The gang is back

• Milan Fashion Week runs from February 22-28
• Gucci and Bottega Veneta are back on the show after showing elsewhere for much of the pandemic
• Bottega Veneta’s Matthieu Blazy and Diesel’s Glenn Martens will present their first physical shows for Milan Fashion Week

After more than two years of catwalk shows, short films, video games and social media hijinks, the rebellion against fashion week seems to be over. The Milan Fashion Week schedule is packed, with Fendi, Prada, Versace and other stalwarts joined by Bottega Veneta, Gucci and a handful of other resisters who have used the pandemic disruption to experiment with alternative forms on the show conventional fashion. Even Armani, which canceled its January menswear and couture shows during the Omicron wave, is returning to Milan this week.

On paper, the calendar has therefore regained its former glory. Will the reception be different? The pandemic has accelerated fashion week’s transition from an industry event to a consumer event. Brands care even more about how a show appears on social media than before. Shows that produce a viral moment by modeling movie stars or designing a particularly inventive set are the most successful, sometimes regardless of the quality of the clothes themselves. As Diesel’s Glenn Martens told BoF’s Tim Blanks last summer, the point of physical shows is to bring “a bit of fashion drama.”

The essential : In New York and London, the fashion week narrative tends to involve a lot of intrigue about the future of the industry. This is not the case in Milan, where the biggest brands are on the rise. The most anticipated shows aim to build momentum for another year of record sales, whether it’s Martens’ Diesel debut show at Milan Fashion Week, Gucci’s next reimagining, the next chapter of the partnership between Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons or the beginnings of Matthieu Blazy at Bottega.

The future of Farfetch

• Farfetch Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year Results February 24
• Revenue from the online luxury market disappointed in the third quarter, raising the stakes for its holiday sales
• Farfetch recently acquired beauty retailer Violet Gray and is in talks with Richemont to take a stake in Yoox Net-a-Porter

Luxury sales are booming, but unfortunately for Farfetch, too many customers choose to buy their Bottega bags and Saint Laurent boots in person. Third-quarter market results fell short of expectations, and the company needs a big vacation to prove it has retained all those new customers who started shopping online during the pandemic. Investors are skeptical: Farfetch shares have fallen more than 50% this year and are approaching lows not seen since the spring of 2020. offer some hope that luxury is at least partially free from broader shopping trends.

The essential : Farfetch is never one to stand still and be buffeted by market forces. It announced in January that it was acquiring Violet Grey, a deal meant to launch a major push into the beauty category. But the real question is where are the discussions with Richemont to take a stake in Net-a-Porter, which would mark a fundamental change in the landscape of luxury e-commerce.

Responsible supply chains

• The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) will host a virtual forum on due diligence in apparel supply chains from February 21-25
• Pandemic disruptions have contributed to rising wage theft and deteriorating working conditions
• Regulators are watching supply chains more closely and brands are facing pressure from consumers to say more about how clothes are made

While the pandemic has shone a light on poor labor practices in the fashion supply chain, two years later, little has changed. Cases of record pay theft, deteriorating working conditions and growing risks of modern slavery have been reported. At the same time, governments are playing a bigger role in controlling supply chains, whether it’s the US ban on importing goods from China’s Xinjiang region or pending legislation in New York, putting more emphasis on the manufacturing practices of fashion brands. What fashion can do on these issues will be the focus this week at the OECD’s annual forum on responsible supply chains. The digital event will bring together members of government, business, trade unions and civil society to share lessons and discuss best practices.

The essential: Regulators are demanding that big brands take more responsibility for labor rights abuses in their supply chain and the topic of due diligence will likely only continue to move up the corporate agenda.

Sarah Kent contributed to this article.

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