For fashion, the Fall/Winter 2026 season arrived at a moment of heightened uncertainty, as wholesale continues its rocky reset and geopolitical uncertainty remains high. In survival mode, many brands have been forced to knuckle down and fortify their business strategies, in hopes of setting them up for success against a difficult backdrop. What that looks like for 2026 and beyond is now coming into focus.
Day after day this season, designers emphasized the wearability and layerability of their collections. Many did so from showrooms and previews, having opted for smaller by-appointment formats in lieu of major shows. Alongside their collections, designers discussed recent business investments and tweaks, from website re-dos to carefully increased marketing spend, reinforcing their commitments to sticking around for the long haul.
Challenges for small brands, as well as fashion at large, have accumulated over the past decade. First came Brexit, the first Trump administration, and the pandemic, followed by the collapse of e-tailers including Matches and Farfetch, leaving brands in a lurch. “Just as it felt like things might start to pick up again, the US introduced steep tariffs,” says Ashish Gupta of eponymous ready-to-wear brand Ashish, who made the call to cancel his London Fashion Week show due to extenuating circumstances. “Couple all this with detrimental domestic business policies, increased business rates, and rising operating costs, and it doesn’t feel like an environment that is supportive of creativity or small independent business.”
‘Independent’ is a moniker perhaps too often interchanged with ‘emerging’ when it comes to brands and designers. The reality is that an abundance of independent talent that contributes to the fashion month calendar is no longer emerging: these designers have emerged. Now, many of the same talents that show up season after season are reckoning with what it looks like to push beyond IYKYK status, and transcend from niche industry darlings into lasting brands that can stay the course. It’s no small feat, in an economic environment that’s unfriendly and unpredictable. Here’s how they’re navigating it in 2026.
Clothes that work smarter, not harder
From the runway — or showroom — to the store
This season, many designers emphasized that their runway collections would be available to purchase in their entirety, with fewer or no garments made just for show. Ashlyn’s Ashlynn Park takes this approach. In her studio before the show, Park spoke about the importance of working sustainably, in regards to business, not the environment. “Most of the runway pieces are just to sell the handbag accessories,” she said. “I think we can do better work, make it to a wearable level and not waste months of effort every [season].” Hillary Taymour of Collina Strada made a similar point backstage: “I really just want to pound in the fact that, you see it on the runway, you can come get it from us.” Same goes, and always has, for Eckhaus Latta.
Other brands who haven’t always operated on this model are now increasing the number of garments that make it from the runway to the store, even if it’s not 100% of the collection shown. At Altuzarra, about 70% of what’s shown winds up getting produced, which designer Joseph Altuzarra says is “pretty high and pretty efficient”, adding that the brand has a “pretty low” cancellation rate.
