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The Interview: Rixo's Henrietta Rix on its AW23 collection and LFW show

Tom Shearsmith
23 February 2023

Rixo took to London Fashion Week on Monday, presenting the AW23 collection entitled 'Goddess of the Nile'. The event, which took place at London's St Pancras Hotel, saw the womenswear business take a new direction and offer a catwalk-presentation hybrid to members of the press.

Hot off the heels of LFW, Rixo's Co-founder Henrietta Rix tells TheIndustry.fashion about the new collection, its design inspiration, the change in LFW show format, and future plans for the business.

How would you describe the new collection? It’s described as ‘Goddess of the Nile’, but what does that mean or reference?

The Goddess of The Nile is a reference to the Ancient Egyptian influences that run throughout the collection. Orlagh is a massive Art-Deco fan and alongside our design team did extensive research onto the different techniques, materials (everything from metal to ceramics) and styles of ancient Egyptian times. The collection itself is really elevated and glamorous, hence ‘Goddess’!

Is there a particular source of inspiration for the cuts or prints this season?

Rixo is always inspired by vintage and the shapes in this collection have lots of 80s glam references (and of course inspired our muse, Kate Moss). There are a few key print stories that make up the collection but one that really stands out is ‘Topaz Dream’, a Rixo take on ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphics hand-painted by Orlagh. There’s also a gorgeous woodblock print ‘Klimpt Stamp’, inspired by a vintage jewellery box sourced in Portobello Market, which is one of my favourite prints in the collection.

How was it to step away from a presentation to a catwalk and presentation hybrid? Did you face any challenges, nerves or was it just pure excitement?

We loved debuting this new format and it worked so well for such an opulent collection. The stage the models wear presented on was a traditional catwalk & it allowed us to shoot & video the girls on a catwalk. Of course, there’s always nerves before LFW, but these are mainly excitement!

How has the response been to the collection and the show?

Better than we could have expected! It’s so great to see so many international press and buyers at our LFW shows and it was lovely to hear they noticed how elevated this collection was. The room was packed so we’re glad everyone came along - including TheIndustry.fashion.

Diversity has always been key for you, and the show at LFW was no difference. Why is it so important to showcase diversity at Rixo?

It’s important to showcase diversity consistently because we want anyone to feel they can be a #HumansOfRixo. We retail to a size UK 24, with lots of work happening in the background to be even more inclusive, so it’s imperative for us to represent a range of sizes in our presentation.

Do you have any particular favourites from the collection’s pieces or gowns?

It's tricky but I'd say a few standout pieces for me are the Samira Gown and Perrie Mini Dress.

The new store at King’s Road is coming soon, will we see this new collection there? What can you tell us, if anything?

Yes! This collection will be in there from September 2023. We’re so excited to open the doors to our flagship on the King’s Road in April; there will be all our RTW collections in addition to a bridal boutique and true vintage edit handpicked by Orlagh and myself.

There are a few more exciting things happening but they’re under wraps for now!

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