While the soft fabrics catwalked down the unusual runways, potent colors, intricate cuts, and sustainable reiterations helped us step into the Spring/Summer 2025 ambience. So what would we be wearing during next year’s warm days according to Berlin Fashion Week?
Berlin doesn’t conform to mainstream trends. Instead, the city celebrates concepts such as innovation, sustainability, and creativity against the backdrop of Berlin’s vibrant music, culture, and fashion scenes. In the presented SS25 collections as part of Berlin Fashion Week 2024, organized by Fashion Council Germany, we noticed these topics reiterated in the forward-thinking designs, weaving in the vibrancy, diversity, and inclusivity of the city’s fabric.
On the first day of BFW, we were taken to a rooftop in Wedding to witness over 500 pairs of shoes featured in 22 looks. The Ukrainian brand PLNGNS challenges issues of overproduction and waste in the fashion industry by demonstrating a complete upcycling process, resulting in intricate designs. The main color scheme is khaki, brown, and black - symbols of war.
“The collection represents almost everything that’s around us in Ukraine, such as the armor vests. We try to change this through fashion in a peaceful way, because fashion is a mirror of society and for us,” tells us Designer and Creative Director of PLNGNS Mitya Hontarenko. “Berlin Fashion Week is very important for us, because it has enabled us to be here and to present our collection, which is not possible in Ukraine at the moment,” continued Hontarenko.
Another brand that’s reframing fast fashion narratives by fully embracing sustainable production methods in a contemporary context is Avenir. Their COMMUTE SS25 collection, presented at Potsdamer Platz, reimagines commute attire in an eco-friendly way through sustainable fabrics in soft tones, reworked denim showpieces, and travel tokens.
SF1OG, the iconic contemporary streetwear brand, took another common theme, that of market places, and turned it into their most colorful collection to date. It features reimagined stripes, checkered patterns and prints, and tote bag elements.
“We have shopping bags throughout the collection, incorporated into tote bag-shaped blazer pockets, and even T-shirts that can be transformed into bags,” said Jacob Langemeyer, Co-Founder and Brand Manager of SF1OG.
The brand is also dedicated to sustainability. “Usually, each collection is made of ⅓ deadstock, ⅓ repurposed fabrics, and ⅓ responsibly sourced new materials,” added Langemeyer.
This year, BFW boasted unique locations in line with the city’s diverse topography. For the Marc Cain SS25 Fashion Show "Pure Radiance”, representing a brand that has been around for over 40 years, we were transcended to the whimsical, Bridgerton-style Kolonnade mit Triumphtor in Sanssouci Park, Potsdam. Amidst the Corinithian columns, the designs illustrated the classical cuts and regality of the brand, with purple hues, elegant shimmer, and stylish tweed patterns, exuding modern refinement. The afterparty was held at the New Kammern von Sanssouci, where the radiant atmosphere of Marc Cain’s show continued at the late Frederician Rococo style building.
Keeping with the elegant garments for the sophisticated, urban lady, Anja Gockel presented a private preview of her SS25 collection “Let the Birds Fly” on the 1st July at her event location Paris44, followed by a fashion show in the backyard the next day. On both occasions, Anja Gockel recreated an idyllic Eden ambience, inviting the guests to explore joyous freedom through succulent colors and flattering shapes, accompanied by live performances and acrobatics.
At Uber Eats Music Hall, four talented designers, representative of Germany’s fashion astuteness, showcased their SS25 collections, opposing trends and celebrating timelessness. Each designer incorporated the topics of sustainability, craftsmanship, and inclusivity, featuring models of diverse ages, colors, and shapes.
Rebekka Ruétz is a master of sustainable and experimental fashion with an extravagant touch. Her SS25 “BLACK SUN” collection played with the solar flares phenomenon, resulting in contrasting pieces, illuminated by LED threads. That way, the designer showcased the path of light and dark, constantly intertwining with each other, and reflecting the cyclical nature of solar activity.
Next on the runway, Danny Reinke presented his prêt-à-couture SS25 collection titled “Stupid Cupid” - a story of unfulfilled love and hopeless crushes that constrain us more than they endear us. Through corsets paired with artful draping, this breathless feeling is subtly reiterated, reminding us of the Greek and Roman mythology and their love tragedies. Meanwhile, tulle skirts and voluminous petticoats paired with tuxedo shirts and sock suspenders create a modern dandy look.
