AW24 Womenswear Roundup FASHION WEEKS

• Introduction
• AW24 by Numbers
• City Snapshot
• Key Insights
• Ones to Watch

Introduction

AW24:
The Clothes & The Content

In today’s digital landscape, fashion month has become its own entertainment economy. An experience that was once reserved for a few is now played out amongst a sea of screens, and, with over 65% of the world’s population now utilising social media, according to GOAT agency, brands and attendees are investing in a myriad of marketing tactics to cut through the noise.

A-list FROWs are now only half the story. Brands are leaning in on stunt marketing, set design, celebrity casting on the runway, cinematography, immersive experiences, cross-city activations and performances to create buzz, converge across cultural categories and build brand presence in a noisy digital ecosystem — one which throughout AW24 generated over half a billion dollars in Earned Media Value (EMV).

TIKTOK IS TRANSFORMING THE STATE OF PLAY

No other platform is re-shaping the state of play quite like TikTok — once a foreign body for luxury, it has now become a centrepiece. The platform is not only changing the influencer landscape, with talents catapulting to fame in a matter of scrolls, but moulding an entirely new language. Runway footage is no longer enough: viral moments are harnessed in behind-the-scenes, raw, funny videos that give brands a sense of relatability. Time will tell what a TikTok ban in the US could look like, however the platform has undoubtedly shaped the brand-consumer relationship into a more friendly, approachable and collabroative space.

FASHION IN PARADOX

Elsewhere, throughout the cacophony of noise, many brands remained steadfast in the quieter side of luxury. While some centered their collections around the ‘appeal of the everyday,’ others were feeling contemplative in the face of the world’s ‘permacrisis’, choosing to switch off, scale back, or step out of the season’s events altogether.

The ultimate statement came from The Row, who banned all social media output from their show. As anticipation mounted around the release of their imagery, searches for the brand grew by 138%, according to Google Trends. There’s no such thing as quiet in luxury.

THE STORIES THAT SHAPE THE STATISTICS

In this report, Karla Otto’s Insights team unearths not only the metrics that matter — courtesy of data powered by our partners at The Independents, Lefty — but the stories that shape the statistics. With over four decades of driving strategic communications for the world’s leading brands, we’re uniquely equipped to provide a unique, insider eye on the luxury sector, and help build your brand today to survive the challenges of tomorrow.

AW24 by Numbers

AW24’s Key Viral Moments

Coperni leveraged the power of a hero product, debuting the AirSwipe bag. This 99% airhandbag dominated the buzz around the brand, which is now synonymous with innovative and disruptive marketing moments.

Kim Kardashian kept audiences guessing, after leaving the tag on the back of her Balenciaga dress. This turned out to be a strategic move from the brand, curated to draw attention to the Balenciaga scented accessory tags that have already sold out.

Loewe collaborated with the Antique Road Show’s Steven Moore to describe parts of the brand’s art-inspired collection. Moore acts as an authority figure in the art industry while also appealing to a niche market of antique lovers.

Nostalgia is resonating amongst consumers and a moment featuring Anne Hathaway and Anna Wintour at Versace was a delight for Devil Wears Prada fans across TikTok.

Despite not tagging the brand, Beyoncé’s surprise visit to Luar’s AW24 show generated noise online, proving the power of organic influence.

TOP 10 Brands at Women's AW24

TOP 10 Influencers at Women's AW24

#1 @roses_are_rosie Attended Saint Laurent

• $13.4MEMV
• 76.6M Followers
• 4.4% ENG

#2 @sooyaaa__ Attended Dior

• $11.9MEMV
• 77.5M Followers
• 5.14% ENG

#3 @min9yu_k Attended Dior

• $9M EMV
• 13.1M Followers
• 17.58% ENG

Discover the Full Ranking in Our Report

City Snapshot

New York Fashion Week

$42.8M EMV | +8% YOY

New York lacked some of its biggest media-generators who were spotted at the Big Game rather than the Big Apple.

Nonetheless, NYFW witnessed historic moments: Luar saw stellar growth, boosted by Beyoncé’s surprise appearance, while Tommy Hilfiger’s return to runway landed the coveted #1 spot.

London Fashion Week

$21M EMV | +2.7% YOY

London celebrated 40 years of LFW with designers honing in on their British heritage.

The city started with ‘Ab Fab’ energy as Joanna Lumley sat centre stage at Completedworks’ jewellery presentation. She was also spotted at Burberry, London’s #1 player, where the brand presented a masterclass in cultural convergence with a localised nuance.

Milan Fashion Week

$149M EMV | +18.4% YOY

MFW was a full-scale celebration of Italian culture.

