Yesterday, 21 July, saw a circus-themed Scoop wrap after three days at Olympia National in London. For many exhibitors, it certainly delivered, with buyers from stores including Fenwick, Liberty London, Cream, The Dressing Room, Pamela Schiffer, Cordelia James, Galeries Lafayette in France and El Corte Ingles in Spain hungry to seek out fresh brands – many new to the show – and standout SS27 collections. TheIndustry.fashion went along to get the word from the big top.
Eva Panagiotopoulou, from Come What May
Eva Panagiotopoulou, founder and Creative Director, Come What May
I’m based in Athens, Greece, and Come What May is brand new. Scoop is the first time it’s been shown to buyers. I’ve been in the business for almost 30 years as a wholesaler, buyer, stylist and then as a designer for other brands for the past 10 years. Then I decided to create my own ready-to-wear brand.
I came up with the idea to make luxury resort wear when I first saw the fabrics this collection has been created from. They are hand block printed and very unique. I loved them as soon as I saw them and I thought they would be perfect to create mix and match pieces. The colours are really beautiful, with stripes and prints as well as monochrome options.
In terms of key pieces, we have very nice dresses which work from day to night, as well as kimonos, oversized blouses with voluminous sleeves, wraparound skirts, shirts and wide leg trousers that can be matched together or worn separately. The fabric is a modal satin, it’s not that expensive but it feels like silk. It just feels really nice when you wear it.
We’ve had a good reaction to it at the show. It’s been very interesting because people haven’t seen anything else quite like this. That has pleased me as I wanted to do something different. Our wholesale prices start at €35 for bikinis and go up to €250 for our maxi dresses.
We’re happy that we have seen some buyers we expected to see at the show, including those who have their own boutiques, and we have made some contacts regarding possible agents and distributors for the UK market.
Nichola Morgan, showing Devotion Twins
Nichola Morgan, Sales Manager, The Morris Fyfe Agency, showing Devotion Twins
Devotion Twins is a Greek brand that’s celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. It’s developed from being very much a resort wear brand into a full ready-to-wear collection. It’s very contemporary with a lot of natural fabrics and real Greek heritage coming through in terms of silhouettes.
It’s been in the UK market for 10 years now and we’ve been showing it at Scoop since about 2022. It’s very much a summer collection, but as we go further into ready-to-wear the autumn/winter collections will start to get stronger.
We currently have around 25-30 UK accounts, including Daniel of Windsor, Brown Thomas, Very and Monsoon. Liberty has been on today and we’d obviously love to get it in there. We’ve been in Selfridges in the past and, where the brand has evolved from a certain look, we are hoping to get such stores back on board.
The show has been fantastic for us. It’s been very busy, particularly straight off the bat for the first two days. We’ve taken on nine new accounts and previous accounts, who thought they might not do the brand any more, have seen the newness and come back. We’ve been writing orders, which is always a positive.
After the show, we will have the collection at the Morris Fyfe showroom on Brick Lane in London, where we have another six brands including Sorena handbags and accessories, also from Greece, Emily Lovelock and Valentino handbags and shoes. Devotion Twins is the only one we’ve brought to Scoop. It’s the perfect platform for it because it attracts exactly the right audience.
Stephanie Krausch from Chicosoleil
Stéphanie Krausch, co-founder and Designer, Chicosoleil
I established Chicosoleil 14 years ago with my husband in Paris. It’s very much about the spirit of summer. We do a lot of trade shows and we sell the collection around the world as a result. My husband is currently showing it in Japan and, after the final day of Scoop, I will be travelling to Madrid to show it there, then at the end of September I will be showing in Milan.
Having previously shown Chicosoleil at Pure London, I started with Scoop two years ago. It has been great and I am very happy with the response from customers. We currently sell to about 25 UK accounts, including Cleverly Wrapped and other independent boutiques, and we have had success with taking on some new accounts here.
The collection is made in India, so my life is split between Paris and there as I manage all the design and production myself. The new collection features handloom fabrics, embroidery, embellishments and signature details such as coloured buttons in the shape of a flower. A key piece is an oversized shirt dress that can be belted in. There’s check and striped versions and it’s a very easy to wear on-trend summer style. We’re showing a collection for April/May 2027 delivery, including standout cotton/viscose fabric pieces with a ‘midnight diamond’ print, as well as a high summer 2027 collection.
I always enjoy coming to London and showing at Scoop. Even if my English is not great, I can speak face-to-face with my customers and get a better understanding of what they want. So, it’s very important for me to come.
Lea Wu, from Labdip
Léa Wu, Director General, Labdip
We started the Labdip brand in 2012 in Paris, but my brother and I came into this market because our father was a denim manufacturer for other brands. He knew all about the fits and washes and we learned alongside him. We manufacture in a region next to Shanghai in China. We used to have a factory, but since my father retired the person working with him took it over – so we have continuity. The factory specialises in different denim washes.
This is our first time at Scoop and we have managed to take some orders, including from Cordelia James which has three stores (in Hawkhurst, Rye and Lewes), as well as a store in Scotland and one in Ireland. We already work with Mercantile London as well as Ediit, which has two stores in London.
We also came here to meet some agents, and we’ve had some interest from local partners, so we are happy. Karen Radley from Scoop has been helping a lot with some matchmaking!
Our barrel fit jean is a trending silhouette for women and is currently our best-selling jean, particularly with a natural worn in look, not overdone. We also have a popular relaxed fit wide-leg style with a slightly lower waist. It has a real 90s feel to it.
The collection reflects American denim history as we also have a very 70s style flared jean with two front patch pockets. That one is new and is all about really lengthening the silhouette. We have big hopes for that one.
We’re also doing some coloured washes, such as dusty pink in the barrel leg which is proving very popular. Straight leg jeans are also coming back, so we have a selection of washes in that fit too, including a stonewash/snow wash combination.
Complementing the denim, we have other pieces such as a western style suede shirt which again comes in a dusty pink as well as olive. We’ve also really been inspired by American college looks and we have raglan sleeve two-colour baseball style long-sleeved T-shirts, as well as bandanas and military influenced lightweight nylon long shorts – perfect for the warm weather.
Valentine Urso, from Opalina
Valentina Urso, Creative Director, Opalina
It’s our first showing for the UK market and we are forming part of the Italian Trade Agency presence at Scoop. Opalina is a three-year old brand born out of a factory originally established in 1954 in Puglia. I’d previously worked for over 10 years behind the scenes in the production for other brands, but I always wanted to hone my own vision and use my creativity. I saw the women working at the factory on the old machines and my vision began to take shape for what I wanted the brand to look like.
We do have dresses and skirts, but Opalina is primarily a brand that focuses on a modern interpretation of a shirt for women. So, when we’re talking about the key pieces it is really about the shirting which has had something added to it, such as ruffle fronts, embroidery, pleating on the shoulder and puff sleeves. It’s about something that is comfortable, versatile and elegant all in one, using high quality fabrics and natural fibres.
One of the key pieces is a lightweight muslin cotton shirt, which is a reinterpretation of a men’s tuxedo shirt design. Instead of vertical pleats it features handmade ruffles on the front. It comes in yellow, which is a strong colour for the SS27 season.
We’ve also got classic relaxed fit striped shirts with dropped shoulders and three-quarter length sleeves and plenty of Liberty print fabrics as well, which I love, including for a long skirt.
Scoop has been a very important show for us to attend, and we are very happy with the contacts we have made. It’s been a great experience for us, particularly as a young brand. We will come back.
