Phygital Fashion Week : A Qualitative Study of the Contemporary Copenhagen Fashion Week

Abstract: The value of fashion week’s physical presence has been questioned in connection with the Covid-19 pandemic, when fashion week became fully digital. Once the pandemic subsided, the digital attributes were retained and combined with the physical space, resulting in a phygital fashion week. This new phenomenon, the contemporary fashion week that combines on-site and online activities, has therefore received little academic research. There is a lack of academic knowledge about how the post-pandemic setting of fashion week affects the physical value. The purpose of this study is to analyze how the post-pandemic setting of fashion week has affected the value of physical presence in regards to marketing communication through the lens of Copenhagen Fashion Week (CPHFW). By conducting a case study of CPHFW, the goal is to bridge the gap by providing new research within the field of fashion marketing. A qualitative research approach was used to provide an in-depth perspective of CPHFW. The chosen data collection techniques were a combination of ethnographic and netnographic methods. The ethnographic methods were conducted on-site, physically at the AW 23 season of CPHFW, while the netnographic methods analyzed activities online, thus communication through social media platforms as well as press coverage. The results of this study indicate that there is a strong interdependence between the digital and physical fashion week, where the digital do not have an obvious position of power because it is dependent on the physical presence. Fashion week has evolved into a phenomenon conducted physically, with the aim of reaching a digital audience through the creation of spectacular on-site moments being shared online. This points to a complex power relationship between the two. Therefore, the value of physical presence remains strong in a post-pandemic setting of fashion week in regards to marketing communication. In terms of Copenhagen, the emerging fashion capital, the translation of the physical presence to the digital realm becomes even more important as it promotes its fashion week to a global audience. It enables CPHFW to communicate elements of differentiation digitally, thus strengthening the attractiveness of the physical presence.