H&amp;M kicked off London Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2027 with its “H&amp;M&amp;YOU&amp;I” show at Olympia London, transforming the runway into a cinematic experience featuring big names like Myha'la, Tems, Kai Schreiber and Cruz Beckham.

From the very first minutes, Brazilian ballet dancer Ingrid Silva delivered an emotionally charged performance, before Alex Consani appeared in an opening design consisting of a cream-colored military jacket with shoulder pads, a sheer blouse, and low-waisted trousers. The cinematic spirit continues to expand in the staging. The show, creatively directed by British visual artist Nick Knight CBE via the SHOWstudio platform, took place on a 40-meter-long catwalk, with one side covered in curved mirrors and the other featuring a live video installation by artist Karyn Nakamura. “As always, we wanted to do something beyond a traditional fashion show – something more special,” Johansson shared. “It was about combining entertainment with fashion.”

In keeping with that spirit, SHOWstudio designed a unique interactive fashion experience, creating real-time fashion films as models like Paloma Elsesser, Lila Moss, and Karen Elson strut down the runway, accompanied by digital versions of themselves.

The show was divided into several chapters, successively introducing the Fall, Studio, and Atelier lines. All were connected by a richly cinematic language, from the stage design to the designs on the runway. The Fall line, including Alex Consani&#39;s opening look, went on sale immediately after the show; while the Studio line became available at select stores and online from September 24th. “We wanted to tell a bigger story about H&amp;M women’s fashion,” Ann-Sofie Johansson, the brand’s creative advisor, shared during the meeting the following afternoon. “Fashion today is no longer confined to a single definition. We used the word ‘cinematic’ to describe this season because it feels like a movie. Nick Knight also grasped that idea and developed a theme centered around the cinematic spirit.”

According to Johansson, each design team drew inspiration from different films, creating a link between the chapters of the show. The cinematic references ranged from historical love stories reminiscent of Wuthering Heights to Japanese film noir and the golden age of Italian cinema in the 1940s. “Ultimately, the collection revolves around Sicily,” she said. One segment that strongly evoked 1990s runways was when models used spotlights to illuminate each other, showcasing minimalist black slip dresses and sharp, slim-fit suits. This part was inspired by the “spirit of a collector” and the design team’s trip to Sicily. Johansson called this inspiration “Donna”—Italian for “woman.” This spirit was evident in the powerful pencil skirts and textured jackets. The experimental styling, combined with largely minimalist clothing, also reveals the brand&#39;s Swedish imprint. “We never wanted to position H&amp;M simply as a Scandi brand, because we are a global brand,” Johansson says. “But whether you like it or not, there’s a Scandi feel to it. The minimalist look, the color palette – or even the absence of color – really reflects the Scandi spirit. We lean towards practicality and want everything to be wearable. A design might have a touch of whimsy, but at the same time, we’ll still be wearing denim or sneakers.”

The three separate launches of the Fall/Winter 2026 collection therefore feel like different chapters in the same film, with each chapter revealing a different nuance but still within the same story. The entire journey concluded with a performance by Labrinth – the show&#39;s music director. The artist made a surprise appearance on stage and performed &quot;I Want to Know What Love Is&quot; live, following spoken word performances by Alex Consani and Archie Renaux. For Johansson, this song is also the final message she wants to leave behind. “Given the current state of the world, that’s exactly what we need,” she says. “H&amp;M has long championed diversity – liberating fashion so that more people can access it. Fashion is about memories, emotions, and feelings.”

H&M SS27: A World of Fashion and Fantasy

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