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Copenhagen Fashion Week (CPHFW) has revealed its brand lineup for Autumn/Winter 2023, the first season where all brands must meet 18 minimum standards for sustainability in order to take part.
The event, taking place on 31 January-3 February 2023, features 30 brands, including mainstays Ganni, Saks Potts and Stine Goya, plus growing labels like (Di)vision, Holzweiler and Rotate. CPHFW New Talent designers Latimmier (Finland), P.L.N. and Iso.Poetism by Tobias Birk Nielsen (both from Denmark) are also on the schedule. Emerging brands Selam Fessahaye (Sweden), TG Botanical (Ukraine) and Stamm (Denmark) are nominated for the annual Zalando Sustainability Award.
For the first time, each of the brands has been approved by the CPHFW show committee, and the CPHFW sustainability committee, consists of Rambøll (external engineering and consultancy company) and advisers to the committee, In Futurum and Dansk Fashion & Textile. Not all applicants made it through the sustainability screening this AW23 season, says CPHFW CEO Cecilie Thorsmark. “We will continue to support those that need a bit more time and hope they will be able to present with us in the near future,” she says.
The minimum standards, first announced in 2019 to give brands time to implement change, cover strategic direction, design, smart material choices, working conditions, consumer engagement and show production. This includes zero-waste show productions, not using single-use plastic packaging, ensuring fair pay and working conditions across the supply chain and producing collections from at least 50 per cent certified, recycled, upcycled or deadstock materials. Brands must also show commitment to diversity and inclusion when hiring, particularly for management roles.
CPHFW is the first fashion week to implement this level of sustainability criteria, which shows commitment not only to reducing the impact of fashion shows themselves but also to building more sustainable and ethical fashion businesses year-round. In August this year, the event also banned fur, a significant move considering Denmark’s history in fur production.
“We simply wished to rethink our platform and use our position to contribute to accelerating the sustainability efforts of the fashion brands that make up Copenhagen Fashion Week,” says Thorsmark. “Ever since, we have been working closely with the brands to support them through various knowledge-sharing activities and to prepare them for an extensive application process this season, and I am utterly impressed by the dedication the brands have shown in making the necessary strides to live up to the minimum standard.”
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Clarification: CPHFW's sustainability committee consists of Rambøll (external engineering and consultancy company) and advisers to the committee, In Futurum and Dansk Fashion & Textile.
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