5 things to expect at New York Fashion Week Women's SS25

The New York Fashion Week is ready to return to the spotlight with a schedule full of events and unmissable debuts. From September 6th to 11th, 2024, the streets of New York will be filled with fashion shows and presentations that will showcase the work of independent designers to the world, starting with AREA, which, after the initial show by John Varvatos, will kick off the lineup of hot events of the season. Although we will have to wait until January for the debuts of the new creative directors of Calvin Klein and FFORME, as well as the runway return of Helmut Lang, which is not present in the current calendar published by the CFDA, here are five highlights not to be missed at New York Fashion Week SS25.

1. Alaïa in the Big Apple

The Alaïa maison, one of the most anticipated hot tickets of haute couture, has decided to present its new collection in New York on September 6th, skipping Paris Haute Couture Week. Pieter Mulier, the maison's creative director, expressed his enthusiasm for this choice on Instagram, emphasizing how New York represents the epicenter of creativity and art for him, as he became acquainted with the city while working with Raf Simons for several years at Calvin Klein’s top line. The city, already the stage of an Alaïa fashion show in 1982, will also host a series of events dedicated to the maison until September 8th, celebrating the special bond between the brand and the Big Apple.

2. Ralph Lauren's mega-show in the Hamptons

Ralph Lauren is back in the spotlight with a spectacular show in the Hamptons on September 5th, bringing his iconic brand back to the runway. The choice of location, far from the traditional urban settings of Fashion Week and also outside the official calendar, promises to offer a unique and fascinating experience, as well as an after-party that will be the literal epitome of preppy elegance. Lauren, known for his ability to interpret the USA's aesthetic in all its different nuances, will use the Hamptons as the backdrop to present his latest creations, presumably showcasing a triumph of coastal opulence in full old New York style.

3. Proenza Schouler’s off-schedule event

Proenza Schouler, the creative duo of Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez, returns to New York for the September Fashion Week with an off-schedule event that will renew their commitment to the New York scene. The show is scheduled for September 4th in a location yet to be determined, but the promise is for a presentation that will reflect their innovative and avant-garde aesthetic. Quickly rising to prominence over the years, Proenza Schouler (often colloquially referred to as just “Proenza” by insiders) has been the herald of an extremely modern, architecturally fluid aesthetic that redefines the city’s fashion offerings season after season.

4. Off-White returns to New York

Off-White, under the guidance of Ib Kamara, returns to New York, marking a significant event for the brand and its followers. After a season of pause and a show in Paris, followed by months of much discussion about the brand's new direction, the brand founded by the late Virgil Abloh seems to want to return to familiar territories—at a critical moment for the United States. Will this historic occasion offer Kamara a way to tell the cultural reality of the USA in a thematically salient manner? It's all to be seen, but expectations are high. Off-White's show in New York, scheduled for September 8th, will be a celebration of the brand's heritage and an opportunity to see how Kamara is reinterpreting Off-White's style in a contemporary key.

5. COS returns to Fashion Week

Not really a novelty, but certainly a sign of the times. Season after season, following the brand's show schedule, COS is slowly emerging from the world of fast fashion to position itself in a new space, both for the brand and the industry, placing it halfway between the accessibility of fast fashion and the quality of a premium brand, with an eye for design that has also seduced even the most purist design devotees. The brand, which has garnered a large fan base for its clean lines and high-quality materials, will present its new collection on September 7th.