London Fashion Week 2022
London Fashion Week is the clothing trade show that takes place in the capital twice a year, in February and September. Showcasing over a hundred designers to a global audience of influential media and retailers, it is one of the ’Big Four’ fashion weeks, along with the New York, Milan and Paris.
However, designers taking part in this year’s London Fashion Week have been forced to make last-minute adjustments to the timing of their spring 2023 shows given the mourning period following Queen Elizabeth II’s death. The British government has been urging businesses not to cancel trade events during the mourning period, with the exception of Monday, which was declared a national holiday.
Burberry, a Royal Warrant holder, was forced to cancel its show on Saturday, and has settled on a later date.
London Fashion Week was originally set to run from Friday to Monday, and it will still go ahead every day with the exception of Monday, when no shows or events will take place.
The British Fashion Council has also asked designers and brands to refrain from holding parties, or the usual celebratory events that mark the week. The organization is keen to preserve what has become an important marketing moment for designers, whose businesses were damaged during two years of lockdown. Instead, the BFC is planning a celebration in honour of London Fashion Week “with a focus on London as a creative capital” in October, which will include citywide parties and store activations. For marketers and other fashion brands wanting to be respectful during this period, it means they can scale back their marketing, and instead schedule it around the celebration in October.
October may then, become a crucial time for fashion brands to boost their products and sales- and social media has become a critical marketing tool for fashion recently: the global online fashion market is predicted to grow to $872 billion by 2023 according to Statista. 74% of consumers rely on social networks to help them make purchase decisions.
The fashion industry’s focus on lifestyle, aesthetic and culture gives marketers ample opportunity to use social media to drive growth, increase brand loyalty and drive traffic to their site/apps. Moreover, leading fashion brands have proven the power of social media marketing across multiple channels. However, competition in UK fashion retail has been cut-throat in recent years because online has fundamentally changed the rules of the game- and now brands need to stand out from one another when they advertise digitally. Consumers like to interact with brands they buy from, especially in the digital world, and if a brand’s ads don’t entice them, it’s likely they won’t buy from their shop. Similarly to this, as consumers are increasingly researching and shopping for their clothes online, many fashion brands are playing catch-up when it comes to evolving their digital strategy.
Even though this year may be hugely scaled back in terms of marketing around LFW, the online sphere for fashion is still a lucrative space to advertise, no matter what event it’s surrounding.