On top of inviting key K-Pop stars, Versace’s #1 spot came as the brand celebrated its creative director via online content. Donatella herself made the top 10 influencers at MFW. Elsewhere, brands tapped into Italian pop culture, integrating performers from the Sanremo Music Contest into their talent strategies.

Paris Fashion Week

$315M EMV | +35.2% YOY

In Paris’ crowded schedule, brands used inventive stunts to make noise — think Kate Moss doppelgängers and Sam Smith donning tartan. Others have opted for an air of muted mystery, as seen with The Row. Rising brands flipped the script on the typical runway formula, such as Ester Manas’s inclusive approach, Courrèges’ set and Coperni’s new hero product.

Key Insights

The Runway Roadmap

Fashion month has become an entertainment machine, and with that an entire ecosystem for brands to build off throughout the year. As a result, many are cleverly strategising their shows step-by-step, from production through to its amplification on and offline. Here, we outline the show strategy roadmap with best-in-class case studies.

THE INVITATION

$13.6M EMV Generated by Balenciaga

Part of a wider collaboration with Ebay, Balenciaga’s show invites all came with different products found on the marketplace, hand selected by Denma.

THE OUT OF HOME

$11.4M EMV Generated by Gucci

On top of painting Milan ‘Gucci Ancora’ red to leverage its heritage and community, the brand partnered with The Independents partner Bureau Betak to bring this vision across APAC.

THE REMOTE POST

$2.2M EMV Generated by NCT’s Jaehyun

Prada invited KOLs to post the show prior to the event; even if they couldn't attend physically.

BACKSTAGE REBRANDED

$8.6M EMV Generated by Fendi

Fendi partnered with director Loïc Prigent on their backstage owned- content, showcasing the significant investment in BTS as a strategy.

THE ARRIVALS

$27.6MEMV Generated by Loewe

Loewe streamed the arrivals from within, mixing get-ready-with- mes with views inside Catherine O’Hara’s car.

THE FROW FOOTAGE

3M Video views on TikTok

TikTok-favorite @thepeoplegallery made waves by interviewing the likes of Cher at Balmain at ASAP Rocky at Bottega.

THE SETTING

$6.2M EMV Generated by Bottega Veneta

Bottega Veneta enrolled the production experts Bureau Betak for its show venue, completed with large-scale glass cacti made by Murano artisans.

THE CASTING

$18.2M EMV Generated by Miu Miu

Miu Miu casted their community, featuring Shanghai doctor Qin Huilan, alongside actress Kristin Scott Thomas and Interview’s Fashion Director, Dara Allen.

THE LIVESTREAM

$4.6M EMV Generated by Mugler

Mugler’s show concept revolved around its livestream with models staring straight into the lens for viewers at home. A new take on the dominance of digital.

THE CHOREOGRAPHY

745K EMV Generated by Dilara Findikoglu

Dilara Findikoglu had every detail choreographed, working with man-of-the-moment, Pat Boguslawski, on the show’s movement direction.

Fashion-tainment

CROSS-CULTURAL CONNECTIONS

Luxury fashion continues its journey into the heart of popular culture as an entertainment forum, as participation — albeit from afar and through screens — in shows and commentary is further democratised thanks to the internet’s sprawling reach. Nowhere does fashion’s cultural hegemony assert itself more than fashion month, where cross-cultural connections are forged to garner attention and multiply EMV.

FILM X FASHION

As fashion edges ever closer to the entertainment space, brands such as Chanel are making further moves in the film industry. The brand’sAW24 show, which garnered $14.4M in EMV, opened with a short film starring Brad Pitt and Penélope Cruz, directed by Claude Lelouch. In New York, designer Willy Chavarria directed a short film starring Italian pop star Mahmood, contributing to a 678% growth in EMV YoY.

As the two industries converge, actors remained central to the influencer mix, making up 14.37% of the SoV.

THE ART OF THE SPECTACLE

Elsewhere, designers played with the show format itself to create novel forms of entertainment, often by collaging art, dance, theatre and music.

At Mugler, powerful walks complemented theatrical set design, with strobe lights and disappearing curtains. Courrèges’ stage went viral by way of a breathing ground, which garnered over 200k views on TikTok, helping the brand grow +642% year on year.

Our partners at The Independents, Bureau Betak, remain the go-to production company for some of this season’s most powerful brands such as Fendi, Saint Laurent, Acne Studios and Off-White — great production is priceless.

