September’s fashion fever continues to swelter in NYC as Global Fashion Collective hits the NYFW 2025 runway, offering a unique glimpse into the future of fashion.
For fashion lovers around the world—especially the New Yorkers of them all—September 2025 has delivered. The New York fashion scene started strong in September with the US Open still in motion, where we saw Naomi Osaka take center stage donning bedazzled Labubus and Venus Williams clad in custom Who Decides War—a hot, New York-based fashion house that is penciled in for a primetime spot on Saturday at this year’s New York Fashion Week.
Speaking of, New York Fashion Week has now officially kicked off on Thursday, September 11th, just four days after the end of the US Open craze, and will run until September 16th.
Aside from the usual suspects and household names (including the likes of Michael Kors, Calvin Klein, and Off-White) who will be presenting their Spring/ Summer 2026 collections during NYFW, there is another concurrent schedule of runways by the Global Fashion Collective. GFC is a Vancouver-based organization that offers a more accessible platform for lesser known designers to show off their collections during fashion week and gain the international exposure that would otherwise be elusive this time of year in the North American fashion capital. Known for elevating diverse perspectives and honoring authenticity, GFC is leaving a mark on the fashion space. This year is proving to be no exception.
The first official runway featured five collections from designers: Universidad Iberoamericana of Mexico, Emijingu of Japan, Martin Dalla Lasta of Argentina, Ashlyn So of the United States, and Rasara College of Korea.
DAY I, SHOW I: GLOBAL FASHION COLLECTIVE
(Credit: Frances Aebker)
Universidad Iberoamericana
The Universidad Iberoamericana presentation showcased looks from several of their students, varying in shape, style, and approach, but all fell somewhere in the engulfing “avant-garde” genre.
One designer showed a black, cloud-like dress that took up nearly the entire width of the runway, which the crowd adored.
Another designed her garments using recycled quilt fabrics stitched to resemble a large face motif that was then attached to the front of a mini dress.
Emijingu
Next up on the runway was designer Emijingu, who showcased her delicate designs that appeared to be crafted entirely from mini balloons. Seems impossible, right? Not for Jingu, who presented a line of womenswear in the form of skirts and dresses that were all held together by mere twists of air and plastic.
Martin Dalla Lasta
The third designer, Martin Dalla Lasta, was a clear crowd favorite. His menswear designs featured a consistent use of dark-washed denim for bottoms, styled with flowy cream-colored fabrics for tops and one-piece garments.
Lasta also played with the use of a chain-like material for accessories that draped across a few of the models’ torsos. His show was a departure from the group in overall mood, where his runway was walked at a slower pace and to a melancholy soundtrack, clearly aligning with his collection’s name: “Loner Boy.”
Ashlyn So
The following designer, Ashlyn So, brought a different kind of excitement to the runway with her “Recolored” collection of women’s dresses. The entire collection, and the color choices, draping, and texture for each garment, was inspired by the vibrance of coral reefs that preceded mass coral bleaching, a cause that has inspired the looks of 17-year-old designer/ activist, Ashlyn So.
Rasara College
The final runway featured designers from Rasara College, who closed the event with collections that fused avant-garde streetwear with more feminine silhouettes in the form of midi and full-length skirts, two-piece sets, and gowns.
DAY I, SHOW I: WRAP UP
Although all of the designers who presented in this first collective runway displayed collections appearing hugely divergent in approach, all designers stayed true to the essence of the GFC: crafting ornate, artful expressions of their individual style and inspiration.
Vogue writer, Lucy Maguire, predicted that: “This season, the pendulum is swinging to more quirky, maximalist fashion as consumers continue to pursue individualism with styling, prints, textures and accessories.” This prediction certainly felt prophetic on the GFC runway this year.
Stay tuned for further coverage and reviews from NYFW 25.
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