Highlights From The London Fashion Week 2023 Men’s Collection

London’s global dominance as a creative and cultural centre, is evident during fashion weeks when the city’s established and emerging designers shine. London is thriving as a fashion capital, thanks in part to the tremendous financial and business support from organizations such as The British Fashion Council. Starting our annual mini summer this month London Fashion Weekmainly featuring men’s clothing, is the announcement of Grace Wales Bonner as the winner of the 2023 BFC/GQ Designer Fashion Fund. The generous award includes 100,000, a 12 month business mentoring program and legal services from Sheridans. The Wales Bonner brand has had commercial success with smart collaborations with Adidas, musician Kendrick Lamar and artist Lubaina Himid. This award will no doubt help the discerning designer go even further.

Another new designer who will be watching as scheduled at the June show is designer BFC NEWGEN Saul Nash, Sagaboi and Ravensbourne graduates and Westminster University. The influential designs of London brand SMR Days, founded in 2020 by industry veterans Adam Shapiro, Dan May and Gautam Rajani and the creativity of Los Angeles-based menswear designer Justin Cassin are also in the spotlight.

It’s always interesting to see what graduate designers create and great to see the British Fashion Council’s ongoing support. Ravensbourne University London presented as scheduled, featuring 15 graduate designers from Menswear and Womenswear. The BA (Hons) Fashion course at Ravensbourne has a strong international reputation and their students have worked for top brands such as Alexander McQueen, Burberry, Chloe, Givenchy, Louis Vuitton, Oscar De La Renta, Stella McCartney and Victoria Beckham. Highlights include Monica Masnitas’ futuristic designs that kicked off the high energy show, Salma Tahir’s gender fluid, minimalist black leather outfits, Maira Rupprecht’s use of dead stock fabrics from Burberry and Annie Severs’ sculptural knitwear.

Shown on a sunny London rooftop, a gorgeous collection from MR Day, inspired by North Africa. Bold block prints, hexagonal, checkered, and tessellated diamond patterns are applied to shirts, jackets, trousers, and shorts in kala cotton and silk. The block printing is done in Jaipur, taking advantage of traditional handcrafting techniques and translating them into modern designs. Complementing the outfit is a range of striking bags in a variety of sizes, an ongoing collaboration with SMR Days and the independent Maison Bengal, ethical and fair trade mark. was founded to help fight poverty in Bangladesh, working primarily with mothers and young women.

Following his brand’s vibrant and vibrant launch last season, for his second collection, designer Geoff Cooper draws inspiration from the migration of people and the imaginary and real responses to cultures introduced to new spaces. The sagaboi is related to the saga boy of the Caribbean subculture (a West Indian word meaning playboy or someone who dresses in a very fashionable and stylish way) which emerged in the 1930s as a form of masculine rebellion through fashion. The Sagabois SS24 Fresh Off The Boat collection, anchored in the Caribbean, with fashion filled with energy through colors, textures, prints and manipulations that scream mix. Highlights include armored vests in a variety of colors and stunning knitwear, handmade by women knitters in the Caribbean. Other fabrics in the collection include denim, linen, raw silk, Sea Island cotton and suede. The collection’s color palette is distinctly tropical, with bright blues, reds and yellows combined with pastels of ecru, lilac, yellow, peach, mint and sand. The location of this season’s runway show, the London Docklands Museum seems like a perfect fit. Located on West India Quay in East London, this converted Georgian sugar cellar in particular tells the story of a port, river and city focusing on trade, migration and commerce in London.

Menswear designer and choreographer Saul Nash continues to ingeniously bridge the gap between Luxury Menswear and Sportswear with a series of unique technical garments, designed and cut to free movement. Fashion mavens love the design. Sarah Mower from America Mode says Saul Nash has the sensibility and intelligence that works right down to the structure of the temporary design Hypebeast say she’s the next sportswear superstar.

Australian menswear designer Justin Cassin back to London Fashion Week with the incredible Autumn/Winter 24 collection at The Vinyl Factory, Soho. His modernist menswear is a playful exploration of volume references of classic tailored shapes in innovative fabrics.