WORDS Madeline Reid & Chiara Maculan
RUNWAY PHOTOGRAPHY Chris Yates
Sometimes it feels like Autumn/Winter in February is viewed as the little sister to the sunnier, flashier September season. But this year, under new British Fashion Council leadership from Laura Weir, London repositioned February as a platform for experimentation and ambition. With a deliberately expanded calendar, waived participation fees and a broader mix of formats – from intimate presentations to riotous runway theatrics – this season created space for designers at every level, recognising the creative and financial realities emerging brands are navigating.
Tolu Coker’s Queen Elizabeth II Award for British Design marked a well-earned career milestone. Years of nuanced, her historically-informed work finally received its moment of institutional recognition, and not even the noise surrounding King Charles’s appearance could pull focus from the significance of her win. Raw Mango made its British runway debut, bringing its heritage sari sensibilities into an unexpectedly contemporary and textural collection.
CompletedWorks enlisted Jemima Kirke for a dramatic, character-led performance, YAKU staged the next chapter of his story through RPG-style combat and martial-arts-inflected movement, and Octi embedded its jewellery in an overgrown, botanical installation. Covetable collaborations came in the form of Simone Rocha and adidas’ lace-trimmed, pearl-embellished sportswear hybrids, while Chilly’s – following last season’s sought-after partnership with Chopova Lowena – tapped Charlie Constantinou for 3D-printed bottles marked with the designer’s signature swirl motif.
Beyond the headline moments, London’s strength this season was in its scope. At CSM, Zeina Issa’s Inherently Loud delivered a maximalist reassertion of contemporary Muslim femininity, while LCF’s Lynn Zhao presented a sharply honed MA collection of her own. KNWLS hosted an immersive in-store preview, Fiorucci leaned into a turquoise-drenched billiard hall, and Kazna Asker closed the week with an intimate, community-led Iftar. There was no neat through-line this season, only a mosaic of ideas and communities that together captured London’s eclectic spirit.
AGRO STUDIO
The London-based design duo George Oxby and Angus Cockram, better known for their custom looks for cult celebrities, opened the London Fashion Week schedule in dramatic fashion. Entitled The Wanderer, the collection drew on archetypes caught in perpetual motion, whether literal or psychological. It began with one of the strongest dresses of the weekend, a chocolate brown, tightly corseted gown with elongated sleeves and a sweeping train, setting the tone for a moorland fantasy that achieved what certain recent period adaptations arguably did not.
Models moved through a staged forest as Icelandic sheepskin in rust, grey and black sat alongside leather aviator layers, ripstop and hand-dyed asymmetric knits. Glossy, armour-like metallics and hand-beaded tailoring introduced a harder edge, while denim and leather pieces featuring ram and bull motifs nodded to Americana through a folkloric lens. Throughout, AGRO balanced traditional corsetry and couture techniques with contemporary textiles developed in-house, reinforcing their reputation for character-driven dressing that feels theatrical yet technically grounded.
MAXIMILIAN RAYNOR
Max Raynor’s AW26 offering titled Post Me Your Last Kiss is the young designer’s testament to heartbreak lived through the meanders of Shoreditch. Stomping onto the neighbourhood’s cobblestoned streets with your trusty and timeless Gola Classics, the Debyshire-born designer traced the journey of a final love letter, delivered by a vision in blue tartan, and contained in a brown two-piece set tied together with a white string, recalling a paper package. The letter is then crumpled and shredded, symbolised through a cascade of dotted beige tassels adorning the designer’s signature tartan prints.
With Victorian-inspired silhouettes transcending lines between menswear and womenswear, a mesmerising performance by Finn Ronsdorf, and a tangible evolution introed by new textures and materials, the collection guides us through a melancholic experience of a breakup, from the comfiness of chunky knotted knitwear pieces to mourning lacy black gowns, revisited in Raynor’s key funneled structures and prompting us to heal, to the feeling of hope and belief in new love, embodied by a jaw-dropping red velvet closing look.
