreed. “It’s been a couple of years since my last visit but it’s as busy as usual,” she said.”It’s the place to be if you want to see new things or to keep in contact with the current brands you work with.”
While buyers and brands were positive about the show, they were honest about the challenges still facing the industry.
“Rising costs have meant we have to take everything into consideration,” said Ekström. “We’ve had to be more considered with staff due to the National Insurance (NI) hikes and increase in minimum wage.”
Tadd agreed. “I have a team of 20 so rising costs have a significant impact on the bottom line. We haven’t downsized staff as the nature of our success is our team, and when you start to dilute that service culture you dilute what is special about the business, so it is a dangerous game to play. I’m aware those costs are rising so if I can make savings elsewhere I will but I’ve not found the magic answer yet.”
Spence was also worried about the impact of rising costs and market irregularity on independent retail. “Independent retail has taken a hard hit which is really sad,” he said. “You have to establish yourself so incredibly now. I’ve worked in sales since 2013 and there have been so many independent partners who’ve been lost along the way. The whole market has completely disappeared, especially in the UK.”
However, consumers are still shopping, as Ekström noted. “We’ve had a record season – we’ll see where we end up but the brands are strong and people are buying.” She observed that some stores are buying deeper into certain brands rather than across the board.
“We’re seeing a tighter consumer but everyone is coming out of spring/summer feeling better after those wet early months,” she added.
Read our verdict on SS27 trade shows here, including Harrogate Fashion Week, Scoop, Indx Man, Indx Woman and Source.
Have your say
or a new account to join the discussion.