There’s a lot happening in the world that makes thinking about the future a stomach-churning exercise. Yet midway through Copenhagen Fashion Week last week, taking in the first batch of spring 2024 trends, I felt unexpectedly excited about what the next year could hold—at least for my wardrobe.
Copenhagen Fashion Week is now a firm part of the global fashion conversation. Fashion people are thinking and talking about great Scandi style more than ever, and when they envision what that looks like, they think of brands like Ganni, Saks Potts, and Stine Goya. And Copenhagen’s CPHFW NewTalent program is supporting emerging talent, such as designers like Nicklas Skovgaard, whose show—starring a single model trying on clothes for the crowd—was all anyone could talk about for days. But it’s not just about what’s seen on the runway; Copenhagen is actually the only market in the world to establish minimum sustainability requirements for designers to even participate.
All of these elements have resulted in a fashion week where clothing feels like an occasion for joy and change. “Where Copenhagen shows its best self is through its community [and] its continued focus on sustainability,” Browns buying director Ida Petersson told me. “They really are leading this revolution on an international scale now[.]” On a show-by-show basis, some moments were so compelling, I spent my eight-hour flight home rewatching them on my phone.
Copenhagen native Stine Goya held her brand’s show, “Homecoming,” on her street, with neighbors watching the runway from their second-story windows. Ganni casually dropped its latest collaboration with New Balance on the runway, which was lined with talking, AI-enhanced trees who struck up a conversation with model Paloma Elsesser. These over-the-top moments were balanced by fresh visions of Scandi minimalism at Skall Studio and Mark Kenly Domino Tan. The latter struck Julia Ferrar, senior buyer at MatchesFashion, as simply beautiful, “with crisp monochrome silhouettes, freshwater pearl embroideries, and soft peplums against the garden backdrop.”