MOVEMENT IS HAVING A MOMENT

Finally, movement direction captured attention. In London, Dilara Findikoglu had Hari Nef sulking and stomping across an empty
church, under the movement direction of Pat Boguslawski. Fresh off the back of Maison Margiela’s viral Couture show, Pat Boguslawski proved he was the man of the moment when he walked for Diesel’s AW24 show in Milan.

Meanwhile, Christian Louboutin’s Loubi Show was choreographed by Leo Walk, unfolding
as a captivating narrative of friendship and connection, blending contemporary dance with the energy of street hip-hop, generating $4.4M EMV, representing a +43% growth YoY.

The Media Moment

MEDIA TITLES GROW SHARE OF VOICE BY +400%

There’s a seismic shift taking place in fashion weeks’ digital marketing landscape where the power of influence is flowing back into traditional institutions. Throughout AW24, the social media profiles of key media publications garnered the largest SOV across all categories, taking 31.9% of the conversation. When influencers and celebrities have traditionally been at the forefront of the fashion week noise, this evolution is significant.

Trust is a key factor driving change. In The Business of Fashion x McKinsey’s ‘State of Fashion 2024’ report, 68% of surveyors claimed to feel ‘bothered’ by the amount of sponsored content online. Although influencer profiles remain a vital component, consumers are turning to trusted sources such as fashion press to supplement their opinions.

ACCESS ALL AREAS

The power of the press is not only their authority but also their ability to access all areas, creating the perfect formula for social success. This season saw new formats emerge, such as BOF’s ‘Backstage Pass’ series, granting online audiences an insider’s look into some of the biggest shows like Valentino, Mugler and Alexander McQueen. Meanwhile, Miu Miu worked with Vogue’s Julia Hobbs on a backstage TikTok series where she tasked models with fun challenges like tongue-twisters, generating 9.16M views, helping boost the brands’ media value by +79% YoY.

A NEW ERA OF COMMENTATORS

TikTok has undoubtedly reshaped the landscape. Social-first reportage formats, which centre around unpolished content, and creators are now at the fore. We first identified the rise of profiles such as @stylenotcom in our AW23 Roundup. This season, figures like Hanan Besovic’s account @ideservecouture climbs up the media rankings (#20), creating $1.8M in EMV with his meme-ified take on fashion commentary. Similarly,

Luke Meagher of @hautelemode generated $1.2M EMV across his coverage of the weeks’ events.

Many brands are working with this new wave of commentators across their owned media. Both @thepeoplegallery and @oldloserinbrooklyn staged a series of interviews with guests at Marni, Balmain Tory Burch and Proenza Schouler.

KEY CALLOUTS

K-Pop Stays on Top

• $103M EMV GENERATED BY SOUTH KOREAN PROFILES
• 103% YOY EMV GROWTH GENERATED BY K-POP
• 10/10 OUT OF TOP BRANDS ACTIVATED K-POP STARS

AN INDUSTRY STANDARD

Tapping K-Pop musicians to attend fashion shows has evolved from an innovative talent strategy to an industry standard. All of the top 10 brands in this season’s ranking invited musicians from South Korea, and of the top 10 KOLs in attendance, 9 were K-Pop stars. At large, South Korean profiles generated a total $103M EMV. Big tent names, like the members of BLACKPINK (3 of whom appear amongst the top 10) continue
to draw unparalleled attention and, at Louis Vuitton, K-Pop stars made it onto the runway, where Stray Kids singer Felix walked for the brand. At Dior, Seventeen’s Mingyu generated nearly $9M EMV — the band recently became the first K-Pop group to land a spot in UK festival Glastonbury, further cementing its impact on the global scene.

NEW NAMES TO HAVE ON YOUR RADAR

As the K-Pop industry continues to grow, new bands are emerging and already capturing the attention of fans worldwide. In Paris, Acne Studios showcased insider knowledge and tapped nascent girl group Illit, who have yet to make their official musical debut.

During the Men’s AW24 shows, Louis Vuitton’s Pharrell showed he was ahead of the game in inviting new K-Pop band Riize (short for ‘Rise & Realize’) who generated $8.2M EMV for the brand. Having only debuted in September 2023, this shows great opportunities for growth and future luxury partnerships.

WHAT’S NEXT FOR THAI DRAMA?

This season, key names from Thai drama popped up again with Nattawin Wattanagitiphat, AKA Apo, generating close to $3M EMV after attending Ferrari in Milan. While Thailand’s overall SOV decreased by -89% — the region’s talents were competing with some of the biggest names in K-Pop — a new series starring on-screen couple Mile and Apo, called ‘Shine’, is due to be released later in the year and should revive the hype around some of these names.

