Stockholm Fashion Week 2020: Everything You Need to Know About the Most Recent Virtual Fashion Week
As expected during a global pandemic, many large in-person events have been made partially or completely virtual. Fashion week is no exception, and reimagining the runway online is not only a new challenge for designers but also a new opportunity to reframe the way that we interact with fashion. Nobody has done this more gracefully than the designers in Stockholm, Sweden.
Stockholm Fashion Week was created by the Swedish Fashion Association in 2005 with the intention of “putting Stockholm and Swedish fashion on the international fashion scene.” Europe is home to the power players in trendsetting: Milan, Paris, London and Florence. The list could go on! So, creating their own fashion week and subsequent space for Swedish designers to showcase their work was crucial to putting them on the map.
When the coronavirus hit, the Swedish Fashion Association (SFA) saw this as an opportunity to live up to their goal of promoting “entrepreneurship and innovation” within Swedish fashion. They opted for a virtual fashion week from August 25-27, intended for consumers rather than just media and buyers. This is a complete revival of what fashion weeks have looked like, as they are typically spaces for the high-fashion community to decide what’s in and what’s out. Everyone pull out your maps and pay close attention to where the new fashion capitals may be!
The SFA secretary-general, Catarina Midby, told Vogue that their goal for the week was to provide “a clean-cut, contemporary design, longevity, and added sustainable value,” noting that “Swedish fashion indeed has what it takes in the post-pandemic world, brought to market in a democratic, diverse, and innovative manner.”
The event was even opened by Her Royal Highness Princess Victoria on August 25. C’mon, imagine being able to say your country’s fashion week was opened by your princess! This introduction was specifically relevant because HRH is committed to sustainable fashion that is ethically sourced and produced, and the theme of this fashion week was “Allemansratten,” meaning “outdoor access rights… nature belongs to us all and caring for it is everyone’s responsibility.”
Check out some of our favorite looks from Stockholm Fashion Week below!
