The pinnacle of craftsmanship and impeccable design. Paris Haute Couture Week has been known to produce some of the most noteworthy collections and special pieces each year. Now, the highly elite biannual event will be going digital this July.
For the first time ever, the Autumn Winter 2020 / 2021 edition of Haute Couture Week will be completely online. In a statement released by the The Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode, the FHCM has noted it will be organising a Haute Couture online event taking place from July 6 to July 8.
"This event will be structured around a dedicated platform. The principle of the official calendar is maintained.
Each House will be represented in the form of a creative film/video. Additional content will be included in an editorialized section of the platform. All of this will be widely shared on the main international media networks."
The schedule will run as any normal fashion week, though it has yet to be confirmed which designers will be participating. The permanent Couture calendar members include Adeline André, Alexandre Vauthier, Alexis Mabille, Bouchra Jarrar, Chanel, Christian Dior, Frank Sorbier, Giambattista Valli, Givenchy, Jean Paul Gaultier, Julien Fournié, Maison Margiela, Maison Rabih Kayrouz, Maurizio Galante, Schiaparelli and Stéphane Rolland.
Haute Couture is a tightly controlled event governed by the FHCM, with designers needing to meet strict criteria in order to participate or be invited. It’s a highly demanding process that requires ateliers to handmake one of a kind pieces that can take up to hundreds of labour-intensive hours to produce. The attendees of the shows are usually populated by an elite client base (ones who can afford the incredible designs), though Couture these days is now a source of inspiration for many ready to wear shows as the appreciation for craftsmanship and creative grandeur is widely celebrated within the industry.
As the effects of the coronavirus pandemic continue to shake up the fashion industry, Haute Couture Week is not the first to go digital. Milan Fashion Week and London Fashion Week will also be taking place online this next season. This also follows on from Saint Laurent pulling out of the 2020 fashion calendar along with Gucci recently announcing it will go seasonless and only produce two collections per year.
Many changes and updates are yet to be made as the fashion industry continues to reshape itself for the new world. Watch this space.
