Newcomer Gareth Wrighton joins Fashion East line-up

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Feb 6, 2019

Non-profit talent incubator Fashion East has announced its AW19 womenswear designer line-up for London Fashion Week with a group show taking place on Sunday February 17. Newcomer Gareth Wrighton will debut alongside Charlotte Knowles in her third season and Yuhan Wang, who returns for a second time.

Being part of Fashion East is an important development for emerging labels with the awarded designers, who are selected by the Fashion East team and industry panel, each receiving a bespoke programme of support, in addition to the obvious publicity boost that comes through being showcased at LFW. 

The support includes bursaries, one-to-one mentoring, a place in a Paris sales showroom and more fast-tracking throughout the season via industry introductions, messaging and marketing support, business training and commercial partnerships.

Wrighton works across a variety of media including knitwear, tailoring, photography and computer modelling. Knowles and partner Alexandre Arsenault are known for their "refined pieces and intricate details" and the label will be available soon at Dover Street Market London and New York, Opening Ceremony New York, LA and Japan, among other stockists. And Wang’s collections are inspired by traditional Chinese ideas of femininity and its connections to Western culture.

A number of Fashion East’s alumni have gone on to forge strong careers with previous recipients including a mix of names from JW Anderson, to Craig Green, Kim Jones, Roksanda Ilincic, Jonathan Saunders, Gareth Pugh, Simone Rocha, Marques’ Almeida, Liam Hodges, Ashley Williams, Claire Barrow, Richard Malone, Matty Bovan, Supriya Lele, Asai, Wales Bonner, Charles Jeffrey Loverboy and others.

Lulu Kennedy, Founder and Director of Fashion East said of the addition of Wrighton to the line-up: “Gareth came onto my radar back in 2015 when he was making collections, film and video games with endless energy. I loved his vision and sense of adventure as an artist working across many mediums whether solo or collectively. I’m excited to watch his work evolve in a catwalk context and welcome him to our line-up.”

And she added: “We’re all very proud of Charlotte and Yuhan’s beautiful collections; their exploration of sexuality, femininity and what it means to dress for yourself as a woman.”