On the seats at Fashion Guerilla’s third runway showcase, a map of Paris showed the increased foothold of the Hong Kong contingent in the city this season. In addition to a trio of brands that are showing on the runway, 27 lines are being presented at showrooms and trade shows across the city.
Id, by design duo Julio Ng and Cyrus Wong, opened the show with a continuation of their raw, tormented fabric work that they used for deconstructed tailored jackets, outerwear and shirting.
Cynthia Mak and Xiao Xiao of Cynthia & Xiao sent out handsome, simple knitwear shapes updated with a graphic kick. Standouts were a roomy sweater with a rabbit design and a coat with nubby, rough-weave sleeves.
For its third showing at Fashion Guerilla, Ffixxed Studios’ Fiona Lau and Kain Picken ticked off all the hot retail trends of the moment, such as gender fluid looks like extra-long trouser legs split to look like bell-bottoms, haute sportswear and oversize tailoring.
Supported by the nonprofit Fashion Farm Foundation, the event is geared toward networking, with hopes of establishing roots in Paris for its designers. “Hong Kong is certainly no fashion desert of retail opportunities or mentoring, but this platform was created to encourage the cream of the crop to rise to the next level,” Fashion Farm Foundation chairwoman Edith Law told WWD before the show.
Asked what kind of designers qualify for the program, jury member Regina Lam, a Hong Kong-based luxury-brand strategist and industry veteran, describes them as “strongly believing in their roots and expressing this cultural and design identity. They need to be able to stand on their own but also paint a cohesive picture as part of our selection.”
The three brands will be joined by Berayah, KENAXLEUNG, Methodology and Vanessa Tao for the Fashion Guerilla press day, a new format that Law hopes will foster closer relationships with the wider fashion world.