Ralph Lauren cancels April show over coronavirus fears

Ralph Lauren, who was missing from the New York Fashion Week calendar, has announced that the fashion show he had planned for April is now cancelled due to the coronavirus outbreak. “In light of the ongoing uncertainties related to the novel coronavirus around the world, we have decided to cancel our fall 2020 show as a precautionary measure and out of respect for our teams, partners and consumers. Our primary focus remains on their health and safety,” said a Ralph Lauren spokesman to WWD.

Lauren had been approaching Fashion Week with a see-now-buy-now show format, but was planning to return to the season ahead model with his April show, where he was showcasing fall 2020. Other fashion shows that have been cancelled because of the coronavirus include Giorgio Armani's Milan Fashion Week show, which ended up being live streamed after a coronavirus outbreak in Northern Italy, and Gucci's Cruise 2021 cruise show, which was set to take place in San Francisco in May.

In China, where the coronavirus outbreak originated, Shanghai Fashion Week has been postponed. Coronavirus was also causing fashion stocks to suffer, with the overall market losing 4.3 trillion dollars. Retail stores in China have only slowly begun to open, with Hermès opening back up a portion of their Mainland stores recently.