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The recently concluded edition of the New York Fashion Week held not so many design surprises as it did business lessons. It is only natural, then, that we wanted to do a feature right away!

Fashion is a form of expression- there’s a reason why people buy so loyally from the brands they love. This applies to all strata of the fashion society. People love their labels as much as they enjoy the ease and comfort of label-less, brand-less clothing. And that’s what NYFW was all about- shunning the label in favor of the individual.

Here, we deconstruct eight ideas from NYFW SS’19 that are worth exploring in your own fashion business.

  1. The Return Of The Self: Colors to make you feel better, shapes and silhouettes to help you feel safe- clothing is now about your mood. You may remember from one of our earlier features that color is a huge determinant of how we feel and how we express this to the world outside. A similar idea was extensively visible in the designs of Prada and Givenchy.
  1. Landmark Collections: Ralph Lauren turns fifty. Fifty years of bringing enhanced sports fashion to mainstream shows. Emotions ran high at NYFW, but what we took away is the message that sportswear is becoming the new casual wear. Looks that respect this notion will go very far.
  1. Tailoring Done Differently: Was it only yesterday that form and fit were the fashion buzzwords to look out for? Well, both form and fit are on holiday at NYFW, and the focus is instead on comfort and function. Not surprising, considering the urban commuter who moves around so much, and people’s general lack of interest in buying pieces that only ever sit in the wardrobe.
  1. Feminine Goes Fierce: This year, even the more conventionally minded designers shifted their focus to clothing that made a stronger statement. Case in point- Brock Collection. Their collection is so much more refined and represents strength, inside and out.
  1. Subtlety Over Statement: While everyone is busy making a statement, The Row toned it down. This is a potent message for fashion houses designing their collections right about now. Sometimes, in a world that is screaming statements, not making any statement at all may just be the most powerful way to go about anything.
  1. Nostalgia: Perhaps the harshness of the world we live in today, with its myriad issues and its elected leaders, is making us fond of the services, army, and even the eighties! Junya Watanabe and Isabel Marant both took this nostalgia and channeled it into something beautiful.
  1. Beyond Visual: The tink-tink of Paco Rabanne’s dress collection proved, yet again, that there’s no end to innovation in fashion. Auditory stimuli aren’t the first thing you’d associate with a dress, but they need not be the last either. We’re not rooting for squeaky shoes and hopefully, haven’t descended to dresses that play songs, but as long as the sound is pleasant to hear, why not!
  1. The Return Of The Unisex: There’s no way to know how much of it is because of a movement, and how much merely a factor of comfort, but clothing collections are no longer split along gender lines. Case in point- all of the designers who exhibited their collections for men and women at the same time, on the same stage. Come to think of it, why doesn’t love a multipurpose piece?

The looks we loved from New York Fashion Week SS’19: 

  1. Mara Hoffman: We love a designer with a voice, and what a statement voice she has! We love her easy whites, stand-out silhouettes and statement florals.

Mara-Hoffman runway looks from New York Fashion Week Spring Summer Collection 2019

  1. Marc Jacobs: elegance never goes out to style, and neither do high collars and breezy cuts suggestive of the elite. Culottes can be statement pieces too, if you know how to stitch them.

Marc Jacobs runway looks from New York Fashion Week Spring Summer Collection 2019

  1. Naeem Khan: contemporary has never been this classic. Spaghetti dresses and high collars meet more modern ideas of prints and embellishments in this highly versatile collection.

Naeem Khan runway looks from New York Fashion Week Spring Summer Collection 2019

  1. Prabal Gurung: did we say pops of colour? Prada is not left alone on that count, what with Prabal Gurung joining in. We love the bright shades sure to make any day better.

Naeem Khan runway looks from New York Fashion Week Spring Summer Collection 2019

  1. Rebecca Minkoff’s collection is perfect for a statement workwear.

Rebecca Minkoff runway looks from New York Fashion Week Spring Summer Collection 2019

  1. Tadashi Shoji: a master of the feminine, if there was one. Also one of the few collections we spotted this season with animal prints. They’re not going out of style anytime soon.

Tadashi Shoji runway looks from New York Fashion Week Spring Summer Collection 2019

Which of these ideas will you use as inspiration for your next collection? Tell us in the comments.

Supriya Ghurye is the founder and owner of Fuel4Fashion. She is a Freelance Fashion Designer and Brand Consultant helping fashion brands to create great products from idea to launch. Fuel4Fashion social links: Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram