Fila x Haider Ackermann | London 2022

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Fila x Haider Ackermann | London 2022

On a rainy Thursday evening in Manchester, a flock of security guards ushers us into the cavernous concrete interior of the Depot Mayfield: the former railway station that closed in the 1960s, lay dormant for three decades, and was then brought back to life in 2019 as a nightlife space that most famously plays host to the city’s The Warehouse Project club nights. Before confirming any of these facts, though, the security team notes that while the venue has opened its doors for plenty of raucous events over the past few years, they’ve never seen crowds quite like this.

Outside, on the streets of a place so notorious for bad weather it’s nicknamed England’s “rainy city” (and with torrential downpours throughout most of the day, it more than lived up to its title; a leaky roof even brought the atmosphere inside), hundreds of young local Mancunians thronged the entrance, eager to catch a glimpse of the starry lineup that made their way through its creaking industrial door—Andrew Garfield, Chloë Grace Moretz, Elite star Manu Rios, House of the Dragon breakout Emma D’Arcy—all arriving to celebrate the debut of Haider Ackermann’s collaboration with Fila.

That’s right: the French-Colombian tailoring mastermind and former Berluti creative director Haider Ackermann, whose palpably luxurious bomber jackets, capes, and tailored gowns have made him a red carpet go-to for some of Hollywood's most daring A-listers, has returned after a two-year runway hiatus. And in an unexpected (on paper, at least) turn of events, he’s done so in partnership with Fila, the Italian sportswear giant whose closest associations lie within the world of tennis. (Although while Ackermann’s last runway show was in Feburary 2020, he’s still kept himself somewhat busy whisking up looks for his most reliable high-profile clients, his muses Tilda Swinton and Timothée Chalamet—who can forget that backless, blood-red pantsuit Chalamet wore for the Venice Bones and All premiere?)

First things first, how did the opportunity to partner with Fila come about? “I've been silent for a while, a little bit away,” he says over tea at his hotel the day before the show. “To get some of that electricity back was one of the reasons I accepted this invitation. I just wanted to feel the energy again.” The next question: Why Manchester? “In Manchester, there's the colliding of all of those mixtures,” Ackermann explains. “There's the music industry, which is just beyond, but then you have the sports world and football, and it’s a UNESCO city of literature too? I thought it would be very interesting to embrace the youth here. To get the energy, to get the speed, to absorb everything I could possibly absorb.”

If that was the spirit Ackermann hoped to recreate, the organized chaos of the fashion show went some way to achieving it; a beam of white light blasted down the runway, while models walked at varying speeds, clustered together, in intentionally rhythmic slipstreams that were surprisingly satisfying to watch. It also included an impressive array of recognizable faces: Stella Maxwell, Rebecca Longendyke, Lily McMenamy, and, for the closing look, none other than Anok Yai in an optic white stretch bodysuit, a caped parka fluttering behind her.

Then, to the clothes, which despite all the other bells and whistles, made for perhaps the most unexpected facet of the show entirely. Ackermann is notoriously logo-averse; you’d be hard-pressed to find as much as a contrast-color stitch signifying himself as the creator of one of his meticulously cut jackets or razor-sharp tailored trousers. Having to overcome this fear to enter the realm of sportswear didn’t come easily to Ackermann initially. “We live in a world where it's all about logos and branding, and as you can see, I never wear logos,” he says, pointing to his (very much logo-less) white sweater and chuckling. “But to be confronted with this, and to embrace something that is not mine, it’s a fascinating challenge.”

Ackermann is also, of course, one of fashion’s most preternaturally talented colorists—but where his palette of rich jewel tones and subdued, earthy shades has tended to dominate his collections historically, here, he opened with at least four looks in a stark, glacier white, worn with swimming caps and goggles. Copious amounts of spandex and stretch jersey followed, running the gamut from crisp neon greens and royal blues to a kaleidoscope of sherbet-hued oranges and yellows, and a particularly ravishing shade of salmon pink—as well as “Haider + Fila” logos galore. (Haider Ackermann embracing bodycon? We never thought we’d see the day.)

#Fila #HaiderAckermann #TheFrontRow