Menswear takes centre stage in London
A three-day showcase of men's fashion will take place in London in June, building on the growing demand for luxury menswear
Cutting-edge designer names, the finest tailors of Savile Row and the best in British high street fashion will join forces in June for a three-day menswear event in London. The initiative, launched by the British Fashion Council, means the capital will open the men's fashion week calendar, showing ahead of the more established Milan and Paris menswear weeks.
As the autumn/winter 2012 men's collections came to a close on Sunday night in Paris, the editor of British GQ, Dylan Jones, hosted a dinner to outline plans for London Collections: Men. Jones is chairing a new menswear committee, which also includes designers Tom Ford and Christopher Bailey, that will develop and oversee a programme of events from catwalk shows to cultural activity, culminating in a international conference.
Labels already on board include Richard James, Margaret Howell, Aquascutum, Topman and Gieves & Hawkes. Luxury online fashion retailer Mr Porter will act as one of the event's sponsors.
With sales of luxury menswear on the rise, men's fashion is no longer considered the poor relation to womenswear. Jones told the Guardian that while menswear has never been seen on the scale of women's fashion, it is now a growing and important part of the industry. "Anything that is growing in this climate should be celebrated," he said.
"Men consume like women now. Even 20 years ago there were issues about men spending money on clothes. Ten years ago there were issues about men spending money on beauty products. But all that's changed now. It's almost like a level playing field for the first time."
The move is a serious boost for menswear in the capital, which since 2005 has had an increasing presence at London fashion week. MAN, a group fashion show featuring Topman's high-end collection alongside three up-and-coming new designers, paved the way for an entire day dedicated to menswear. This was launched in 2009 and became the closing event at London fashion week.
But Jones believes that there is more than enough enthusiasm, money and talent to hold shows over three days now. "I think you only have to be in London for five minutes to see that there is an energy here that you don't see anywhere else in the world," he said.
Gordon Richardson, the design director of Topman, says: "I never, ever imagined that within a few short years the momentum would be such that we would be hosting, or even could host, a three-day event showcasing the huge array of men's fashion talent that exists in this country."
This announcement is well timed. London's menswear day was becoming increasingly oversubscribed and faced ongoing scheduling issues. It was out of sync with the rest of the menswear schedule, and clashed with the beginning of the women's shows in Milan, making attendance by buyers and press difficult.
The new venture already has the backing of the mayor's office and key buyers. Jones said he is approaching big-name designers to be part of it, but warned that the event must grow organically. "We're not trying, in one fell swoop, to attract every designer to show in London," he said.
"If some people still choose to show abroad then that's their decision, and if some people choose to show in London to support London then that's fantastic. The most important thing is to celebrate the people who want to show here."
In the long term, however, the event will benefit from designers with international clout, such as Paul Smith, who showed his latest men's collection in Paris on Sunday, or Burberry, who showed their menswear last weekend in Milan but show their women's collection in London.
In a statement, the BFC said: "The event will have a different DNA from London fashion week and will inspire audiences to engage with designers, the fashion community and the city in different ways, with the focus being on media, buying and business growth."
