In March of 2023, Beate Karlsson had the idea to challenge fashion norms with the presentation of his AVAVAV Fall show during Milan Fashion week, this fashion show had shown a shift in fashion culture and had criticized fast fashion brands for recycling old quality and creating fragile clothes – which focused more on the cost of production than the quality of the clothes created. This fashion show was given the name “Fake it till you Break it.”

Criticism

The fashion show had garnered the attention of millions of people on social media, with posts circulating of their show – more specifically, of the clothes falling apart mid-show. Many people had misinterpreted the purpose of the show, believing that the show had fallen apart and that their clothes were this fragile. However, it was more the opposite – Karlsson’s falling clothes were 100% intentional. With Karlsson stating, “I’ve been asking myself; why is luxury so serious? Is it because we strive to be perfect? Could bad quality still be luxurious? The last collection was all about keeping up a fake projection of wealth and the personal failure of losing face when this illusion crashes. I’m still on that theme; there’s something very interesting about shame and what happens when we are vulnerable. I asked myself; What is the most embarrassing thing that can happen to a fashion house?” and I figured garments breaking might be it.”

Purpose

The purpose of this project was to shine a much-needed light on the nature of fast fashion. In recent years, there has been a concerningly large increase in overconsumption among consumers as fast-fashion giants like Shein and Romwe have pushed out mass amounts of clothes with shockingly low price tags. AVAVAV’s recent show gives us a visual glimpse into the unreliability and poor quality of fast fashion. Not only is it bad for the environment, but the quality of these clothes is often so poor that they break, snap, and deteriorate just after a few wears. Karlsson intended to cast light on how many people opt for fast fashion and fake replicas of luxury goods to project a false portrayal of wealth.

Conclusion

This show, though it had a lot of criticism from other people, was more than just a fashion show; it was a message. This show also gained the attention of many other famous fashion designers – like the “brutalist king”, Rick Owens, who praised the concept of the AVAVAV Finger Boots. While others thought that this message was unnecessary, it was a much-needed memo, and it provided a breath of fresh air for the fashion industry. Therefore, this is how the Milan AVAVAV FW23 fashion show shifted the fashion industry.