FASHION EAST
The esteemed talent incubator hosted two returning designers, Mayhew and Jacek Gleba, alongside a highly anticipated new addition this season, CSM alumni Traiceline Pratt’s label GOYAGOMA. Mayhew’s material-led approach played out through chaotic, collage-like compositions that felt lived-in and instinctive, as if culled from a creative wardrobe rather than drafted for the runway. Gleba’s Salome chapter revisited his interest in fluid movement and colour, pairing body-conforming forms with soft fabrics and layered detailing that offered a fresh development in his work.
The standout of the trio was GOYAGOMA’s Something to Wear, Pratt’s refined debut under the Fashion East umbrella; his take on nocturnal essentials – from thigh-belted trenches in mock-croc suede to bomber jackets with exaggerated faux-fur collars and sharply tailored trousers – was both polished and personal, grounding the showcase with its wearability and narrative strength.
KEBURIA
George Keburia delivered a standout show for AW26, preserving both his well-established militaristic vocabulary and a theatrical exploration of femininity rooted in rebellious humour. The collection mixed ceremonial tailoring and historical references with the designer’s tongue-in-cheek spirit, most notably with the reappearance of a punchy slogan tee (we’re still thinking about last season’s “Bye Anna” iteration), this time screaming “Hi Lauren Sanchez Bezos”, nodding to the current industry chatter on who can buy their way into fashion.
Outerwear anchored the show, with sculptural shoulders, braided detailing and antique-style buttons lending an almost imperial feel to the longline coats. Faux fur trims and baroque jacquards added richness, while vegan leather pieces reinforced the armour of the collection. Elsewhere, cut-out denim, microskirts and Matador-red cropped jackets injected energy into the more formal silhouettes. Glinting in rhinestones and hardware, a recurring spider motif symbolises the ongoing interplay between fragility and power. Keburia’s world remains bold, provocative, and performative, but this season it evolved into a tighter, darker, and more assured offering.
KAROLINE VITTO
After a season away, Karoline Vitto made a welcome return to the London Fashion Week schedule. There has been ample noise about global fashion’s regression on diverse body representation, with fewer plus and mid-sized models taking to the runway than ever before, and even fewer designers building their brands around dressing those bodies with intention. Vitto is not interested in symbolic inclusion; her entire practice centres curvy women, celebrating folds, softness and strength through sculpted cut-outs and silhouettes designed to honour, not disguise, shape.
For AW26, Vitto responded directly to that cultural backslide, revisiting late-nineties and early-noughties silhouettes – low-slung trousers, exposed midriffs, hips framed through cut-outs – but without the reductive “heroin chic” ideals that once dictated who was allowed to wear them. Her pieces are engineered to adapt, with hidden elastics, adjustable fastenings and tensioned drapery that move with the body rather than demanding it shrink. Here, clothes are built to fit the wearer, not the other way around. The burden of body diversity should never sit with a single label, yet Vitto’s shows have become a relieving sign every season, and a reminder that curve-led design is not a niche, nor a trend, but a fully realised aesthetic and commercial proposition.
LABRUM
With his AW26 show Threads of Osmosis, Foday Dumbuya continued his trilogy, deepening Labrum‘s meditation on migration through textile. Where previous seasons amplified rhythm and diaspora through sound, this chapter grounded the narrative of this collection in cloth and fabric as archive and testimony, showcased at Westminster’s Great Hall. Sharp, intentional, and gender-fluid, British suiting remained the backbone, yet structure was often softened or interrupted. Japanese indigo denim carried an updated passport print, laser-etched like a record of movement. Wool coats bore the signature Freetown print in embroidery, stitching memory into fabric, while a cord-appliqué dress referenced West African braided hairstyles.
The collection’s strength lay in its material honesty. Cowrie shell embroidery, crocheted bags inspired by Sierra Leonean pottery, and sculptural brass jewellery (created in collaboration with metal fabricator Florence West) foregrounded handwork without slipping into nostalgia. Nothing felt costume-like; instead, it proposed tailoring as a vessel for global exchange.
THE VXLLEY
For his fashion debut, multi-disciplinary artist Daniel De Valle offered a decisive change of pace during a season that often leaned pop-facing and commercially tuned. At Ladbroke Hall, he staged something closer to a gallery showcase than a fashion runway, hosting a classical pianist to soundtrack his sculptural designs, made from wood, ceramics, and repurposed seashells.
