You may have noticed that the collections presented for fall were a wee bit more concentrated than usual. As the industry continues its twist into a Darwinistic survival of the fittest, designers no longer have the luxury of showing pieces that won’t sell, no doubt another sign of These Economic Times. “This season is different because what you see is what you get,” said Betsey Johnson, who halved the number of looks she showed at her presentation — 25 this time around. This is a big change for Betsey, who showed 51 looks for spring 2009, 60 for fall 2008, and 41 for spring 2008. “Everything shown will actually hit stores … unlike bigger runway shows where some looks weren’t available for sale,” she said. Comparing spring 2009 to fall 2009, John Galliano lost 17 looks, Narciso Rodriguez lost 9, and Matthew Williamson and Oscar de la Renta both lost 11. But the biggest drop occurred at the Armani shows: The Emporio Armani show featured 69 looks, down from 92 last season, while Giorgio Armani had 56 looks, 20 fewer than spring. Of course, not every designer cut looks. Some even gained two, five, or eight. But it was impossible to ignore drastically reduced runway shows and see the impact of recession rearing its ugly head again.
Check out the top twelve downsized shows this season after the jump.
