S/S 25 Fashion Weeks: Best Brand Engagement Strategies

Zegna Evolves Luxury Exclusivity with New York Villa

Leaning into affluent consumers’ desire for prestigious exclusive experiences (see Reconsecrating Luxe: Members’ Privileges & Private Spaces in Evolving Luxury Retail), Italian luxury menswear brand Zegna launched the second iteration of its Villa Zegna concept – an invite-only club for its VIP customers – during New York Fashion Week.

Hosted at art gallery Salon 94, the Upper East Side Italianate villa was modelled after founder Ermenegildo Zegna’s Italian Alpine home. Guests were invited to breakfast talks with fashion industry experts (unnamed due to the event’s highly private nature) and professors, as well as bespoke fittings for Villa Zegna-exclusive products.

Villa Zegna debuted in early 2024 in Shanghai. On that occasion, it acted as a refuge from the city’s busy streets, transporting attendees to a replica of Oasi Zegna – the nature reserve created by Ermenegildo Zegna surrounding his northern Italian wool mill.

eBay & Oxfam x Vinted’s Second-Hand Firsts at London Fashion Week

Seeking to further its reputation for luxury recommerce (see Trading Luxury: The Rise of the Authentication Store for more), eBay partnered with the British Fashion Council for Endless Runway – the first officially scheduled catwalk event dedicated to second-hand fashion in London Fashion Week’s 40-year history.

The runway (hosted by British model Leomie Anderson) showcased archival items from esteemed British fashion designers including Alexander McQueen, Simone Rocha and Vivienne Westwood. Taking the event to a wider audience, the runway was livestreamed via eBay’s app with product pop-ups enabling users to instantly purchase the second-hand designer goods.

Similarly, European second-hand clothing app Vinted partnered with global charity Oxfam for Style for Change, a catwalk promoting Oxfam’s annual Second-Hand September campaign. Styled by British fashion stylist Bay Garnett (known for her inclusion of thrifted vintage clothing in luxury fashion shoots), it featured an eclectic mix of second-hand designer and high-street clothing, purchasable post-show via Oxfam’s Vinted storefront.

DKNY Spotlights New York’s Literacy Legacy at Milan Fashion Week

US fashion brand DKNY tapped into New York’s rich literary legacy with a book-swap newsstand during Milan Fashion Week. The activation was a physical extension of the brand’s Autumn 24 campaign, which features shots of American model Kaia Gerber in New York alongside snippets of literature describing the city.

At the Milan newsstand, attendees could exchange second-hand books for a free copy of NY-centric literary works, including The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Just Kids by Patti Smith. The second-hand books were then donated to charity partner The World Literacy Foundation. Alongside the book exchange, a custom newspaper featured images from the DKNY Autumn 24 campaign.

L’Oréal Paris Harnesses Roblox Fashion Hype

Following the virality of Roblox’s fashion-themed mini game Dress to Impress (see Pop Culture Pulse Aug 2024 for more) and seeking to engage the platform’s predominantly Gen Z players, French beauty giant L’Oréal Paris launched a Roblox activation during Paris Fashion Week.

‘Walk Your Worth’ was co-created by British metaverse studio Dubit and received over a million visits during its first five days (Dubit, 2024). Set in a virtual replica of Paris’ Place de l’Opéra, players could walk a virtual runway and participate in makeover competition mini games to unlock exclusive event-themed skins.