MANILA, Philippines - When the weather turned stormy on May 30, leading fashion brand Penshoppe greeted it with its own downpour of fashion and style. In an innovative fashion event that fused runway looks with real life, Penshoppe debuted its mid-year collection in “Stylescape: Manila for Philippine Fashion Week.”
The SM Mall of Asia Main Atrium was jampacked with fashionistas and style influencers, despite heavy rains and a massive traffic jam along EDSA. Friends and partners of Golden ABC, Penshoppe’s mother company, turned out in full force, as did members of the media and Manila’s foremost style icons.
Inspired by urban lifestyle, fashion, art and architecture, Stylescape: Manila broke tradition by doing away with the typical fashion show runway. Instead of a catwalk, Penshoppe’s creative team designed the ultimate urban space — an al fresco café and park, complete with benches, bicycles and greenery. Images from photography and fashion enthusiasts Oudine Santos and Jay Server also dotted the setup. To complete the look, a dramatic black-and-white skyline of Manila, with the well-known Penshoppe billboard rising amid the buildings, provided a striking backdrop.
This cool urban space was dotted with platforms on which models showed off stylish ensembles from Penshoppe’s collection. This setup allowed guests to get up close and personal to the collection, as they enjoyed pastries and drinks from The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf and Italian gelato from Dolce Gelato.
The show was met with resounding cheers as Club Pen members emerged from the skyline to open the show. Leading the fashion force were Victor Basa, Akihiro Sato, Matteo Guidicelli, JC Tiuseco, Solenn Heusaff, and Melissa Ricks, marching down the stage to the chic urban setup followed by Penshoppe’s troop of models geared in the brand’s latest collection.
True to its promise of reinventing casual wear, Penshoppe unveiled its first lineup of schoolboy-chic ensembles, featuring layering pieces such as vests, jackets and “two-fer” polos. Also chic was the more laidback collection: Neo-Grunge.
The closing segment saw models and members of Club Pen in the brand’s best-selling Denimlab line, showing off new, tailored fits that fuse comfort and sophistication. Penshoppe capped the show with a bevy of shirtless hunks in nothing but Denimlab jeans.
Penshoppe’s mid-year collection is available at all Penshoppe boutiques nationwide.