As far as fashion goes, there’s a lot happening in Copenhagen. Whilst progressive Danish brands such as Astrid Andersen, Nicklas Kunz and Soulland are highly fetishised worldwide, it’s platforms like this month’s Copenhagen International Fashion Fair (CIFF), that are making way for a new wave of emerging designers descending on the city. 

Kristian Andersen is director at CIFF and we caught up with him at this year’s fair. It’s through his invigorating formula that CIFF has quickly evolved into an immersive experience centred around community and creative vision, a contemporary twist on the traditional trade fair format. It’s also now the biggest trade fair in Scandinavia. 

Under the direction of LN-CC’s John Skelton, FW15 saw the fair debut CIFF Raven, an off-spin dedicated to exciting, rising menswear brands. The space utilises oversized installations and soundscapes influenced by Scandinavia’s natural habitat and celebrated design culture creating an environment in tune with the innovative style and energy at the core of those brands chosen to present under the Raven banner.

The fair’s hit list name drops now-established names like Astrid Andersen, Nasir Mazhar and E.Tautz, and this season boasted a carefully curated line up of international young talent; Wales Bonner, James Long, BLACKFIST, Tigran Avetisyan and Abasi Rosborough presented as part of CIFF Raven.

Alex James Taylor: What did you hope to bring to CIFF when you joined the project?
Kristian Andersen: First of all passion, I think that is really key, especially in this industry. I wanted to challenge the preconceived concept of what a trade show is and I wanted to create a completely different set up to the established idea of how trade show should look and who it caters for. The aim was to create a showroom gallery that would excite people, a place where people feel comfortable showing their product and the influential buyers from around the world also feel comfortable.

It’s important that the designers and brands feel comfortable together and that they fit, it is very motivating working alongside people who you look up to, or you admire, or are just friendly with. I think if you ask the guys over at Raven, especially, it is a bit like a little family, which means we see brands helping each other with the buyers, instead of trying to compete and for me that is the best and most positive way.

AJT: So you hoped to instil a sense of community?
KA: Yes, it has a really good sense of community. It is a big show and we have a lot of different areas covering different aspects of the fashion industry but I feel that the guys who represent the very big commercial brands that are here actually appreciate the diversity of brands we have here. It brings the full energy to the fair and there is a very friendly, relaxed atmosphere here.

“We hope to encourage emerging Danish designers and help them have a voice…”

AJT: Sure, it encourages a more diverse audience.
KA: Unless you are into a particular fetish you don’t want to go to a place where it’s all the same [laughs]. I think everyone appreciates the wide range of people who attend.

AJT: What did you hope to achieve from CIFF Raven?
KA: We started it in January 2015 and I felt that first of all I wanted to have a more dedicated menswear area, but I also feel that if you look at the menswear trade shows on a global scale there was room for something new. I first worked with John Skelton last season and we actually decided to work together on this season as well, creating an exciting environment to showcase new talent. The whole point was to have curious, passionate people here, I think that’s really great and it feels very reassuring for many of the brands and buyers having new talent.

AJT: Absolutely, and with John’s involvement the actual set-up and presentation of CIFF Raven is very innovative and carefully curated, how important is the venue presentation to you?
KA: Yeah, for me it is crucial, having a creative and interesting environment means that brands can arrive without having to build a complicated set up, normally when you do that in a lot of trade shows it looks slightly run down but here it still looks fresh, so the build up is very important. I think it’s not about being a very exclusive or expensive brand, it’s about the different areas looking appetising and inclusive, it helps to show the content in the best light and I don’t think you can get the right content unless the setting is right.

AJT: It’s a package, you have to create a holistic vision. Was that something you felt was lacking when you joined CIFF?
KA: We think that what is important is to be able to enter a universe and if you want that feeling you often have to go to the brand’s own showroom, here the idea is to create that atmosphere as part of a large platform and allow you to meet a lot of people who you wouldn’t meet if you are in your showroom, it’s that sense of community. The next generation of brands need to have that involvement with pre-established ones, it helps create bonds and connections, you can have a friend working in one brand and knowing a buyer from another store who you have never heard about and learn from them. But we didn’t want to look like a patchwork of a lot of brands, we like to have a cohesive feel. It’s not about who can shout the loudest, it’s about how beautiful the content is.

“It’s not about who can shout the loudest, it’s about how beautiful the content is.”

AJT: How did you hope to incorporate Danish culture into the fair?
KA: There are two answers to that, one is that we also run the art show in Copenhagen as well as our design show North Modern, these shows will actually have a pop up presence at CIFF in the future, so they will be incorporated. And secondary, we hope to encourage emerging Danish designers and help them have a voice by giving them a space to present their work.

AJT: What is your grand vision for the future of CIFF, where do you hope to take it in the future?
KA: We want to expand Raven next season to keep encouraging new designers to show their work here and we also want to expand the women’s department. In Copenhagen it will grow and we have some plans for being more present in cities around the world, not a show, but teasers around the world to spread the word, so we will definitely be very present globally.