Shanghai Fashion Week to be City’s Biggest Event Since Covid Lockdown

On September 19, Shanghai Fashion Week (SFW) announced that its spring/summer 2023 edition would take place from September 22 to 30 in various venues across the city.

Despite strict Covid-19 protocols for attendees — namely negative Covid test results issued within 24 hours — the biannual event is set to be one of the city’s biggest since the lockdown was lifted in early June.

The fashion event’s fall/winter 2022 edition was first postponed due to citywide lockdowns before being held entirely online.

With over 60 fashion shows spread across several locations, Shanghai Fashion Week is seemingly back in full force. Audiences are already anticipating the participation of newcomers, like M Essential Noir and Nan Knits, and the return of high-profile labels such as Shushu/Tong and Private Policy.

Local fashion powerhouse Labelhood, one of the pillars of SFW, will have its own showroom in the Rockbund Museum, an elegant and imposing historic building adjacent to the Bund.

In addition to the catwalks, trade shows, and industry talks that currently pepper Shanghai Fashion Week’s action-packed calendar, guests can sit in on panel discussions and forums on a slew of important and trending topics. One such panel will focus on sustainability and the role of women in the fashion industry and is backed by 75-year-old French company Christian Dior.

While the main events will be held offline, some of the shows will be held in the virtual sphere and livestreamed in partnership with Douyin, China’s version of TikTok.

In keeping with the trend of merging online and offline fashion, local and international brands like Huishan Zhang and Christian Dior will also incorporate VR elements in their livestreams.

Outside of Shanghai Fashion Week, several high-profile fashion events have made a splash in China over the past few weeks: Domestic label Windowsen staged an absurd yet visionary show in Shanghai, while Louis Vuitton picked a beachside location in North China for its menswear catwalk event featuring monolithic sculptures.

All images via Weibo