With the launch of a new TikTok Collective and the new “speed-dating”-style events it’s hosting in the four fashion capitals, TikTok aims to offer brands unique content opportunities around Fashion Month.
Since the start of Fashion Month, in New York, TikTok has been buzzing with fashion month content. Since September 7, the hashtag #TikTokFashion has garnered over 1.2 billion views.
For its part, Burberry live-streamed its catwalk from London’s Highbury Fields on TikTok, with over 160,000 people tuning in. Even though the brand has 20 million followers on Instagram, only 7,000 people watched the brand’s Instagram livestream of the show. Meanwhile, Tory Burch posted a variety TikTok content around its September 11 New York Fashion Week show. The brand posted over 70 times during the week, including day-in-the-life posts and behind-the-scenes videos from its show. Some of the videos have already amassed over 500,000 views.
Navigation, which can sometimes make Fashion Month-specific content hard to find on TikTok, has been improved for the event. TikTok launched a “Fashion Month Hub” at the start of NYFW, which users can access by searching keywords like “Fashion Month” or “Fashion Week.” The hub includes tailored tabs, including “From the Runway”, “Trending” and “Behind the Scenes,” to help users navigate different types of content.
The platform is also investing in growing its creators with the launch of the TikTok Collective, a group of 33 fashion-focused creators. “We have tried to connect our creators not just to the amazing creativity and inspiration that comes from Fashion Week and being part of that conversation, but also by getting them in front of brands,” said Vanessa Craft, global head of lifestyle & education at TikTok.
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To promote the group, the company is hosting four events in the fashion capitals of NYC, London, Milan and Paris. These networking-focused events combine meetings, panels and brand “speed-dating,” said Craft.
“The creators get five minutes with various brands and publishers to either pitch themselves or learn about what the brands are interested in,” said Craft. “These are really big names to get these creators in front of, just to offer them the opportunity to grow and make these connections and partnerships.”
The London event, which was held on September 16, brought together executives from brands including Farfetch, Isamaya Beauty and Jimmy Choo with creators like Saeedah Haque (236,000 followers) and Bernard Garby (438,000 followers).
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The creators picked for the Collective are not traditional fashion influencers. For her part, Haque is known for creating athleisure-inspired abayas and worked with Nike to design its first collection of abayas for sportswear. She is outspoken about the lack of inclusivity in the industry, most recently using her platform to call out the lack of inclusivity at the Vogue World event on September 14.
Meanwhile, Garby posts fashion news and dissects key news pieces like the Balmain collection theft and the departure of creative director McQueen’s Sarah Burton. His quick takes through “coffee chat-style” videos have attracted a niche, but engaged community.
“We see how engaged luxury [brands] are with TikTok,” said Craft. “They want to speak to the creators directly. This has shifted in the industry, in general. Luxury brands are seeing the excitement of their followers around creator content. If they just give creators the reins and let them tell the story in their own way, that is what is going to build engagement, success and a huge community on TikTok.”
At TikTok’s “speed-dating” event in Milan, Versace, Gucci and Ferragamo are set to attend.
This season, TikTok is an official sponsor of two out of the four big fashion weeks: Milan and Paris.
