Dubai Fashion Week to return in September

Dubai Fashion Week (DFW), co-founded by D3 and the Arab Fashion Council, has announced it will return for spring/summer 2025, ahead of New York Fashion Week from September 1 to 7.

The preliminary SS25 schedule features more than 30 established and emerging designers from France, India, Indonesia, Italy, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Malaysia, Palestine, Russia, the UAE and the UK.

They will showcase streetwear and haute couture collections alongside internationally acclaimed guest designers, which will be announced shortly. In the past, the guest designers have included Carolina Herrera designed by Wes Gordon, Iris van Herpen, Jean Paul Gaultier, Antonio Marras, Blumarine, and Moschino.

DFW will be held at Dubai Design District (D3) alongside a wider citywide events calendar featuring 40 invite-only presentations, private dinners and collection launches hosted by global brands and industry stakeholders.

The first three days of DFW SS25 will focus on haute couture collections and the final three days will showcase ready-to-wear collections by designers such as Alia Bastamam, April & Alex, Benang Jarum, BLSSD, Lama Jouni, Mrs. Keepa, Dima Ayad, Born in Exile, Buttonscarves, Choice, Heaven Lights, Riva, Viva Vox, and Weinsanto, presented and supported by the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode, the governing body behind Paris Fashion Week.

The last day of the calendar will focus on private appointments and a buyers' market.

Dubai Fashion Week adds buyers programme for SS25 season

Khadija Al Bastaki, senior vice president of Dubai Design District (D3) – part of TECOM Group, said in a statement: “Dubai is the pulsating heart of fashion in the region, and Dubai Fashion Week is disseminating its rhythm globally. The collections and designers displayed on our runway inject diversity into the global fashion dialogue and demonstrate the powerful talent emerging within our region.

“DFW has unveiled incredible opportunities, partnerships and global networks to participating designers and buyers, and we look forward to pushing the envelope further with this latest edition that includes a new buyer’s platform, an expanded venue, more events and an extended schedule of designers. Dubai Fashion Week will once more raise the bar for fashion excellence and cement Dubai among the global fashion capitals.”

Also making its debut for SS25 is the International Buyers Programme, which will enable retailers worldwide to enrol in DFW’s ‘Tier Benefits’ to expand buyers’ reach and talent discovery.

Mohammed Aqra, chief strategy officer of the Arab Fashion Council, explained: “A key objective of our Buyers Programme is to foster meaningful connections between global retailers and the innovative designers that Dubai Fashion Week showcases.

“The positive feedback from the global fashion industry highlights the importance of the platform in the international arena. We are committed to supporting the fashion ecosystem by creating opportunities for designers and retailers alike.”

DFW’s strategic media partner, Meta, will also return with ‘Threads Talks V3.0,’ a series of innovative panel discussions and exclusive seminars focusing on current fashion trends and challenges from the perspectives of global and regional buyers, C-suite executives, and brand consultants for a comprehensive and engaging dialogue.