What are the key trends and best chic looks from the fall winter 2020 Copenhagen Fashion Week? Our correspondent and resident expert on Scandi Style, Jillian Tangen, has the top trends you need to know from the fall winter 2020 Copenhagen Fashion Week, including a markedly increased focus on sustainability.
Copenhagen Fashion Week is increasingly influential
Fashion month has officially started with this weekend’s kick-off of New York Fashion Week. And while New York, Paris, London and Milan continue to dominate the headlines, in recent years Copenhagen Fashion Week has started to claim a more prominent place on the global fashion calendar.
Street style during the fall winter 2020 Copenhagen Fashion Week. Courtesy Photo.
The Fall Winter 2020 Copenhagen Fashion Week, which took place at the end of January, has once again proved that this is one of the most innovative and influential regional fashion capitals in the world right now.
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Despite taking place during one of the darkest months of the year, this year’s fall winter 2020 Copenhagen Fashion Week (CPHFW) shows were a ray of sunshine. And not just because of the colorful and lively street style that the Scandinavian city has become known for.
Not only was the week chock full of energetic and innovative shows like the ones we have come to expect from brands such as Stine Goya and Ganni (both of which are known for featuring a wide range of models and party-like atmospheres). This CPHFW was imbued with a collective drive to do and be better.
The Cecilie Bahnsen show at fall winter 2020 Copenhagen Fashion Week. Courtesy Photo.
sustainability a key trend at fall winter 2020 copenhagen fashion week
The week kicked off with a major announcement of a new flagship policy requiring participating designers to comply with 17 new sustainability standards by 2023.
Among them? Bringing in zero-waste set designs; pledging not to destroy unsold clothes and using at least 50% organic or recycled textiles in their collections. The organizers will also pledge to make efforts to reduce the climate impact of the fashion week itself by reducing emissions by 50% and becoming zero waste by 2022.
Sustainability was a key trend and topic during the fall winter 2020 Copenhagen Fashion Week. Courtesy Photo.
In addition to its current ban on single use plastics, the show will ban the use of plastic coat hangers by 2021. It is also researching “digital solutions” as a way to reach a global audience without requiring all participants to board planes to attend. It’s a broad-ranging and impressive action plan to bring sustainability to the forefront in fashion.
scandi street style is always really cool
Almost as impressive as CPHFW’s new green goals? The street style fashionistas gave us a proper schooling in how to make winter layering cool again.
The key trends and best looks of fall winter 2020 Copenhagen Fashion Week. Courtesy Photo.
Street style during the fall winter 2020 Copenhagen Fashion Week. Courtesy Photo.
The Key Trends and best chic looks From the fall winter 2020 Copenhagen Fashion Week
Of course, at the shows themselves there were a number of key stand-out trends. From bright pops of color to a game of checkers, bold collars and cozy knits, here are some of the best chic looks from fall winter 2020 Copenhagen Fashion Week.
1. lots of leather.
For the Scandi brands, 2020 is the year of leather (and faux leather, too). It showed up in everything from suits like the rock and roll meets business chic set we saw at Designers Remix to the buttery yellow jumpsuit from newcomer Remain.
The key trends and best looks of fall winter 2020 Copenhagen Fashion Week: leather. Courtesy Photos.
Leather was a big feature over at Ganni, too. The collection included everything from leather boots to skirts to dresses and of course, coats. And you can’t forget the Scandi leather label, Stand, with their wide range of jackets and pants. So don’t even think about retiring your biker jacket just yet.
2. checkers.
The standout print of the shows? Checkerboard. Both mesmerizing and statement making, the checkers we saw look poised to topple snakeskin and leopard prints from the top spot in fashion. Among our favorites were the colorful options on sweaters, boots and bags at Munthe. And the yellow and brown options from Baum Und Pferdgarten.
Key trends and chic looks from Copenhagen Fashion Week fall winter 2020: checkerboard. Courtesy Photos.
