From Rittenhouse to Runway: Philly Fashion Week
The global fashion circuit moves in a predictable rhythm: Paris, Milan, New York. Iconic stylistic takes, exclusive invites, in an event unreachable from the outside world. Each year, these cities don models and redefine the “ins” of fashion. But what if you didn’t need a trip across the globe to tune into the hottest takes of fashion?
Philadelphia has long been known as a city of creators and innovators, and fashion is no exception. This city of creation is home to Philly’s very own Philly Fashion Week, a 20-year-long-standing celebration of the dynamic and unique fashion that often remains unfeatured on a global scale. Founded by cofounders Kerry Scott and Kevin Parker, this homegrown pillar of style celebrates fashion’s power to connect, inspire, and shape cultural narratives. Fashion is capable of uniting us and telling a story beyond words, and Philly’s Fashion Week epitomizes this value.
Scott and Parker produced the very first Philly Fashion Week, an inclusive weekend of outdoor shows at City Hall’s plaza in 2006 to make fashion accessible to everyday Philadelphians. Recognizing the glamorization of fashion in more commercialized cities in the US, Philly’s Fashion Week operates as a localized way to honor local designers and celebrate the idea that fashion can be found everywhere. In an interview with The Philadelphia Inquirer, when asked what’s next for Philly Fashion Week, Parker replied, “We want to keep growing and changing and helping people see that New York is not the only place where fashion lives and thrives”. Fashion can be as present in our lives as we desire, and Philly Fashion Week makes the celebration of fashion available to the general community in a new and radical way.
The last Philly Fashion Week took place from September 16th to September 21st and honored over 50 student and professional designers from both the city and beyond. The runway featured designers like Quinn Caroline, an ultra-feminine, design-focused brand, and Bishme Cromartie, a designer honing fashion at the intersection of Streetwear and Avant-garde. During special activations on Friday and Saturday nights, guests are free to shop looks straight from the runway. By providing a platform for smaller and local designers, models, and industry professionals, Philly Fashion Week brings something entirely new to the fashion community: the ability to uplift on a stage traditionally reserved for the world’s most exclusive names.
Aside from shedding light on underrepresented members of the fashion community, co-founder Kevin Parker emphasizes the runway’s importance in normalizing today’s unseen realities. By showcasing nonbinary and trans models, plus-sized models, and focusing on body empowerment at large, Parker has worked to create a runway of his own. “We want to reflect the world on our runway and that’s the way we’ve always operated”, said Parker in a 2025 interview.
Philly Fashion Week proves that fashion can operate without the glitz of Paris or the prestige of Milan to make an impact on the fashion world. Individual styles are influenced by the authenticity, creativity, and innovation of the Philadelphia community. Aside from the perfect yearly tradition to celebrate Philly’s creators and innovators, Philly Fashion Week is a reminder that style lives wherever people dare to create it.
Featured Image Courtesy of PhillyFashionWeek