New York Fashion Week returns to the city on September 8. With less than a month to go, Laurie DeJong’s production team, a group of more than 100, is busy bouncing between the two central venues for fashion week in preparation.
Over seven days, LDJ productions will coordinate 65 fashion week shows. Once everything is in place, “all the designer has to do is walk in the door with their show producer,” said DeJong. For some shows, that designer’s producer works for LDJ Productions. “It’s a super busy time for us,” she added.
We asked DeJong to share a glimpse into fashion week preparation through the lens of her company and personal Instagram accounts. Here’s a behind-the-scenes look at the meetings, the runway-side sessions and the pre-work-day yoga that make it all hum.
Meeting with the mayor
“We’re in the very unglamorous stage right now,” said De Jong. “We go from meeting to meeting. Right now, we’re in process of the meeting with the [New York City] mayor’s office, because Manhattan is filled with construction. We need to clear the roads for about 400 to 500 trucks to file in.”
Since New York Fashion Week no longer takes place at a central tent, the main venues vary each year, so every year they have to start over from scratch. “We start each season looking at last year, what worked, what didn’t, and what needs to change. Then we move on.”
Pre-fashion week walkthroughs
“It’s the NYC agency walkthrough for Fashion Week,” said DeJong. “The walkthrough took place at Skylight at Moynihan Station with all the agencies that make the week possible: DOT, Permitting, Security and Special Events.”
Working with IMG, LDJ Productions acts as a conduit at the central locations for each designer by setting up lighting, staging, security, and event coordination for the fashion week.
Here we go again! Walkthrus with NYC agencies today. #newyorkfashionweek #nyfwss2017 #ldjlife
A photo posted by Laurie DeJong (@ldjlaurie) on
Solving problems on the runway
“Here, we were sitting in the runway of our biggest venue trying to solve a problem,” said DeJong.
At issue: Shows taking place at the Moynihan Station were on top of a 100-year-old floor of a former mail-sorting room, which is uneven. DeJong’s team has to clean the runway between each show.
“It has to be perfect. We have tight close-up shots, and millions of people are watching it through a live stream. The designers also count on these photos and videos from the shows to use all year long. It’s not for people who can’t think on their feet — it’s high stress.”
Team yoga
Here’s what is referred to as “LDJ Yoga.” Work-life balance is prioritized at LDJ. Here we are de-stressing before the craze of Fashion Week planning begins,” said DeJong. “But, we continue to do it during, after, and for all events year round. It shows the importance of taking time to exhale and refocus. Then, we move onward.”
“Unplugged” with the LDJ Girlz #exhale #ldjlife #ldjeast #yoga #namaste🙏
A photo posted by Laurie DeJong (@ldjlaurie) on
The Paper Fig Foundation
DeJong and her team take a week out of the month of August to meet with female fashion designers in Uganda and Rwanda as part of the company’s charity foundation, The Paper Fig.
“We help produce shows over there, and then invite designers to shadow us in New York,” said DeJong. “We like to think of it as eyes all over the world. It’s bigger than one week.”