Rotate took a softer, more feminine approach with its teal Theresa Checkered Side-Slit Dress ($300) while Stand transformed its trademark teddy bear coat into a full on game board. So. Cool.
3. trophy knits.
Leave it to the Scandinavians to show us how knitwear should be done – with layers and textures and more layers. Standouts included Rodebjar’s bright yellow cardigan set paired with a contrasting knit scarf. And a cozy textured sweater dress from Danish brand Wood Wood, toughened up with some Dr. Marten’s-style footwear.
Key trends and chic looks from Copenhagen Fashion Week fall winter 2020: trophy knits. Courtesy Photos.
We loved Mykke Hofmann’s supersize sweater layered over a silky dress that’s perfect for chilly offices. Speaking of warmth, the knits on knits on knits looks at Holzweiler managed to be both cozy and edgy at the same time.
4. chocolatey hues.
Last year may have been all about the neutrals, but there’s a new hue in town. We’re embracing it with open arms: chocolate brown. Less severe than black, but not as subtle as beige, brown could very well be the perfect fall winter color of 2020.
Key trends and chic looks from Copenhagen Fashion Week fall winter 2020: Chocolate Hues. Courtesy Photo.
Among our favorites were a comfortable yet sleek looking set from Baum Und Pferdgarten, a relaxed Wood Wood shirt dress and Cecilie Bahnsen’s brilliant use of textures in her monochrome sweater and quilted skirt look. For those not quite ready to take the full head to toe chocolatey plunge, the leather button down and knitted hoodie combo from Designers Remix stood out, too.
5. statement collars.
Whether you want to thank the notorious RBG, who has been sporting her infamous dissent collars since she joined the Supreme Court, or the brand Ganni, who has been making them for a few years now, statement collars were quite popular on the runway.
Key trends and chic looks from Copenhagen Fashion Week fall winter 2020: statement collars from By Malene Birger; Cecilie Bahnsen; and Rodebjar; and Ganni. Courtesy Photo.
From the ruffled Peter Pan variations at Cecilie Bahnsen to the layerable ones at Ganni to the Picasso-inspired embroidered versions at Rodebjer to the asymmetrical beauties at By Malene Birger, collars made a statement of one form or another on almost every single runway. Get ready to spice up your neckline next winter.
6. pops of color.
Ever the optimists, Scandinavians eagerly await the arrival of spring throughout their long winters. It makes sense that they would add pops of candy colors for a splash of brightness amid the gloom.
Key trends and chic looks from Copenhagen Fashion Week fall winter 2020: pops of color. Courtesy Photo.
At Stine Goya, pops of lime green used on the Lenni Cady Dress ($350) were mixed in among darker greens and blues. At Helmstedt, colorful printed maxi dresses took center stage and had us dreaming of fields of flowers. Other beautiful colors gracing the runways included a stunning green ladylike coat from Danish brand Custommade and a yellow ruched dress from By Malene Birger that was reminiscent of sunny days yet to come.
all the trends you need to know from Copenhagen Fashion Week and sustainability
That’s it! Our top 6 picks for trends you need to know from Copenhagen Fashion Week. With enthusiastic shows, outstanding street style and some impressive goals to make a more sustainable industry and future, Copenhagen Fashion Week is one of our favorite weeks to watch. Not to mention it’s the perfect lead in to our next adventure – February’s Fashion Month shows.
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Jillian Tangen is the Head of Research at Dandelion Chandelier and a former Senior Research Analyst at McKinsey & Co and Analyst at Shearman & Sterling. She is an avid fan of Nordic design, having owned an independent lifestyle store and sales agency focused on emerging Scandinavian design. Jillian lives in New York and is married with three young children. She loves cross-country skiing, the New York Rangers, reading, travel and discovering new brands.
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For access to insider ideas and information on the world of luxury, sign up for our Dandelion Chandelier newsletter. And see luxury in a new light.