New York designer Minkoff mixes in person show with ‘extended reality’
Rebecca Minkoff presented her collection in person, but this year’s Fashion Week showcasing spring collections will be presented almost exclusively online due to the COVID-19 pandemic
Rebecca Minkoff is one of few designers to present her collection at New York’s Fashion Week in person — but she’s also beting on the power of streaming, using innovative technology to immerse online viewers in her work.
Just like at last fall’s edition of Fashion Week, this spring’s collections will be presented almost exclusively online due to the Covid-19 pandemic — and many of the major designers have opted out altogether.
The exceptions include Jason Wu, who held a show for 25 people on Feb.12, and Minkoff, who invited 100 people to a studio in Soho to view her latest collection on Feb. 16 with mask-wearing and social distancing required.
Thousands more watched on Instagram and Tik Tok, and on Feb. 18 her show will be available on Fashion Week’s official website.
The New York designer will also present the collection on Yahoo on Feb. 17, using extended reality technology to offer a 360-degree show in collaboration with Yahoo Ryot Lab and Verizon Media’s 5G content studio.
Using a cell phone, viewers will be able to focus in on pieces from all angles to get a sense of the details — an option rarely available even from a show’s coveted front-row seats.
“Immersive content really helps to contextualise a collection and allows the consumer to get up close with the designer and the garments without stepping into a store,” Minkoff told the trade outlet Women’s Wear Daily.
But many people hold that nothing can replace seeing a collection in person.
“It’s a lot more exciting in person — you can feel the atmosphere and you can see the fabrics beter, there’s music. At home, in Youtube, it doesn’t have the same vibe,” Russian model and blogger Karina Bik said ater the show, which featured leather shorts and summery maxi dresses in animal prints, and of course matching masks.
Esther Santer, a 30-year-old fashion blogger, said the experience is “100 per cent different” online: “You lose the energy, the magic of it all and the social experience.”
“At the end of the day there’s nothing like seeing how a garment moves, how it’s styled, how it looks like in person,” Santer said, praising Minkoff for puting on a live show.
“It was great to get out and take a taste of Fashion Week because I know we all miss it.”
Fusing an urban vibe with feminine styling, Rebecca Minkoff has been designing coveted apparel, handbags, shoes and accessories since she moved to New York City at age 18. Today, she’s a member of the CFDA and a former winner of the Accessories Council’s Breakthrough Award. You’ll spot her playful, subtly edgy designs on celebrities and street-style icons everywhere.