Jimmy Choo’s JCA announces London Fashion Week debut

Prof. Jimmy Choo’s Mayfair based JCA London Fashion Academy has announced that it will join the London Fashion Week line-up to showcase Patrick McDowell and its first graduating MA Designers.

Taking place across three storeys of the JCA’s Grade I Period Building, the academy's inaugural LFW show will take place on 19 September.

Designer in residence and sustainability ambassador for the JCA, Patrick McDowell will showcase his spring/summer 2023 collection first, which merges the world of Marie Antoinette with his own Liverpudlian background, before each MA student presents their debut collection in the same space.

Stephen Smith, Founder and CEO of the JCA said: "Our upcoming London Fashion Week show is a momentous occasion for us all at the JCA. Since officially opening our doors only one year ago in September 2021 we have nurtured our first graduating MA cohort from our home on Hanover Square.

"Opening our doors to the public one year on is the perfect moment to celebrate not only the successes of these hugely talented young designers but to also give our Designer in Residence and Sustainability Ambassador Patrick McDowell a stage within the building that inspired his ‘Marie Antoinette goes to Liverpool’ collection."

Patrick McDowell, Creative Director of Patrick McDowell, Designer in Residence and Sustainability Ambassador for the JCA added: "Supporting creative education is one of my brand's founding pillars and therefore it is my huge pleasure to share my runway with the amazing JCA MA students who I have had the pleasure of seeing evolve and grow over the past 12 months. For me fashion and the platform it offers is the perfect springboard to further the conversation around inclusivity, sustainability and a better future for us all."

"'Marie Antoinette goes to Liverpool' is a deeply personal expression of who I am and where I come from. In many ways the title reflects my own journey as a queer working class scouser to 'The cake'; the affectionate term we have given to the incredible 5 story Georgian town house at 20 Hanover square where the JCA is located. Pastel colours and plaster work has been painstakingly restored to its former glory, perfectly setting the scene for our upcoming show."

The JCA MA Graduates in Fashion Entrepreneurship in Design and Brand Innovation include:

• Melissa Kate - A demi-couture label that mixes themes of Hollywood Glamour, rock’n’roll and spirituality to create the look of the modern pin-up.
• Size-A - A uniquely designed label for petite women by Annabelle Barton.
• Maryam Orchid - A young luxury footwear and accessories designer who uses her Caribbean background as a muse to create a couturier aesthetic.
• Angels Wear Nada - an inclusive up-cycled denim brand, collaborative art project and experimental event space founded by Noon Khouri
• Sophie Park - a plant based, designer footwear brand bringing a range of innovative designs and ideas to the market.