London Fashion Week: high street brands take to the catwalk

Rihanna at the 55th Grammy Awards on Sunday February 10

London Fashion Week kicks off on Friday but in amongst the stalwarts of British design are two new but well known faces.

This season, high street brands River Island and Whistles are taking to the catwalk.

River Island will show a collaboration with Rihanna while Kate Middleton favourite Whistles hosts a salon show.

And, on February 27, Swedish retailer H&M makes its Paris fashion week debut with a show at the Musee Rodin.

Jane Shepherdson is CEO of Whistles and former Topshop brand director.

?We?ve spent the last couple of years refining the collection till we were happy that it completely reflected our original vision,? she says.

?The 25 looks we show are almost the very essence of Whistles, the most gorgeous 10 per cent of the pieces that will go in store in Autumn.?

For River Island, showing on-schedule at LFW gives its starry collaboration with Rihanna the perfect platform.

?In an industry full of celebrity collaborations we wanted to show the strength and fashion ability of the collection and demonstrate Rihanna?s design talent,? says Josie Roscop, RI director of Marketing and Press.

The decision to show is wholly practical. ?We?re now embarking on an international expansion program and need to show Whistles to international press and buyers. London Fashion Week provides the perfect platform from which to do that.

Of course, River Island, Whistles and H&M aren?t the first high street brands to use the catwalk.

In the UK, the highest profile High Street showing has always been Topshop Unique, which has shown since 2001.

For many commentators, the catwalk appearance of brands on the catwalk is a sign of the influence of the high street.

?It also shows how seriously the rest of the industry take collaborations such as this one,? says Roscop.

Inevitably, showing in this way has an impact on the design process: ?Putting on a show each season makes us more creative,? says Shepherdson.

?It makes us think more about the absolute key pieces that the collection should contain at an earlier stage, which means that we then have more time to perfect them for the consumer.?

All the brands hope this is going to be a regular event.

?For Whistles to maintain a high profile both in this country and abroad, we must show every season,? says Shepherdson.

?The collaboration with Rihanna is the perfect moment to join the rest of brands who show at LFW,? agrees Roscop.

What can punters look forward to? ?Check out the shoes and bags!? says Shepherdson. ?These are pretty new for us.?

?I can?t give anything away on the collection so you?ll have to wait till the show to find out!? says Roscop.

The Whistles show takes place on February 17th at 10.30am; Rihanna for River Island takes place on February 16th at 9pm.

Source: http://metro.co.uk/2013/02/14/london-fashion-week-high-street-brands-take-to-the-catwalk-3476648/

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