Introduction to KFN’s Plans
The timeline follows its own CFDAS, says Russo, when it comes to announcements, schedule and location. The KFN event locations will operate first. About 30 designers can participate. Applications are now open.
Phases 2 to 5: Until September 2027
Over the next September, KFN has big plans that go far beyond the trading element of the Fashion Week. After the revision of NYFW itself, KFN will add two consumer elements that are set for September 2026.
Phase Two: American Fashion Festival
Phase two, the ‘American Fashion Festival’, is a two- to three-hour fashion festival, which, according to Izemrane, will bring American designers who are not available in fashion in Fashion Week. It will run in parallel to NYFW’s opening weekend and bring in the nightlife, sport and music touchpoints.
Phase Three: American Fashion Experience
The third phase, the "American Fashion Experience", is intended as a "multimedia exhibition" that will travel through New York every September.
Integration of Consumers
The integration of consumers is a slippery slope. The international fashion weeks have experienced the combined water that goes hand in hand with the mix of customer events with business events. But Izemrane and Russo are confident that the NYFW can achieve the best of both worlds by separating the consumer events from the industry events – a "modular" setup, as Russo calls it.
Comparison with Art Basel
The couple compared their vision for NYFW with Art Basel, where a flood of branded events, pop-ups and activations have almost overtaken the fair itself. The difference is that consumers can buy tickets for the art fair themselves at Art Basel. With NYFW, shows and exhibition rooms only remain inviting and only on an appointment.
Phases Four and Five
The phases of four and five, which are also to be set in motion by September 2026, return to the core of NYFW itself. The fourth, in which the city and the state is supported more financial and logistics, has to wait for Kfn to establish itself. This next year will be the proof of the concept, and the idea is to increase the financing not only for NYFW, but also for American fashion shops in the broader sense. And finally, KFN will round off his offer with a AI supported digital platform for the NYFW participants to organize their schedules.
Future Plans
As for the rumors that the New York February Fashion Week is in February, the co-founders refused to provide details. In any case, we will appear for the next February and then we will see how we will further expand this.
