Pre-Fall, What Is That? Fashion Reverie’s Pre-Fall 2020 Trend Report Helps Explain

There are so many fashion seasons each year that it’s hard to keep track. There’s spring/summer, fall/winter, resort/cruise, and couture, in addition to the menswear fashion cycle. But there’s one more season that most people are aware of, pre-fall.

Pre-fall collections are the quiet, older sister to the louder and bolder fall/winter collection. The pre-fall collections, intended to be pieces that bridge your wardrobe from summer to autumn, often hint toward what designers will present in their fall collections. Serious fashion insiders know to look at pre-fall collections to get a jump on the next seasons trends.

So where does pre-fall fit in the fashion landscape? In the traditional fashion schedule, collections are shown 5 to 6 months in advance of their intended season. Collections are shown early so that retailers can select and order what items they want to sell (retailers do not sell a designers/brands complete collection and so that textile companies can produce enough of the desired fabric for the orders). Secondly, the clothes need to be manufactured and shipped to the stores. The last factor in this traditional cycle is fashion magazines that prepare their issues three months in advance, so they need enough lead time to get wardrobe samples, photograph the garments, and get the printed issues to newsstands in time.

In short, here is the current traditional fashion schedule. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, many brands are looking to begin altering this timeframe by designing, showing, manufacturing, and selling their collections at their own pace or during their own pre-determined schedule.

Spring/Summer – shown in September – for sale in February

Pre-Fall – shown in December – for sale in May

Fall/Winter – shown in February – for sale in mid-July

Resort – shown in June – for sale in late October

So now that we understand what pre-fall is, what does it look like? As the name denotes, these collections are in stores a few months before the traditional fall collections, and as such, the collections are usually not as large as the fall collections. They also often have medium-weight garments, rather than heavier fall garments. Being that the pre-fall collections are in stores in May, they also include lightweight items that are perfect for summer. However, pre-fall collections are known for their closet staples—classic coats, shirts, knits, and other pieces you can assemble your outfits around.

To help consumers best understand the distinction of pre-fall collections, Fashion Reverie has assembled some of the best pre-fall trends for 2020.

Yellow

There’s the pantone color of the year, and then there’s the designer color of the season. For the pre-fall collections, yellow was the standout winner. Whether in neon at Balenciaga or pastel at Jil Sander, as a standalone solid at Rag & Bone or incorporated into a print at Coach 1941, yellow is having a moment all its own.

Light and Airy

Women across the globe daydream about wearing ball gowns to red-carpet events. Only a few get to enjoy that luxury. However, for pre-fall 2020, brands like Valentino, Oscar de la Renta, and Prabul Gurung have created light and airy dresses reminiscent of the red carpet but made for your local social calendar. You may not be appearing at a Hollywood film premier, but you will certainly be the belle of the ball.

Micro skirts

Miniskirts are always a go-to, but now micro skirts are taking things to a new level. As women continue to take agency over the bodies and their careers, hemlines, too, are on the rise. Via dresses, skirts, and suits, Marc Jacobs, Dior, and Valentino all lifted the bottom line to give the thighs more time to shine.

Cat print

Animal prints have always been the cat’s meow, but sometimes it can feel redundant. Not this season! R13 led the pack with their retro feline prints, but Dundas and Adam Lippes pushed it forward with reimagined prints and colorways.

Fringe

Fun and free, fringe is whatever you need it to be. It can be sophisticated and cultured when incorporated into collections like Elie Saab, or downtown and chic like Baja East. Either way, it adds extra pizzazz when you enter a room, and again when you leave it.

Suits

No matter the season, suits are going to sell. And since suit styles change only every decade or so, why wait for the next phase. You might as well wear your suit whatever way makes you feel comfortable. Take a cue from Chalayan, Lorod, and Tory Burch who all created decidedly different suits for the season—billowy, unstructured, and printed, respectively. Go ahead and throw the rules out of the window—they’re going to change in a few years anyway.

—Carl Ayers

Image credits

• pre-fall-trends-fashionista-1.png — Editorial image.
• pre-fall-2020-trends-yellow.jpg — Editorial image.
• pre-fall-2020-trends-airy.jpg — Editorial image.
• pre-fall-2020-trends-microskirts-1.jpg — Editorial image.
• pre-fall-2020-trends-spotted.jpg — Editorial image.
• pre-fall-2020-trends-fringe.jpg — Editorial image.
• pre-fall-2020-trends-suits.jpg — Editorial image.
• pre-fall-2020-trends-intro.jpg — Editorial image.