, have been central to the growing international influence of Copenhagen: Goya by attracting a global audience of retailers from Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Net-a-Porter; and Werner by selling local favorites like Emilie Helmstedt alongside international brands, including Marni, Proenza Schouler, and Dries Van Noten, in what was one of the first major fashion boutiques to open in the city.
Given the EU’s travel bans, I’m sitting out this Copenhagen Fashion Week—it’s usually one of the highlights of my year—so I scheduled a Zoom call with Goya and Werner to discuss the evolution of their local fashion scene and where it can and should go from here.When I started showing in Copenhagen shortly after we launched in 2006, there were very few brands participating in fashion week.
We’ve really tried to sharpen our online presence during the pandemic and just before it hit. We are investing more time and money into enhancing our e-commerce platform, because before, it was really out of necessity that we had one, but it didn’t measure up to the experience of coming to the actual store in Copenhagen. During the pandemic especially, since people were stuck at home, we really infused the site with more personality and updated it every day with new merchandise and content.
I think overall, whether we’re talking about shows or buying and consuming, it’s important to take the opportunity to use your voice and make your designs or your stores about more than just clothing and creativity. It’s about communication and creating conversations around sustainability, ethics, and diversity.We still have so much more to learn. The spring 2020 show where the LGBTQ and BIPOC ballroom community in Copenhagen performed was a starting point.