STYLE
Meet the London designer with his sights set on subverting the way we get dressed
A DESIGNER’S FIRST RUNWAY SHOW IS A LONG-STANDING make-or-break milestone. But in the 2020s, a decade in which the fashion capital cities have become increasingly tough environments for young designers to show their work in (the skyrocketing production costs, the crowded show calendars, the competition to get a good show date and time, the list goes on), the feat can feel particularly monumental. ‘I’m not a crier, but I felt deeply emotional at the first rehearsal,’ says London-born Aaron Esh, recalling the day before his inaugural London Fashion Week show at Tate Modern last September. Dressed in all black, from his trainers to his signature baseball cap, Esh remembers the moment as if it was yesterday. ‘Hearing the music in the venue, seeing the casting and the collection… I actually got goosebumps. You have this idea scribbled down detailing what the final product will look like, but seeing six months’ worth of work, I genuinely had to hold it together.’
Esh graduated from an MA in Fashion at Central Saint Martins in 2022. Starting out with menswear, Esh’s pieces became a talking point among editors for the way he mixed soft and sensual elements in clothes that subverted conventional codes of masculinity. His ‘Comma’ loafers fast became a favourite with industry figures, and Zendaya wore a custom waistcoat for a campaign shoot last year.
Buyers at SSENSE and LN-CC quickly came calling and the designer was selected as one of the prestigious 2023 LVMH semifinalists – all within six months of graduating. ‘I thought it was too soon to apply, but now I realise that I belonged there. Speaking to one of my favourite designers, Nicolas Ghesquière, grounded me, and confirmed that I’m doing something right,’ he said of the experience, which saw him present his work to a panel of judges including Jonathan Anderson, Maria Grazia Chiuri, Ghesquière, Marc
