Skepta's MAINS' Runway Debut Served Up a "One-Of-A-Kind" Experience
Skepta, Mikey Pearce, and Johnson Orchid delivered a triumphant return for the brand after four years on the sidelines.
After four years on standby, Skepta‘s Mains label returned in style for its runway debut at London Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2024.
After unveiling a highly-anticipated Dover Street Market collaboration – which is available to shop now – Mains’ debut runway show provided a much more expansive offering of slick-fitting athleisure attire, sharp tailoring and stand-out collaborations with Beats, PUMA and Timberland.
Credited by Skepta as a “one-of-a-kind MAINS experience”, the show saw The Banking Hall in central London transformed into a tennis court, complete with a turf runway, huge Wimbledon-inspired scoreboard and even a tennis net fixed in the middle of the catwalk.
Fundamentally inspired by Skepta’s hometown of London, the collection elevated Mains’ staple pieces to new realms, while ensuring every item remained eminently wearable.
Mains carefully selected British fabrics to update pieces like the Mains Drill Suit, which arrived in raw silk, while sharply-tailored boucle bombers featured an embroidered, sparkling ‘M’, designed by Skepta himself. Mains also offered up a new leather accessories line, encompassing an original Backpack, Harness and Holdall.
The likes of Louis Theroux, A$AP Ferg, Matthew Williams, Naomi Campbell, Clint419 and Stormzy watched play unfold on the front row, with models walking out donning sporty pieces such as Mains-branded tennis rackets, metallic tracksuits and 3M Puma trainers, while statement tweed robes, Miami-inspired shirts and mesh singlets also caught the eye.
Skepta ensured the showcase was a wholesome family affair throughout by enlisting his brother JME to walk the catwalk, before running out with his daughter, River, at the end of the show – soundtracked by Enya – in celebratory fashion.
@hypebeast Wholesome #Skepta #MAINS #MainsLondon #FashionWeek #LondonFashionWeek #LFW ♬ original sound – HYPEBEAST
The collection was created with Skepta’s close friends and family in mind, too. Denim jackets arrived featuring Skepta’s own illustrations of Dalston, Miami and New York, while luxe tracksuits look custom-made for the UK rap titans and close friends Headie One and K-Trap, who watched on from the front row.
Chief designer Mikey Pearce and graphic designer Johnson Orchid were essential in pulling the strings to make the collection come to life, carefully balancing luxury, sport and lifestyle together to deliver “the next evolution of MAINS.”
“Today we leave our hearts on the table,” Skepta asserted in the show notes, while teasing that a follow-up collection would return next season: “all that we’ve achieved leads us to this pivotal moment. MAINS is here to stay.”
Take a closer look at MAINS London’s SS24 collection in the gallery above, and stay tuned for more London Fashion Week coverage on Hypebeast.
Elsewhere, LABRUM SS24 “NOMOLI ODYSSEY” was a sentimental celebration of Sierra Leone.
