The current Frankfurt Fashion Week has been heavily condensed and clearly shows: Organizing live events during the pandemic remains difficult. But the fashion world still needs them urgently.
If you want to install the green fashion fair Neonyt in the east of Frankfurt, you first have to climb the stairs. When the guests arrive panting on the upper floors, an empty corridor awaits them, from which many doors lead off. Only a look behind the doors allows a glimpse of the models.
Sunglasses by Andy Wolf, a white shirt by the local slow fashion label Miomartha with draped trousers by the Berlin designer Natascha von Hirschhausen and a vintage belt by Gianfranco Ferrè – the styling of the installation commissioned by Neonyt surprises again with how fashionably sustainable clothing can look like. This element of surprise is reinforced by the fact that guests can discover something new behind every door. This experience, which brings with it a physical experience, cannot replace swiping through the images of a digital fashion show on a mobile phone.
## Fashion week under difficult conditions
Despite the pandemic, more than 100 guests came together under 2G-Plus rules on Tuesday evening in the east of Frankfurt – including local stakeholders, press and customers of Neonyt. The Berlin label Susumu Ai will also be presenting its seasonal collection at the Danzig am Platz venue, followed by dinner. Masks are mandatory and proof of vaccinations, tests and boosters are strictly checked at the entrance. Despite the difficult conditions, Messe Frankfurt put a lot of effort into this official part. “I am very happy that, despite the difficult general conditions, a Frankfurt Fashion Week with these activities is taking place,” says Olaf Schmidt, Vice President Textiles & Textile Technologies at Messe Frankfurt, before the fashion show.
The trade fairs were basically feasible in January, but they were canceled in December because exhibitors had concerns about health conditions and restricted travel. “The quality of the trade fairs that we imagined would not have been possible,” explains Schmidt. After the cancellation, the exhibiting companies at the Neonyt and Value trade fairs would have received back the payments they had already made for the pure stand rentals. ## Hoping for summer For January, Messe Frankfurt had already concluded cooperation agreements with partners from South Korea, China, Africa and South America in order to present in the Main metropolis. Designers, new brands and exhibitors from the field of international procurement management would have been there.
With the condensed program from January 17th to 21st, the trade fair at least wants to communicate that Frankfurt is a relevant fashion location, says Schmidt. “Now we’re looking at July 2022. I’m very optimistic that we can also achieve the internationality that we want for the Frankfurt Fashion Week.” On Tuesday, Baldessarini will also be showing its FW22 collection for the brand relaunch at the legendary Gibson Club in Frankfurt. Instead of presenting in front of an audience of media and buyers, the men’s fashion label finally decided to livestream it online. The Frankfurt fashion designer Albrecht Ollendiek sends models in pompous couture dresses onto the catwalk in the Opéra restaurant in the Alte Oper. Further events will take place all over Frankfurt until Friday.
Conference and pop-ups
On Wednesday, the Fashionsustain conference gathers a small audience in Gdansk Square. The lectures on topics such as a status report on the Green Button or sustainability at the point of sale are also streamed live at the same time. A speaker is happy to be part of a panel for the first time in two years. Chatting during the break and exchanging information that is rarely discussed in a video call but is still good to know is also nice.
There is also room for encounters during a pop-up event in Frankfurt’s Hotel Jumeirah on Wednesday. Fashion labels such as Susumu Ai, which presented in Danzig am Platz the day before, come into contact with customers here.
It was still rather quiet in the morning, but the Berlin shoe label Maison Baum is still expecting up to 30 customers in the afternoon, says Managing Director Christof Baum. Before the event, he invited his regular customers from the Frankfurt area via the newsletter. Maison Baum specializes in high heels with an orthopedic footbed, which the models also wore at the catwalk show organized by the Fashion Council Germany on Tuesday.
## Emotional encounters Scott Lipinski, Managing Director of the Fashion Council Germany, said he was already discussing a continuation of the Frankfurt Stage show in July with the Frankfurt Fashion Week. “Due to the success, there is an interest on both sides to give young talents from the Fashion Council Germany a stage.”
Maison Baum and Susumu Ai even created a high platform shoe together for their joint show and called it Alisa – after the designer Alisa Menkhaus. She and her label Susumu Ai won the catwalk show at the Frankfurt Fashion Week including production with their concept.
Her brother Keiho Menkhaus, also managing director of her label, remembers her beginnings when Alisa Menkhaus quit her job as a designer in front of the assembled guests at the acceptance speech after the show. As he reviews the events since its founding in 2017, he bursts into tears.
It’s clear that this show marks something special for the pair – the manifestation and accumulation of years of hard work. A moment that would hardly have been possible without the people whose togetherness expressed appreciation for their work. In the fast-moving Internet, the viewers would probably have switched off in front of the screens long ago.