#SuzyNYFW: New Blood At New York Fashion Week

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A puff of tulle in vivid green, yellow, purple, pink – and more – twirled around the walls of the Marc Jacobs pop-up store.

Designer Tomo Koizumi with one of his creations for SS20

© JP Yim / Getty

The sky might have been black, lashed with the wind and rain of a vicious hurricane’s tail end, but Japanese designer Tomo Koizumi brought a colourful display of fashion madness. A model with a hair-do rising vertically upwards and layers of feather-light fabric gave a dollop of madness. Let us forget that Madison Avenue is peppered with empty stores and that New York fashion week is in need of an urgent push to keep the event both dynamic and relevant.

Tomo Koizumi SS20

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By the time that Tom Ford, in his new role as CFDA chair, hosted a downtown dinner at Indochine restaurant to introduce fresh designers and rising American stars, there was a genuine buzz of excitement.

Tom Ford at New York fashion week, September 2019

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“It is about getting people together,” said Ford, who was backed by Vogue’s Anna Wintour and, crucially, by the varied designers.

And the downtown event was not alone. There was action up at Fifth Avenue’s Bergdorf Goodman, the mighty and historic store around the corner from where a beleaguered Barney’s is trying to stave off insolvency.

Linda Fargo, dynamic director of Bergdorf’s vast women’s fashion offering, pulled together emerging and effective young designers, including Sies Marjan, whose sorbet colours have made an impact on simple clothes. She had also selected – among many others – the French duo Coperni, formerly at Courrèges.

“I am kind of jazzed about the new kids and New York is very encouraging about new talent,” the executive said, admitting that while Italy was slow to produce a fresh band of fashion designers, America was buoyant.

The new brood can at least try to fill the gap left by the departure of recognised young American designers such as Joseph Altuzarra to show in Paris, leaving a gap of talent in their home city.

Even the well-known American brands with international businesses are underscoring the need for change. Coach has re-dressed its Madison Avenue store focusing on its history and originality – with a twist. Bags to rent? Really? Designer Stuart Vevers has launched the concept of borrowing a bag at a low price – and then allowing the customer to turn it in or pay the price for eternal love. A sales gimmick? Maybe. But it is accompanied by other ideas of personalisation, craft and mending, which all offer the concept that a Coach purchase is to treasure – hopefully for ever.

Jeremy Scott from the west coast showed his latest line of fashion craziness, although there was a sense that the Los Angeles designer was coasting this season with his own line, while his work for the Italian Moschino brand, to be shown later in Milan, carries a strong energy.

Jeremy Scott SS20

© Filippo Fior / Gorunway.com

After a passionate and political show last season, deploring the gender conflicts encouraged by President Trump, the Jeremy Scott show was back to abnormal. Vivid, sexy, showgirl (and mad men) designs in bright colours seemed almost too easy a collection to toss down the runway. But the Jeremy Scott look is unique, from its colourful wigs to its body-conscious patterned dresses and thigh-high boots.

Jeremy Scott SS20

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Consistency, diversity and a sense of fun are important characteristics of American fashion identity. And the new regime, headed by Tom Ford as an experienced designer, suggests a dynamic new story line in New York city.