Your handy guide to contemporary Belgian fashion and where to find it

Raf Simons may no longer be at the helm at Dior, but that doesn’t mean Belgian fashion is going out of style. Young labels from both sides of the language border are conquering the country and beyond, one bias-cut dress at a time. 

You can’t spell Belgian fashion without the A of Antwerp, as the city’s Royal Academy has spawned some of our greatest designers. Two of the Antwerp Six have flagship stores in the area surrounding their alma mater: Ann Demeulemeester (Leopold de Waelplaats) and Dries Van Noten (16 Nationalestraat). Other hotspots nearby include the militaristic-meets-minimal shop of AF Vandevorst (20 Lombardenvest) and Louis (2 Lombardenvest), a multi-brand boutique that sells Demeulemeester and Simons alongside Lanvin and Balenciaga.

In recent years, younger students of the academy have followed in the footsteps of the Six and set up shop. Wim Bruynooghe started his eponymous label right after graduation in 2013 and opened a flagship store (73 Frankrijklei) in spring 2015. “Although a store requires proper investment, it seemed like the perfect platform to showcase my work,” he says. The gamble clearly paid off, as the designer from Bruges made it to Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list for European creatives.

Bruynooghe and his partner, Laur Dillen Storms, dubbed their office building Wonderburo and now share the space with several other bright young things. Above the store, you’ll find the studios of Korean-born, Antwerp-bred Minju Kim, who sells her cartoony creations online, and Brussels native Christian Wijnants, who recently opened an elegant flagship store in the city centre (36 Steenhouwersvest) and a webshop to boot.

On or offline?

You might think that all it takes to make it in today’s fashion world is your own e-store, but not every designer agrees. According to Bruynooghe, a digital outlet stood in the way of his brand philosophy. “For a while we also sold online, but not anymore,” he says. “Not because sales were disappointing, but because I prefer to have personal contact with my clients.”

For Michael Wauman and Nathan Murillo, alumni of the academy of Sint-Niklaas and founders of streetwear label O’Rèn, a webshop was the way to go right from the start. Their affordable T-shirts and sweaters, adorned with slogans like Belgique Belchique and Momma’s Boy, are a hit on Instagram and popular among fashion bloggers and other virtual influencers.

Fellow Sint-Niklaas graduate Ilke Cop sees the value of teaming up with existing stores, both on and offline. “My circus-inspired spring/summer collection is currently sold at Comme les Belges and Harvest Club (20 Everdijstraat, Antwerp), two retail concepts with clear visions that match mine,” she says. “The former only sells local brands, while the latter focuses on fair-trade and sustainable fashion.”

Probably the most ardent supporter of Belgian fashion in the digital arena is German-Czech iconoclast Frederick Hornof. The name of his Antwerp-based label Hornof.tv doubles as the URL for an interactive online platform. “It was important to me to find a new approach to fashion and retail, so I created eleven short videos to showcase my first collection,” he explains. “Instead of producing dead stock, I work on-demand only through pre-orders, though I haven’t ruled out the idea of selling in physical stores in the future.”

If you prefer seeing actual shop windows to basking in the light of your laptop screen, Brussels also has plenty to offer. Stijl (74 Rue Antoine Dansaert and 6 Place du Nouveau Marché aux Grains) hosts all the big names, from Van Noten and Simons to Veronique Branquinho and Tim Van Steenbergen. Icon next door is slightly hipper, with colourful labels such as Haus Coudeyre and celebrity favourite Filles à Papa.

Hunting and Collecting (17 Rue des Chartreux) is the only shop in Belgium that sells Mosaert, the collection of national icon Stromae and his wife, Coralie, and at department store Smets (650 Chaussée de Louvain) you’ll find Cédric Charlier, a graduate of Brussels fashion school La Cambre, and Vetements, a cult Parisian label presided over by Antwerp alumnus and recently appointed Balenciaga bigshot Demna Gvasalia.

Instead of ending your shopping spree at the Brussels Ring, head further south. Not many foreigners know that Liège is Wallonia’s Antwerp when it comes to fashion: it has its own fashion academy (HELMo Mode) and is the birthplace of many a successful designer, from milliner Elvis Pompilio to Carol and Sarah Piron of Filles à Papa. Must-stop shop Irina Khä (12 Rue du Pot d’Or) stocks the latter as well as HELMo graduate Jean-Paul Lespagnard and numerous other local and international brands.

Neighbouring shoe store Juliette Verlaine (18 Rue du Pot d’Or) is one of the oldest boutiques in town and sells the coveted boots of Antwerp duo AF Vandevorst. Which brings us full circle and goes to show that the Flemish and Walloons can at least agree on one thing: Belgian fashion is something to be proud of.

This article first appeared in The Bulletin Best of Belgium 2016