Having already witnessed the collection, entitled The Narcissist, in an exclusive editorial published by AnOther, guests didn’t come to see the unknown, but the unimaginable. This wasn’t art-inspired, but art itself; grounded in craft, material investigation and sculptural form. Nature also played a key role, with live flowers softening black court heels, springing from planters strapped across chests, and one top made entirely from grass. A personal favourite was the wooden corset, housing miniature vases within the lattice of its structure. This collection felt markedly different within the context of London Fashion Week, with no obvious alignment to trends or seasonal commerciality, instead prioritising construction and experimentation. In a week filled with garments designed to capture in-store buyers and online attention, that intent felt fresh.
CHOPOVA LOWENA
The beloved London-based brand hosted its first-ever on-schedule presentation this season, offering Regency-era glamour on the golf course in Too Ripe and Ready by Half. Here, finely embellished corsets and turquoise tutu skirts were paired with patchwork argyle knits, knee-high socks and kitsch knickerbocker-style shorts, drawing two distinctly British styles into one irreverent, collision-heavy collection. Unsurprisingly, the Crafts Council venue was packed within minutes of doors opening, leading to an impressive queue that wrapped around the block. On arrival, guests were offered a scorecard-style press release, an artisanal cupcake, and a glitter-infused martini topped with edible flowers.
For a brand that favours traditional runways, the presentation format was a welcome shift, allowing guests to see the meticulous work in detail. Tartan featured heavily across layered mourning dresses, long kilts, and the brand’s signature carabiner skirts, while a velvet cream jacket with fur trims offered the most minimalist design seen from the duo. Pet motifs recurred throughout, from delicate kitten brooches to cheeky animal knit jumpers, woven with cat and dog faces peering out the shoulders, and presented with matching bonnets and keychains – sure to be AW26’s next coveted collectable. Across the collection, Chopova Lowena reworked its own archive, upcycling deadstock fabrics from previous seasons into hybrid pieces that merged camo, plaid and lace in a continuation of its signature mismatch. The designers also introduced Chopova Lowena Feelings, a line of intimates and sweats, extending their world beyond occasion dressing and into everyday wear.
CHET LO
Few designers this season built an atmosphere quite like Chet Lo. For his AW26 collection, Night Market, the Asian-American designer drew from personal memories to host an evening bazaar filled with market stalls, curated by Asian diaspora community platform Red Flagged. “Community” is frequently referenced but rarely felt during fashion week’s hectic schedule, but this Saturday evening extravaganza had attendees staying long after the finale had left the runway, as guests excitedly poured over stalls of jewellery, candles, art prints and independent fashion labels.
Inspired by rediscovering his home city of Hong Kong through his partner’s eyes on a recent trip, Lo captured the markets’ frenetic energy and neon lights into a vibrant collection of crimson and emerald gradients, evoking a trompe-l’oeil effect on gowns and column skirts. his signature spiked merino knits were reworked into demi-couture silhouettes, taking inspiration from the romantic stylings of Wong Kar-wai’s In The Mood For Love and Fallen Angels. Elsewhere, evening wanders around Mong Kok, huddled under umbrellas, translated into spiked parasols, while Chinese opera influenced feathered eyewear and dramatic three-dimensional co-ords.
JOHANNA PARV
Inspired by the vision of a working woman jumping onto her bike straight from the office, suit trousers still on and bag worn as a backpack, Johanna Parv placed the commuter experience at the centre of her AW26 collection, The Intimacy of Distances. Continuing to refine her distinct minimal, utilitarian urban language, she focused on precision, creating garments designed not only to be seen, but to function in motion. New body-hugging silhouettes, technical materials and subtle nods to cycling through the city after dark anchored the collection.
Silhouettes evolved into more elongated, narrow forms, with panelled outerwear, reflective piping, harness-like details and modular dresses shaping the body. Adjustable elements — toggles, straps and zip-offs — reinforced her ongoing interest in adaptability, while performance nylons and water-resistant finishes sat alongside stretchy tailoring, creating a tension between practicality and elegance. Created in collaboration with Italian bicycle saddle manufacturer Selle Royal, the set installation featured sculptural saddle seating that immersed the audience in Parv’s lived references, tying the presentation together and underscoring her interest in ergonomics, object design and aerodynamics.
