BFC announces a city-wide celebration of LFW in October

The British Fashion Council is to host a celebration of London Fashion Week in October, following a scaled-back fashion week earlier this month due to the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.

The city-wide LFW celebration will take place from October 6 to 13 and will feature a curated programme of unique experiences, events and promotions to showcase the “creativity in London”.

Caroline Rush, chief executive of the British Fashion Council, said in a statement: “The incredible resilience and solidarity of our creative industries was spotlighted during Fashion Week, and we now look forward to celebrating our city during the exciting month of October.

“Our aim is to engage communities throughout London to get involved with fashion and to showcase the creativity, diversity and openness London is known for. This season will see a fantastic line-up of city-wide events and experiences on schedule driving footfall back into the capital, which will increase revenue opportunities for designer businesses.”

Highlights will include Roksanda and Raf Simons, who have both rescheduled their spring/summer 2023 catwalk shows to take place during the city-wide celebrations. As has sustainable designer Patrick McDowell, who will present his 'Marie Antoinette goes to Liverpool' collection alongside the JCA MA fashion show on October 10.

TikTok will celebrate BFC’s NewGen recipients, while LFW hair sponsor Toni&Guy will relaunch its Label:m collection with an intimate cocktail party, and Italian brand Prada will launch its new fragrance Paradoxe. There will also be celebrations from Boss, Marc Jacobs will open a new store in the capital, and Richard Quinn, who paid tribute to the Queen in his LFW show, will host a celebration of his SS23 collection in partnership with Clearpay.

London Fashion Week city-wide celebration to take place from October 6 to 13

Alongside the catwalk shows and parties, the city-wide celebration will also include more than 450 events throughout London in shopping destinations including Chelsea (Cadogan Estate), Oxford Street (New West End Company), Covent Garden (CAPCO), and Regent Street (The Crown Estate). Activities will include designer Q&A sessions, workshops around Zero-Waste Craftsmanship and upcycling, live music performances, and limited-edition product drops in partnership with key retailers, cultural institutions, and designer brands.

Key activations will include the Cadogan Estate hosting a ‘Designers at Work’ market at the Saatchi Gallery showcasing Allbirds, Brora, Peter Jones, Monica Vinader, Rixo and The Fashion School, while Puma is teaming up with Asos to launch its Teveris Nitro by tasking 10 fashion students to design the perfect Modern Luxe fit to wear alongside the new sneaker, and Christopher Raeburn will take part in a Q&A session discussing the inspiration and innovation behind the Raeburn AW22 collection.

The Institute of Positive Fashion will also present an update to its Circular Fashion Ecosystem projects with panel discussions on City Level with Circle Economy, Empowering Citizens for Garment Longevity with Vanish and Solving Returns with DHL.

Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, added: “London is an international fashion capital, and the industry is playing a vital role in our economic recovery. The return of city-wide celebrations is a fantastic opportunity for people from all backgrounds to experience this dynamic industry that contributes so much to London’s economy.”