Who's Next & Premiere Classe aims to redefine up-cycling

Paris-based fashion trade shows Who's Next and Premiere Classe have launched a new initiative, together with vintage store Kiliwatch Paris, which aims to redefine the industry's view of upcycling. The trade fairs invited 7 designer brands to take part in an upcycling scheme as part of the (Re)create project.

Each brand was given the task of creating a capsule collection of twenty limited edition pieces from second-hand clothing gathered from the Eureka Fripe stock warehouse on Rouen. The warehouse is said to be home to approximately 3,500 tonnes of second hand clothing and supplies stock to a number of the world's top vintage stores.

As part of the theme for this season's trade show, the designers selected for the upcycling initiative shares one common DNA, namely their Mediterranean roots. Sea for Sinnerman, launched by Nicholas Capron seeks to use old American sailor pants, shorts and caps to create new, white sailor smocks.

Second St, founded by socially conscious designers Sarah and Tracy will combine old military jackets and denim to create a new collection which pays homage to the olive tree. Louis Gabriel Nouchi is set to combine black suit jackets and colourful kimonos for his collection, while Giuseppe Canigila, the man behind Work_On will modernize old Converses.

Delphine Denereaz will use discarded football scarves to create new, oversized shawls for her upcycling collection and Miguel and Guillermo, the designers behind Manemane, are recycling old jeans to create an ultra contemporary line of LEvi's 501. Lastly, Sakina M'sa, will be using old fabrics from renowned fashion houses to create a new collection of blue worker overalls.

The resulting capsule collections will be shown at Who’s Next and Premiere Class trade shows at the Porte de Versailles from September 1 to 5, and will be on sale until October 2, at the Kiliwatch store in Etienne Marce l , Paris.

The (Re)create project aims to take a closer look at what impact the limited edition, upcycled collections could have on the contemporary fashion scene.

Photos: Courtesy of Canoe Inc, Adrien Dubuisson