Bridal Week regains its pulse: successful fashion shows and market reactivation

From last Wednesday until this Sunday, Fira de Barcelona has dedicated itself to bridal fashion, celebrating a highly anticipated post-pandemic edition of Barcelona Bridal Fashion Week (BBFW) that has allowed for reunions and reactivated a market heavily affected by the health situation. With the joy of being able to do without masks even in enclosed spaces – a symbolic gesture of liberation that most embraced – and being able to greet each other in person, the event presented fashion shows by 34 designers, which included the international runway debut of the Viktor&Rolf Mariage house, and the offering in the salon of more than 320 brands, 75% international, among which Zuhair Murad, Jenny Packham, Tony Ward, and Peter Langner stood out. After two years of hiatus, the sector has adapted to new habits and consumption standards, such as digitalization, which is why BBFW maintains its digital platform that has allowed easy access to all the content of the event.

The trends seen are multiple because there are increasingly more options adapted to all types of women and even personalized, although the return of the midi skirt length, bare shoulders, cut-out dresses, strapless necklines, and the predominance of white color and feminine lines are noteworthy. The organization estimates 18,600 visits, 65% from abroad, and indicates that 1,170 buyers attended.

BBFW "is an important event because it projects to the world the talent and quality of Catalan bridal fashion, an area in which our country is a world leader," said the Minister of Business, Roger Torrent, at the inauguration of the Trade Fair. In Catalonia, this sector exported 200.1 million euros in 2021, 32% of the total exports of the State, with France as the main client, followed by Germany, Italy, and Portugal.

Jesús Peiró, a firm founded in 1988 and present in 260 points of sale in 36 countries, opened the fashion shows of the world's most important bridal runway with a collection signed by its designer Merche Segarra that distilled, as always, elegance and refinement. The room was filled with flowers, and in the last exit, the models appeared with a yellow and blue bouquet, in homage to Ukraine.

The bridal company, with 80% of its turnover being international, suffered a 22% drop in sales in 2020, but expects to return this year to pre-pandemic levels, invoicing close to 5 million euros. With the title Nymphs, it presented white designs, full of transparencies and relaxed cuts, which conveyed serenity and emanated timelessness. Wide-volume skirts were seen, but also trousers and even short designs, always made of rich and high-quality fabrics.

In contrast, Yolanda Pérez, in her collection She, once again opted for the bohemian, slightly rebellious style, which is so iconic of Yolancris, because it is especially requested by Mediterranean clients. They also have a more princess-like line, with sparkles and details focused on sales in Asian countries and the United States, and another more serene and plain one, "with irreverent and chic looks at the same time," inspired by the sixties. Of course, always with a rock and sensual background, a hallmark of a house that rose to fame when the Kardashian clan trusted its artisan and rebellious needle to dress Kourtney, Khloé, Kendall, and Kylie as bridesmaids at Kim's wedding.

On the first day of fashion shows, designs by Georgina Chapman, co-founder of the Marchesa house, were also seen for the collection she signs for Pronovias, all suitable for feminine and conventional women who adore romanticism and a profusion of details. The designer, who did not want to talk to the press about her relationship with Adrien Brody, transforms the style of her red carpet dresses into bridal designs. Those that were profusely worn by celebrities before the sexual abuse scandal of Harvey Weinstein (who was her husband until their divorce in 2017) broke out. Chapman was the star of Bridal Night (the gala night of bridal week) in 2019, with a fashion show of her own brand at the Palau de Pedralbes.

The BBFW guests, Viktor & Rolf

In this edition, the exceptional guests at the 2022 gala were the Dutch designer duo Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren (Viktor & Rolf), who gained international recognition with the wedding dress they created for Mabel Wisse at her wedding in 2004 to Friso, brother of the King of Holland. It was a highly original design, with 250 bows that started out tiny at the neck and ended up enormous at the train. "The bow, a soft and romantic element that becomes daring in the dress, is part of what we do, therefore, it also appears in our new collection," say the designers, who presented 35 diverse models, some of which were from previous seasons and even from their latest haute couture collection dedicated to Murnau's film Nosferatu (with extremely high shoulders, at head height, with a deliberately terrifying look).

Viktor & Rolf have been designing their Mariage collection since 2017, but it wasn't until now that they decided to show it on a runway. They really liked the invitation from Barcelona ("which is the Paris of brides"), which included parading in the dreamlike sculptural space Xavier Corberó, although the intense rain on Wednesday did not allow it.

