When we think of fashion capitals, London, Paris, Milan and New York immediately come to mind. Never Berlin, if we are to completely honest with ourselves. However, the Mercedes Benz Fashion Week, a staple of the German capital is in its 16th year. And if you are a keen observer of the fashion world, you would have noticed that emerging designers’ fashion perspectives from emerging talents and unpopular fashion show destinations are always welcomed and highly anticipated.
When we think of designers, only a few names are internationally recognized and now with social media 
only those few names seem to matter. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I sat in Odeur, Charlotte Ronson, Pearly Wong and Anja Gockel. However, I did think that if they wanted to be alongside the greats, their aesthetic and branding would have to be strong.
On my way to Berlin from Bremen this was what kept on playing in my mind. How different will they be? What new can they bring to market in their already saturated fashion industry? On January 19 and 20, as I sat curiously waiting for each show to begin, I couldn’t help but remove these thoughts. I attended a total of four shows, three of which I will cover this week.
Charlotte Ronson
Summer 2015 seems to be a two-fold edition trying to peep its way into Winter 2016 with biker jackets topping, playful slip dresses and airy floral chiffon camis. The collection story seemed to be a series of emotions. Perhaps Charlotte was going through her own edition of ‘Swinter’ or secretly trying to tell us that global warming is really having an effect on mixture and abrupt changes during the seasons. There was also a strong sense of ‘there is no right way to do winter’. After the first five looks the collection went straight into tailored shirts and shorts. My vibe from Charlotte is that as much as the seasons come and go clothes are there to cover your every mood and environmental/seasonal circumstance. There really and truly are no rules when it comes to Charlotte. Some may disagree with a biker-like jacket and pajama looking shorts, but if I just got dumped, had to buy milk and it was cold outside, I’d go there. In a nutshell Charlotte’s Collection = a functional life.
Odeur
It seemed Odeur was trying to portray the constant lobbying for equal rights in this collection. The very utilitarian looking black and white collection carried dresses for men and hoodie backpacks for women. A reversal of basic man/woman wear. It was possibly one of the strongest stories I saw in any collection at Mercedes Benz Fashion Week. The collection signalled a sort of unity and possibly cutting the cost of a couple’s clothing expenditure, since they can both wear the same pieces. There needs to be a change in how we consume fashion, judge people and how we live all together. Odeur’s Collection signalled change and gender unity; the moment when both genders walked out in the same dress. It’s just a matter of perspective.
Anja Gockel
This was a long and extremely disappointing collection. Though the clothes were fairly well sewn and constructed, the entire vibe of the collection seemed to be just missing pieces from different puzzles randomly thrown together. There was no particular map of the visual theory behind the collection. She gave us black and grey stripes, sequins, florals and some fur that designer Rike Feurstein also used in his collection. Though fast fashion can create ‘that look’ and this was clear from the other shows I attended, it was disappointing to see designers just gliding through under the title of “designer.” Collections need to be delivered by way of conceptualization and this has to be echoed visually.
The best collection from the shows I saw came from Pearly Wong. Read about it in my next column. To see mini Instagram videos from the shows follow me on: http://instagram.com/theonlinerunway
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