Following Danny Reinke, Marcel Ostertag’s SS25 “Eden” collection takes us by the hand to an unforgettable party night in the Garden of Eden, where fashion is for everyone, as the designs and Ostertag’s models allude to. The first pieces on the runway are a beautiful reiteration of the collection’s signature print in psychedelic red, an allude to the ‘70s. They are complemented by other nostalgia silhouettes in turquoise, gold, and silver, such as jumpsuits, caftans, and flared pants, mixed with exciting cut-out moments for a modern yet timeless appeal.
The final designer from the Collective Four is Kilian Kerner, who presented his SS25 collection "Herz im Kopf" and celebrated the brand’s 20th anniversary. Although the theme of the collection is lovesickness, the designer took a hopeful approach to representing the road to self-love and embodying the strong and satisfied woman who he sees in his designs. Glittery pieces, peaceful blue, and calming greens were mixed with intricate shirt designs, statement floral elements and flattering silhouettes. 20 years of Kilian Kerner the label were catwalked down the runway, showcasing the designer’s signature eveningwear meets daywear style, as well as new design moments. Of course, the finale was emotional and spectacular, sprinkled with love confetti, just as it should be.
Oftentimes, fashion meets art, and that’s especially true for Ukrainian designer Irina Dzhus and her brand DZHUS, who took a performance approach at the Kabbalah Center to showcase her “ANTICON” collection. In a ritual format, Irina Dzhus paid tribute to the world’s declared encoding systems, from spirituality to commodity, while providing a blank canvas for new interpretations. Through transformative wear, the designer decoded the inner layers of the garments with rhinestones, jewelry, and pops of color, paving the way back to home, joy, and fulfillment.
Berlin is home to many brands that are capturing the essence of the city and translating it into contemporary designs that fuse tailoring with urban motives. They prove that black can be manipulated in many intricate ways, commemorating the city’s signature color.
Sia Arnika, hailing from Denmark, combined two distinct styles, drawing inspiration from her rural upbringing and her current life in Berlin. She created a juxtaposition between grunge subcultures and countryside silhouettes with baggy polos and mini skirts, incorporating latex accessory elements and shirts turned skirts and dresses.
Storytelling travels back in time with Lueder’s medieval-inspired collection fused with bespoke ready-to-wear pieces, while also looking into the future.
“The overall idea of the clothing is that it serves as mental armor, supporting people who may feel socially anxious. By putting the hood on, they can disappear. The name of our SS25 collection is ‘Robedo’, which means boiling something down to its essence, and it evaporates into something new. On the runway, we used smoke tricks to represent the idea of the future magician,” commented Marie Lueder.
Maria Chany took as to a grunge-like world with whimsical creatures dressed in bold broad shoulders contrasting with soft materials and flattering silhouettes. Trey’s fantasy world boasted romanticized lingerie, while Rianna + Nina paid tribute to Greek patterns and cultures, celebrated with dancers from Athens who demonstrated the folkloric pieces.
In a similar elevated fashion, FAAM Studio reaffirmed African and lunar joy, celebrating the cultures and the '90s voguing scene in an eclectic fashion show meets performance style. Hosted by musician and artist MANDHLA, intricate tailoring mixed with floral accents and elaborate knitwear enlivened the runway along with the models' rhythmic walks and dances.
Clara Colette Miramon made her runway debut with the collection "Nesting", featuring a wedding dress made of white boxing gloves and representing the synergy between female strength and vulnerability.
"This was my first time showing at Berlin Fashion Week. It was a really nice experience for me, very exciting. My collection is inspired by 1930's surrealist artists, and we have this rat motif that comes up several times in the collection and rat girls on the runway. It's a mix of very feminine and harder influences. I like to play with different aspects of femininity and show different kinds of feminine strength," commented Miramon.
Richert Beil also reiterated female empowerment with their swimwear collection for all body shapes.
Lastly, Berlin-based brand Namilia explored the lifecycle of fame in its SS25 collection "Good Girl, Gone Bad” in collaboration with Ed Hardy.
This year, Berlin Fashion Week astonished us with its statement on diversity, inclusivity, and craftsmanship, and we are excited to see the designs catwalk on Berlin’s street runway. For more inspiration on the best looks spotted between shows, check out our BFW street style photo edit.
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