Exclusive: BTS at Jade Cropper, one of CPHFW’s most talked about shows

“You’re working day and night for so long, and then it’s over in, like, 15 minutes,” Jade Cropper tells me a few days after her spring/summer 2023 presentation at Copenhagen Fashion Week. Still, it was an impactful 15 minutes. Set under a massive tent on the roof of a car park in the centre of the city, Cropper’s sexy, slinky presentation, set to the pulsing tunes of Missy Elliot and M.I.A., was one of the most talked about outings of the week.

Though this was only Cropper’s second show, everything operated like a well-oiled machine and the vibe backstage was calm and collected (aside from the designer herself, who admittedly does not handle stress very well). This was due in no small part to her team – a small production this was not. “Everything went so smoothly,” she says. “This time I had people around me that I trust.” This included stylist and close friend Hilda Sandström, who ensured every tie and hook was fastened just so.

Moments before models took the runway, Cropper instructed them to walk very “powerfully” and “almost angry”. “Sexy but powerful,” she adds, also noting that choreographer Naomi Matzeu handled the specifics of the walks and the timing.

When it comes to casting, the designer emphasises including “different types of women”. However, next season she hopes to take this notion even further. “One thing I want to include more of is more body types,” she admits. “It’s a struggle when I’m doing everything myself and fitting the clothes on myself.” For Cropper, the most important thing is that the models are feeling themselves in their looks before they hit the catwalk.

The first thing Cropper did when the show was over? “I was hugging my family,” she says.