Pre-fall has been an established expectation within the fashion calendars. Part of this is to fill the retail void so customers continue to receive items more relevant to their daily lives. But another part of this is to introduce new fashion directions. Unlike the standard Spring/Summer or Fall/Winter collections, Pre-fall tends to be subtler, providing gentle hints of what to expect and providing a testing ground to see whether customers will bite. The glacial pace of evolution is confirming the cautious path being taken by both the designer and the customer.
What is strongly noticed is the continued safe choices. Some designers are keeping in line with the 90s in particular the conservative cuts and solid minimalist separates. During austere economic times back then, this worked well for those that were able to stick it out. This influence, which includes conservative cuts and slim fits, was seen in collections from Belstaff, Burberry Prorsum (along with skinny belts and shrugs), Diesel Black Gold, Elie Tahari, Helmut Lang, Reed Krakoff (rubberized textiles and angular minimalist skirts), St. John and Theyskens’ Theory (grunge plaids, wet looks).
Others have decided to incorporate elements that appeal to our nostalgia, such as leaning to 50s cuts (Donna Karan, Lela Rose, Michael Kors), 60s ease (Moschino Cheap & Chic, many which had a 30s-through-the-eye-of-60s feel), 50s/60s vintage detail (Burberry Prosum’s huge button usage), 70s whimsy (Juicy Couture, which looked out of place for Pre-fall and more summer-like) or even further back (Chanel , dripping with centuries-old references in homage to Scotland).
Not everything is about the past as some designers are attempting to get away from retro and cautiously explore different ground, such as looser more angular fit (10 Crosby Derek Lam, Zero + Maria Cornejo), proportion (3.1 Phillip Lim, Calvin Klein), artful wrapping and modern cuts (Alexander Wang, Donna Karan, 3.1 Phillip Lim and Zero + Maria Cornejo).
What was interesting is to see where the innovation and creativity was concentrated: the accessories. For example, designers such as Theyskens’ Theory and Zero + Maria Cornejo had incredibly modern shoe designs incorporated into their collections. It makes sense as people are more likely to splurge on creative accessories versus separates when approaching their wardrobe as an investment versus a consumption habit.
There are more elements to explore and those will be covered as the collections wrap up. For now it has not been a huge flood of designers showing so far and it will be interesting to see whether austerity has begun the weeding-out process that befell designers in that decade. That would be a trend no designer who survived wants to relive. Unfortunately there are more sentiments inspiring the 90s resurgence and that means , for now, it’s a matter of playing it safe.