Their designs, of exquisite and imaginative tailoring, as is their original haute couture, offer a daring vision of the bridal world, because for them fashion above all is "an antidote against the harsh reality of everyday life." Although their pattern making is architectural, they assure that they are aware that, on such a special day, it is important not to forget the bride's comfort and that is why their garments are easy to wear.

The elegance of Rosa Clará, who opts for the 'midi'

Rosa Clará has also always been clear about this premise of comfort, which she combines with exquisite timeless elegance. Her new collection carries the house's DNA in the purity of lines, playing with new details, such as removable wrap-around collars, nineties square necklines, and the predominance of elastic crepe.

The Catalan firm, which detects how "the desire for weddings" has returned, joins the trend of midi dresses, very suitable for civil ceremonies. We see it in a beautiful, very feminine design with a wide skirt with flocked tulle combined with a plain crepe bodice with beautiful bias work, inspired by the New Look style. Highlights include exposed shoulders, dropped sleeves or cuffs, as well as luxurious printed and hand-painted organza dresses. Clará's brides are lovers of discreet luxury that makes an impact without ostentation.

The designer featured Peruvian actress Stephanie Cayo --former partner of Maxi Iglesias, who is linked to Turkish actor Kerem Bürsim-- as the main model, who paraded to the rhythm of C. Tangana and Rosalía, while in the front-row, Mireia Belmonte and Carlota Bertran, wife of Pol Espargaró, watched the collection. The show took place on Thursday afternoon, at the same time as another major event was being held in the city: the reopening on Paseo de Gràcia of the Loewe store, which designer Jonathan Anderson has converted into an art gallery-boutique, with 8 Picasso ceramics and contemporary art.

The designer's main guests dined in the Esfèric room in Montjuïc, which, curiously, was also the place chosen by Pronovias to hold its dinner and post-show party on Friday night.

The Rococo Versailles of Pronovias

Amandine Ohayon, the CEO of Pronovias Group, hosted a show eager to resume the spectacularity of pre-pandemic times, in the style of those organized by Alberto Palatchi. The founder of Pronovias retains 10% of the capital of the company he sold in September 2017 to BC Partners, and which is the only bridal firm listed in the Deloitte Top 100 study of luxury sectors. They currently have 4,000 points of sale in 105 countries.

With the Italian pavilion overflowing with customers from all over the world dressed in gala attire as if going to a wedding and a front row with celebrities who fill gossip columns, international models of different skin colors, ages, and weights paraded with designs from Pronovias' Versailles 2023 collection among golden balloons and dancers dressed in white.

The name alluding to the Rococo court already made it clear that we were not going to see minimalist garments. On the contrary. All the designs created by Alessandra Rinaudo –who wore a t-shirt with the peace symbol– appeared full of glitter, embroidery, bows or flowers, most skirts were of great volume, playing with necklines, with lace bodices, with oversized sleeves and with jewel collars. A very feminine and baroque line defended by Esther Cañadas, the star model of the show, who was much applauded on her return to Barcelona after 13 years away from the profession by personal decision.

Esther Cañadas and Victoria Federica, the most sought after

The former top model and high-profile media personality at the turn of the century left everything to dedicate herself to her personal life, and during that time she had a daughter, overcame a severe immunological disease, and lived outside of Spain. In 2020, she accepted an offer from Balmain and since then has returned to the runway in a calmer way than before, and she feels happy. At 45 years old, Cañadas --who retains her feline gaze intact-- defended models of all ages and recalled that in the past, she herself, being very young, had had to promote products for older women: "It's better that those who are the right age do it and that they are given visibility."

In the front row of the fashion show, the presence of Victoria Federica de Marichalar y Borbón --who wore a long dress with simple lines from the brand-- stood out, alongside her boyfriend, Jorge Bárcenas, who had been hired as a DJ to liven up the after-party. Macarena Gómez and her husband Aldo Comas were also present, having also attended the Loewe party the day before. The couple is very involved in a project to bring Ukrainian refugees to Europe, finding them host families, papers, and even work.

Other prominent fashion shows at this edition of BBFW were those of the avant-garde firm Sophie et Voilà, which opted to play with black and white in its architectural, always minimalist pieces. There are also black touches in the new collection by Isabel Sanchís, which also introduces vibrant colors such as oranges, pistachios, and pinks in her carefully crafted couture pieces with volumes and meticulously made artisanal work.