PAULINE DUJANCOURT
Pauline Dujancourt approached AW26 through the history of witchcraft persecutions, using the collection to reconsider how women have been feared, caricatured and erased. Rather than leaning into cliché, she translated that research into technique. Crochet, handknitting and tulle macramé formed the backbone of the show, with over-wrapped fabric strips creating structured, almost protective frameworks around the body. For Walking On Eggshells, much of the work was developed in close collaboration with her team, including handknitted alpaca outerwear with woven hoods and pockets, and finely pleated chiffon pieces. The closing Eli dress, scattered with small crochet flowers, reinforced the personal dimension that underpins her practice.
This season also felt like an expansion. The colour palette stretched beyond her usual indigo and charcoal to include violet, plum and teal, while silhouettes opened up with softer drape and, notably, her first pair of trousers: cut in silky silver and styled with a fluffy short-sleeved knit top that made her artisanal techniques feel more everyday. The runway was framed by a sculptural installation of broken eggshells, fragments scattered underfoot, a direct but effective metaphor that grounded the narrative. Dujancourt has a consistent ability to merge female history with personal reference without losing wearability, and that balance continues to resonate.
OSCAR OUYANG
For AW26, Oscar Ouyang staged The Last Party as a runway set as if it were inside the remnants of a country manor, complete with a fallen chandelier, a dolls’ house and a bed scattered with empty wine bottles. The models moved through the space as if inhabiting an inherited world on its last night. Formal codes were loosened, with military-cut coats softened, evening references translated into knit, and deadstock fabrics recut with fresh intent. From a distance, tweed appeared traditional; up close, it revealed itself as dense knit fraying at its edges into unexpected textures.
What gave the show its edge was the styling. Furs were layered over slim tailoring, oversized military jackets shrugged on with ease, and gold confetti was scattered through models’ hair. Ribbon star bows were tied onto New Balance trainers, adding to its playfulness, while masks adorned models’ faces, adding to the mystery of its Saltburn–style aristocratic afterparty..
PETRA FAGERSTROM
The CSM alumn, who won last year’s L’Oréal Professional Creative Award and is currently shortlisted for the LVMH Prize, presented her AW26 collection, After Everything I Did For You, as a study of the mother-daughter, coach-figure skater dynamic. Drawing on her own memories of competitive skating, Fagerström examined the layered expectations placed on young performers.
“In competitive skating, perfection is not only technical, it is also moral, aesthetic, and performative,” she explains. “Skaters are judged on technique but also on how they embody grace, how they smile through the pain, modesty, obedience, and discipline, as their performance can be too revealing, too theatrical, or not enough.” That pressure translated into sculptural puffer jackets, some fitted with double zips that exposed flashes of floral lining, others cut into cape-like forms that forced the arms to remain crossed yet visible, a posture that felt both defensive and disciplined.
The standout was a heavily sequinned, long-sleeved dress evolved from her MA collection. From afar it read as silver, but in motion it caught the light to reveal a spectrum of colour beneath the surface. Dramatic gathers at the hip formed a rosebud-like structure that shifted the silhouette off balance, adding tension to its otherwise streamlined cut. Her signature pleating technique reappeared throughout the collection, reinforcing her technical command. It was a concept carried through with clarity and conviction, and one of the weekend’s most affecting collections.
LEO PROTHMAN
For his official on-schedule debut, Leo Prothmann took us to the Mandrake to showcase CABAÑA as both a collection and a confession. A reflection on warmth, protection, architecture, and permanence, the offering was shaped by the designer’s time in Mexico, reimagined in the luxuriant setting of the hotel terrace immersed in the urban landscape.
Leather remained Prothmann’s primary language of choice, although pushed into more technically ambiguous territory by quilted parkas and flowy sheer dresses. Modular “cage” capes constructed by offcut strips and internally boned held sculptural strength while also softening and rounding with movement, while curved shoulders and equidistant panelling gave the pieces architectural discipline and mustard, oxblood, and forest green tones echoed the pigments of his South American experience.
Collaboration shaped the depth of the collection, with sustainable upholstery specialist Nene Valley Leather providing durable by-product hides and Dr Martens reworking the iconic Jadon boot into a waterproof hiking hybrid, while the use of Inversa fish leather underlined the brand’s commitment to sustainability.
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