Tom Ford Makes A Major Brand Announcement

The designer is closing the gap between runway and retail

It’s been a big weekend for the world of fashion. Following Burberry’s major announcement, Tom Ford revealed on Friday that the brand will be pushing its autumn/winter 2016 presentations — for both menswear and womenswear — until this September, to align with the retail calendar. Consumers will be able to buy pieces online and in stores on the same day the collections hit the runway. 

“In a world that has become increasingly immediate, the current way of showing a collection four months before it is available to customers, is an antiquated idea and one that no longer makes sense,” said Ford, who had already been experimenting with new ways to show his collections. (He presented Spring 2016 as a music video starring Lady Gaga.)

“We have been living with a fashion calendar and system that is from another era. Our customers today want a collection that is immediately available,” the designer said in a statement.

Vetements also announced it will trim down to two shows a year, starting next January. The presentations will combine men’s and women’s collections and take place two months before the rest of the ready-to-wear shows. 

“We spend an enormous amount of money and energy to stage an event that creates excitement too far in advance of when the collection is available to the consumer,” Ford added.

So will capitalising on excitement and closing the runway-retail gap be the next big move for designers? According to Ford, the traditional fashion calendar is out of style.

Via Harper’s Bazaar US