London Fashion Week Men’s: Backstage at Cottweiler 2018 Spring/Summer

For its 2018 spring/summer show, Cottweiler took a break from London Fashion Week Men’s usual location and headed to an unused industrial estate in East London. In the middle of the space were three motor homes, which formed the inspiration for this season’s collection. The colors, prints and fabrics used all drew on the tension that exists between the man-made interiors of these motor homes, and the natural world they are parked in. Through this, Cottweiler was referencing the optimism and escapism of people who choose to live off-grid, away from those synthetic textures. The show notes described the seaon as “defined by transitional states: between functional and decorative, real and artificial, restriction and freedom.” Key pieces in the collection came with embellished embroidery, and a summer-ready color palette of sand, sage and ivory.

Another inspiration came from Maration Des Sables, a desert marathon regard as being the toughest foot race in the world, which was referenced in the collection’s colorway of sand and volcanic hues. There was also a nod to the race in the show itself, with water carriers that alluded to the self-sufficiency required in the Sahara race and decorative geckos featuring as accessories.

Arguably the focal point of the show, though, was the latest in Cottweiler’s ongoing collaboration with Reebok, which first debuted at Pitti Uomo earlier this year. This joint effort took inspiration from sports after care, and so tied in with Reebok’s ideals of combining the mental, social and physical. Since the brand first emerged, Ben Cottrell and Matthew Dainty, the duo behind Cottweiler, have gained a cult following for the brand’s refined sportswear and the Reebok link up builds on this reputation while pieces including lightweight hoodies and track pants elevate the tracksuits the helped the brand make its name.

Make sure to keep up with all our London Fashion Week Men’s coverage.