Official model diversity statistics for Copenhagen Fashion Week haven’t been reported for over a year now, but the autumn/winter 2023 shows included 7.39% plus and mid-sized models, a figure that is believed to have been improved on for 2024.

“Only having size 0 models is no longer sustainable or realistic,” says Stephanie Gundelach and Awa Malina Stelter, founders of OpéraSport, who opened Copenhagen Fashion Week on Monday. “We strive to have women from all backgrounds and body types, as inclusion is vital to us as a brand. We want everyone to feel included, therefore the main aim of ours is to make sure every kind of woman is represented in our shows,” they add.

After sitting front row at the show, we certainly have to commend them on their casting, which included some new-to-modelling faces including fashion features editor April Ru Wan. “I’m Chinese, and I grew up in a culture where my body type was not celebrated,” says Wan. “People used to say that to work in fashion I should be skinny to wear pretty clothes. I’m not skinny, and I have now modelled; I do wear pretty clothes, so those people definitely gave me the wrong impression of beauty standards growing up,” she adds, noting how the industry is certainly shifting, although she stresses there’s still plenty space for improvement.

In an attempt to drive this improvement, Copenhagen Fashion Week has a diversity and inclusion clause in its requirements for any brands taking part in the event. “Brands must recognise that diversity covers aspects such as gender, age, cultural background, nationality, ethnicity, physical/mental abilities, political and religious belief and sexual orientation,” says the Copenhagen Fashion Week website, emphasising that this goes for both model casting and those assisting backstage. Although, despite Copenhagen Fashion Week being one of the most inclusive fashion weeks, ultimately “it comes down to the individual designers and if they themselves would like to implement more diversity”, says Gundelach.

Copenhagen Fashion Week gives a lesson in model casting