New York, New York- This week through September 13th, New York Fashion Week on Fifth unveiled its ... [+]
This week through September 13th, New York Fashion Week on Fifth unveiled its fashion show event space that’s in the heart of Manhattan, on one of the most iconic streets in the world. The three-story space, being called by fashion goers as 608 has been transformed into a vibrant location of fashion week events with activations and a runway surrounded by state-of-the-art lighting, giving established and emerging designers a platform that compliments the official New York Fashion Week (NYFW) schedule.
“608 is a 50k square foot space with three main levels,” says Jerome Barth, President of the Fifth Avenue Association. “One of the things we love about the space is its transparency into the street, and we decided to keep some of that transparency for the event. As people enter from Fifth Avenue into the main room, they will immediately see a black wall in the back, as the whole building has a white and black aesthetic, and we’re working with this. The runway will be right in front of attendees and they will feel as if they are embarking on the runway themselves. The downstairs will be used for hair, make up and staging; and the second floor will be used as a lounge for presentations and for other brand activations.”
The Rookie USA unveiled their Kids-only premium showcase of brands including Levi’s, Nike, Jordan, ... [+]
On Thursday, fashion architect Law Roach hosted the finalists from the design competition created with Supima cotton fabrics. And, The Rookie USA had a star studded front row of influential guests from Adrienne Bailon, Olympic Gymnast Jordan Chiles, Victor Cruz, DJ Envy, Tiki Barber, and others.
Located at 608 Fifth Avenue, between 48th and 49th Streets, across from Saks Fifth Avenue and Rockefeller Center, the space gives brands the opulence of New York’s nucleus of fashion. The space and the NYFW calendar are presented by the Fifth Avenue Association, including shows and presentations by Supima Design Competition, TASOU, Rookie USA, Global Fashion Collective and Nolcha Shows. Food and beverages from Parisian tea salon Angelina are provided, and there is also interactive live-streaming from the hosts partner ShopShops.
ShopShops is a global shopping platform, also debuting for the first time during NYFWonFifth. According to notes from NYFW on Fifth, ShopShops has an engagement of 2M+ global audience that include interactive consumer experiences, live-streaming of fashion shows, and an interactive NYFW style contest. This interactive means gives designers the opportunity to see their collections virtually through the ShopShops app.
September 2021 Show Schedule:
September 9:
11am - SUPIMA
Design students from around the country compete for a financial prize of $10,000 and recognition from top industry leaders. The students will show eveningwear capsule collections created with SUPIMA cotton fabrics.
6:30pm - Rookie USA featuring Levi's, Nike, Jordan, Converse, Hurley and 3BRAND Kids Apparel Collections
Featuring this season's Levi's, Nike, Jordan, Converse, Hurley and 3BRAND Kids Apparel Collections.
September 10:
4pm - TASOU
Inspired by Chuks Collins' diverse background and upbringing, integrating the sleek lines of New York streets with the fractal geometric shapes and colors of ancient and current-day Nigeria.
8pm - Renee Cafaro Atelier
Renee Cafaro Atelier, size-inclusive/plus size couture ethically made in NYC, will present the Millennium Collection.
September 11:
11am - Global Fashion Collective I: Ay Lelum, C'Est D, Irene de la Vega, CEDIM The School of Design
Featuring Ay Lelum, C’Est D, CEDIM The School of Design and Irene de la Vega.
2pm - Global Fashion Collective II: [unusual], SAINTJESUS, Carlton Jones, Saral Zens and Blue Tamburin
Featuring [unusual], SAINT JESUS, Carlton Jones, Saral Zens and Blue Tamburin.
7pm - Albright College
Albright College is a private, liberal arts college located in Reading, Pennsylvania with a prominent fashion program. The show is made up of 9 designers, each showing 6 looks with diversity in terms of race & size.
September 12:
4pm - Kevan Hall
Detroit-born Kevan Hall knew by the age of seven that he wanted to be a fashion designer. He launched his signature Kevan Hall Collection in 2002, a reflection of a fashion philosophy that emphasizes purity of style, incomparable tailoring and sensuously draped silhouettes uncluttered by modern design.
8pm - KavenLiu Dimor, Koreano, The 5th Season and KLOVA for Nolcha
Featuring KavenLiu Dimor, Koreano, 5th Season and KLOVA.
“There’re all sorts of assets on Fifth Avenue that we’ve been fortunate to work with along with the ownership at 608 to make this opportunity happen for this fashion season. We are hoping that our program will be a strong introduction to the future of the event and that we will be able to grow the presence of NYFW on Fifth Avenue,” says Barth.
New York, New York- The three story level outdoor view of 608 Fifth Avenue.
He and his team, along with the 608 ownership recognize that their iconic location isn’t enough to bring impact to NYFW and sales alone. Of the four major global fashion weeks, many in fashion have commented that they feel New York’s week is declining in influence compared to Paris. Chairman of the CFDA and fashion designer Tom Ford has been working to keep NYFW in a 5-day showing to make it more exclusive and bring up the presence of New York in front of its siblings Milan, Paris and London. 608 and the Fifth Avenue Association believe they are in a position to contribute influence to NYFW.
“We are trying to infuse the event with new energy and a great opportunity for fashion in America in general, but with NYFW in particular is the tie to the consumer. This is one of the things 608 can bring is not just the extraordinary backdrop of Saks, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and Rockefeller Center but all this has to translate into sales. We believe that we are opening a door that can be a broader conversation of the model of how NYFW can evolve towards that. My hope is that designers showing will find their way onto the shelves of Bergdorf Goodman and Saks. The proximity is not going to hurt.”
Continuing he states, “While 608 is an iconic location it has to be sustained. We need to sustain the location with ideas, talent, creativity, designers, and the people making interesting content today. Just as Halston was on Fifth Avenue during his time, we need to be there and support the creators of today on Fifth Avenue.”
New York, New York- New York on Fifth offers three levels of space for brands and art instillations ... [+]
608 is a showing that luxury stores are bringing back that link between the global consumer to New York City Fashion Week, “and this is a significant investment,” says Barth. “We are fortunate that our stakeholders are willing to take the long view on this, which is when something is produced on Fifth Avenue, it should be produced at the highest level of quality. For the shows showing with us, we want it to be a fantastic experience from the point of view of designers, attendees, the staff, and the press so that people will say ‘wow, this makes perfect sense, we should do more of this.’
During SS22 New York Fashion Week season brands brought a full house for runway shows at NYFW on ... [+]
608 is also following New York City and CDC Covid_19 regulations of requiring masks to be worn, a limited guest capacity, vaccine requirements. “We’re very fortunate that New York has done well with vaccinations. We’re following the guidelines set by the Council on Fashion Designers of America (CFDA), who has partnered with us throughout this process. Covid is like taxes, it will be with us forever, but we can’t hide anymore and we have to live our lives and make the best of it. We are applying the best standards of safety for the quality of the event.”
An event which 608 and the Fifth Avenue Association plan to be back in February for NYFW. But for this season, they are excited about the designers showcasing for the spring-summer 2022 season.