THE REGIONS TO WATCH

+52% JAPAN’S SOV GROWTH SOS

Aside from K-Pop and Thai drama stars, many brands tapped talent across the APAC region. In Milan, Japanese brand Onitsuka Tiger worked with a diverse range of influencers from across the region such as Malaysian cosplayer Hakken, who generated $552K EMV for the brand, and Japanese group Avantgardey, who were contenders in the 18th season of America’s Got Talent, contributing to the brand’s 334% growth year on year.

Overall, Japan’s share of voice grew by 52% season on season with a wide array of talent such as actress Mei Nagano, beauty influencer Aya Nakamachi and YouTuber Yamato. With the luxury market in Japan expected to grow to $42.3 billion by 2026, according to Euromonitor, investment in the region’s talent is a key strategy.

Model Behaviour

• 7% MODEL’S SOV AT WOMENSWEAR AW24
• $20.4M EMV GENERATED BY MODELS AT WOMENSWEAR AW24

A NEW ERA OF TALENT

TikTok has spawned a new appetite for fashion content, heroed by personalities with an authentic voice. As a result, there is now a new generation of models, cell phones in tow, who are turning the cameras on themselves, offering a glimpse into their fashion week lives. Creating viral content, these models-turned- creators have become the 5th biggest category driving noise at the shows, cumulating 7% of the overall SOV — right on the heels of influencers — generating a total $20.4M EMV.

THE MODELS LEADING THE CHARGE

Alex Consani is now a true TikTok superstar. She has garnered a reputation for delivering punchy, hilarious and instantly viral soundbites before she even hits the catwalk. Another model with a sense of humour as scene-stealing as her strut is Colin Jones, whose follower count on Instagram grew by an exponential 575.5% between the SS24 and AW24. Mona Tougaard, dubbed the ‘world’s new supermodel’ by the press, has walked for some of the biggest brands such as Chanel, Loewe and Ferragamo, but it’s her impressive engagement rate of 17.9% that’s testament to the popularity of her profile.

HOW BRANDS ARE CASHING IN

Brands have always harnessed the power of supermodels, whether in working with nostalgia-inducing 1990s faces (read more about this in our SS24 Womenswear report) or contemporary power players like Gigi Hadid, who walked for the likes of Versace and Miu Miu this season. But brands are also becoming increasingly aware of how models drive noise via viral TikTok and Instagram reels.

Namely, Isabel Marant built momentum ahead of its show, working with models on a series of teasers, asking them what was in their bags. The aim was to be light-hearted and humoristic, with model Kiki Willems showing rubber gloves to ‘clean the toilet’ with. Similarly, Fendi promoted its Chupa Chups collaboration on TikTok via the models who walked the show — and who had first-hand access to the brand’s newest lollipop holders.

TOP 5 MODELS WHO WALKED THE AW24 SHOWS

1. ALTON MASON $1.1M EMV
2. HOYEON JUNG $819K EMV
3. ASHLEY GRAHAM $783K EMV
4. ALEX CONSANI $452K EMV
5. COCO ROCHA $329K EMV

Ones to Watch

Trends to Watch

The Athlete Effect

DELI ALI GENERATES $473K EMV FOR BURBERRY

There was a significant drop in athlete attendance throughout the season (-64.8% YoY), with most profiles playing or training. However, with the Olympics around the corner, we anticipate a surge of new personalites on the fashion week circuit come September. Read more about The Influence of Sports on fashion and luxury here.

The Beauty of Fashion

MAC EVENT NYC $2.5M EMV

With fashion week becoming increasingly impacted by the TikTok effect, the platform’s biggest category, beauty, is having an impact on the flow of influence. Several brands invited key beauty influencers, with Diesel even casting profiles such as Meredith Duxbury on the runway. Meanwhile, events such as the MAC activation in New York generated outstanding EMVs.

Food x Fashion

$612K EMV @GABBRIETTE

As fashion brands make further moves in cultural convergence to become lifestyle-centred, culinary ties are becoming central marketing add-ons. You only have to look at the flurry of branded cafes and eateries to see this impact. At AW24, several chefs and foodie influencers were spotted, including @gabbriette who is known for her food-toks and big appetite.

LATAM: Region to Watch

$8.2M EMV VIA @GORGINAGIO

Latin America’s EMV rose by 77.9% this season, with several profiles in attendance from Brazil, Mexico and Argentina. LATAM’s most powerful player was footballer’s wife Georgina Rodríguez who walked the runway for Vetements, generating a huge $8.2M in EMV for the brand, taking up almost 1/4 of LATAM’s SOV.

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