Johanna Parv’s Peak Performance
Review of Fashion East Fall 2024 Fashion Show
By Angela Baidoo
THE COLLECTION
THE VIBE
THE THEME
Johanna Parv is in her final go-round with the Fashion East incubator, and with this her third and final collection she doubles down on pushing practicality with purpose, which this time meant catering to the full-span of her customers lifestyle. Not content to just kit out the Parv woman for her commute navigating the precocious cycle-lanes of London, here we had an expansion of her line into tailoring, and even some looks which could be repurposed as modern occasion wear.
With the exception of a few designers – such as Michael Stewart of Standing Ground who has found a fitting home as a rising star of the red carpet – Fashion East alum have often taken to expanding their range of designs into new categories which helps them build credibility among buyers and considers long-term growth potential.
Parv’s technical wizardry communicates as more like the mission of an inventor obsessed with finding the exact formula to perfect their masterpiece, as each season she adds to her sleek silhouettes of leggings, minis, and windbreakers, and for fall 2024 she chose to add on her version of the “office worker uniform” as functional suiting came in to play for her swan song. Called ‘Techy Tailoring’ there can be no doubt each shirt, trouser, or suit will be performance-based, which could be seen from the invisible zips allowing for ventilation and pleated knee trousers to ensure cyclists still arrived to their meetings in pristine condition.
Her footwear – an inevitable collaboration with Nike – has allowed the seamless move into the footwear market with her own signature style to complete her looks from head-to-toe.
THE BUZZWORDS
Technical tailoring, peak performance, functionality gets sexy
THE SHOWSTOPPER
Who knew performance-wear could be provocative? Johanna Parv it turns out, as this season she deconstructed a technical jacket and pencil skirt with the simple yet effective addition of zips which were undone to reveal just enough skin for an evening out.
THE DIRECTION
THE WRAP UP
So much is made of the merry-go-round that is luxury fashion’s Creative Directorships that time isn’t taken to consider the myriad career paths in adjacent industries. Something which is only starting to create ripples of interest as even sports teams have started to take on creatives to help them appeal to a cooler crowd or simply bring together multiple divisions under a single design vision. Now, as Johanna Parv steps out from under the umbrella of Fashion East and with a relationship with one of the world’s biggest performance sports brands already established, Parv is poised to make an indelible mark in arenas that encompass more than fashion.
