MBFW Russia has wrapped up, following more than 70 shows presented by designers from Russia, as well as 19 other countries, in a combined physical and digital format.

The season-less edition allowed designers the flexibility to show collections they wanted to present, and quite a few decided to focus on Spring/Summer, rather than showing Fall/Winter collections as the fashion week calendar would ordinarily dictate.

In short, MBFW Russia has embraced flexibility in an era in which thinking outside the box is key to any fashion week’s survival. The majority of the participants in this edition were young, emerging designers and the digital format allowed those from outside traditional fashion power bases within the country participate, including designer Sasha Gapanovich from the northern city of Murmansk and O5O from the eastern city of Yakutsk.

The digital element, facilitated by a partnership with TikTok, also made it possible for shows to be included on the schedule from around the world, with international brands Cute-Saint from Nigeria, Peru’s Annaiss Yucra and Mexico’s Alejandra Raw proving highlights.

Sustainability initiatives ran throughout the event, including one in which participants at live shows could donate their old clothes, with the idea that these donations will be turned into an upcycled collection that will be shown at the next edition of MBFW Russia in October.

The idea was enthusiastically embraced, including by Victoria Abramchenko, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, who donated some of her own clothes as part of the initiative.