Lynne Larson opened the show with her Grecian looks and knits that show promise of being very commercially viable. Fluid silhouettes intermixed with structured looks make this line interesting enough to be on the list for retail buyers to view.

Octopi aimed for high fashion with its hobble skirts and cute boleros. Unfortunately, the silhouettes were “soooo last season” that it failed to capture the imagination of the fashion press.

It’s not to say that the collection was not good. It showed a lot of promise. But, in fashion, as we say in the vernacular, “you have to be ON it.” Sending hobble skirts on the runway, which we are seeing in store shelves already, take away a lot from this otherwise good looking collection.

Sacque Suit by Thomas Cunningham, one of the two menswear designers who presented suffered the same fate as Octopi as the suits and jackets shown were already considered staples.

Menswear in general is ‘harder’ to break into than womenswear because the innovations are so subtle. It’s in the cut, the way the fabric drapes on the body, the shoulders and pockets, including the almost invisible embellishments – that make menswear standout.

Sacque Suit showed promise of being commercially viable but failed to impart any new innovations.

Borne went for French chic that it reminded the audience of Chanel. Cute, with a touch of formality, Borne should also be on the list of retail buyers to check out when they do their showroom rounds after the season.

Beckerman is avant-garde and almost theatrical. The most interesting piece was a gown made of yarn.

Martin Anderson, the second menswear designer in the group looked towards continental Europe for inspiration. References to Dior Homme by Hedi Slimae, Kim Jones, Kris Van Assche and Raf Simons were seen in all the pieces shown.

Lewis Cho played with layering and draping that made the collection interesting while Rodebjer also went for French aesthetics.