Words by Daphne Chouliaraki Milner
artwork by Ásta Þrastardóttir
The world is on fire. And at Copenhagen Fashion Week, there was no running from the facts.
In her opening speech at Denmark’s Thorvaldsens Museum, CPHFW chief executive Cecilie Thorsmark recognized the escalating “climate crisis,” the horrifying “humanitarian crisis in Gaza,” the forthcoming elections in both the United States and the European parliament that “should be striking fear in all of us”—and urged those who stand on “privileged ground in this industry” to take responsibility.
“To many people, our industry looks like a bubble of glossy dreams far away from reality,” she said. “Sometimes it is. And we simply cannot ignore this privilege. It comes with an obligation. To speak up, and to act.”
Thorsmark’s call to action follows years of dedicated attempts at advancing the industry. Since she took on the role of chief executive in 2018, she has been pushing for greater transparency and more robust structures of accountability in an otherwise largely unregulated industry.
Her most progressive plan to date has been the introduction of sustainability requirements—a framework consisting of Minimum Standards—that all brands showing at CPHFW must adhere to, an initiative that was first announced in 2020. The criteria spans six focus areas: strategic direction, design, smart material choices, labor and working conditions, consumer engagement, and show production. Over three years, brands were encouraged to attend seminars to better understand each focus area, and some even joined a pilot program to get a head start at minimizing their planetary impact. The whole process is reliant on self-reporting from brands, an assessment method that has drawn criticism in other contexts like with B Corp certification. It’s why Thorsmark and her team “spent time with each brand individually in respect to their standing against the framework where we provided feedback and suggested actions,” she said. In addition to the self-assessment, an external Sustainability Committee screens brand answers to the Minimum Standards for proficiency of information and documentation provided.
As of yet, no other major fashion week has attempted to implement similar regulations on the brands they show, and set an example for what a more responsible system could look like. And it’s not just the brands that are held accountable for their social and environmental consequences at CPHFW. Every year, the organization puts out a report that offers a status update on its own action plan, which outlines 220 short-term targets.
It was only in 2023, after countless guides, toolboxes, training sessions, and workshops, that Copenhagen Fashion Week enforced adherence to the Minimum Standards, excluding one brand from showing at last year’s Fall/Winter shows. Now—12 months on—are efforts to make the week-long event more sustainable paying off?
“Our first criteria of success was to get all brands onboard and to execute a fashion week with a full schedule to begin with, which required the set up of new processes, partnerships, and relationships,” Thorsmark told Atmos. “For the Minimum Standards, we measure success mainly by brands’ ability to live up to them and the process to get there. That also means that measures of success are not tied to each standard separately but to the full framework.”
“For me, personally, the requirements helped me to think about building a brand, going into production or even how to [put on] a sustainable show in new ways.”
Skall Studio, an independent Danish label run by sisters Julie and Marie Skall, has met every Minimum Standard requirement, in part thanks to its short supply chain. The brand’s knitwear is created in Denmark using Danish wool, while its most recent collection of tailoring was made using 100% recycled wool and no additional dyes. With regards to minimizing the impact of their shows, however, the founders turned to CPHFW for additional support. “We pay a carbon offsetting fee to Copenhagen Fashion Week, which is mandatory to all show brands unless you operate your own offsetting—and this can be quite tricky,” the founders said, referring to the fact that there is no standardized system for carbon offsetting nor for how to measure its success.
The reality is that Copenhagen Fashion Week is still made up of mostly independent labels, many of which have limited resources to invest in often costly sustainability initiatives. It’s why the minimum requirements give brands months to figure out what steps work best for them before enforcing regulation. “Many of our brands are [small and medium-sized enterprises] and might not necessarily have capacities or budgets in place to implement required changes at a fast pace,” said Thorsmark. “And the development of strategies or code of conduct take time.”
Nicklas Skovgaard, a Danish designer who creates one-off garments using only handwoven textiles and thrifted fabrics, opened Copenhagen Fashion Week this season—but he’s the first to admit that showing his collections hasn’t always been straightforward. “Some of the criteria that are set can be quite new and challenging for a small brand like mine,” Skovgaard told Atmos. “For me, personally, [the requirements] helped me to think about building a brand, going into production or even how to [put on] a sustainable show [in new ways].” This is especially crucial as brands like Nicklas Skovgaard begin to scale—bigger production volumes means more potential transportation, distribution, emissions, and waste.
It’s why more established brands have been instrumental in shaping the minimum requirements. Nicolaj Reffstrup, Ganni’s chief executive, for instance, is part of the sustainability advisory board at CPHFW, as was Mother of Pearl creative director Amy Powney.
“When we started out in 2016 with mapping and compensating our carbon footprint, it was about understanding our footprint because, at that point, we and most other fashion brands knew very little about the impact of their products and supply chain,” said Ditte Reffstrup, creative director of Ganni. “We have since learned that carbon compensation via offsetting is problematic for various reasons, but that process led us to understand our supply chain better.” Ganni, which isn’t putting on a show this season, has renewed its focus on—among other things—furthering supply chain transparency, improving circularity initiatives, and reducing the brand’s carbon footprint by 50% in absolute terms by 2027.
“It’s obviously important to continue to push the bar higher and create higher ambitions—I hope that other fashion weeks are inspired to do the same as common criteria are a great way to level the playing field.”
Taking stock and sharpening the focus of their sustainability mission is what CPHFW’s requirements are helping designers to do more regularly. “Before the show starts there is a sustainability check, with a criteria list, done by Copenhagen Fashion Week, that I use as a principle when working on creating the show months before,” Skovgaard said. “After fashion week the checklist is returned with a score so that you can evaluate and make changes for next season.” This year, according to Skovgaard, brands are being asked to gather residential country information on all guests traveling to Copenhagen to attend their shows, data that can then help them get a more accurate understanding of their carbon footprint—and how to mitigate it.
So far, what sets CPHFW’s sustainability criteria apart is their precision and flexibility: brands are clear on the end goals, but have some flexibility in deciding on the route. After all, Copenhagen Fashion Week is the first to regulate brands on the grounds of responsibility and ethics—though some industry leaders hope others might follow suit. “I definitely enjoy a common benchmark for our industry, and I think the CPHFW criteria does that in some ways,” said Ganni chief executive Nicolaj Reffstrup. “It’s obviously important to continue to push the bar higher and create higher ambitions—I hope that other fashion weeks are inspired to do the same as common criteria are a great way to level the playing field.”
It’s a sentiment that’s echoed by Sigurd Bank, founder of responsible menswear brand, Mfpen. “As a start[ing point], I think all global fashion [events] should have some requirements, and push a greener agenda for the fashion industry,” he said.
But—as others in the industry have cited—pursuing the ethical route in an often murky industry isn’t easy. As the climate crisis continues to intensify, so too will the CPHFW’s sustainability criteria. In a bid to better understand the impact of the regulation, Copenhagen Fashion Week is planning on launching an industry insights report based on the requirements later this year. In the meantime, the team will continue to revise existing Minimum Standards and sustainability requirements in order to “raise the bar” year on year.
“The changes [we have made have been] influenced by the results so far, the developments we’re seeing in the industry, as well as changes in the EU policy landscape,” said Thorsmark. “It’s important for us that we can use the framework to prepare brands for what’s to come in terms of regulation.”
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At Copenhagen Fashion Week, Building Accountability
