Topshop to relaunch with a catwalk on London’s Trafalgar Square

Once a high street titan, Topshop is staging its long awaited comeback. On Saturday, August 16th, London’s Trafalgar Square will be transformed into a sprawling, open-air catwalk and street party in what might be the most public fashion spectacle the capital has seen in a while. The occasion? A relaunch of Topshop.com and a strategic effort to reestablish the brand’s position within today’s increasingly segmented fashion market.

After a turbulent few years, marked by the collapse of Arcadia Group in 2020 and Topshop’s subsequent acquisition by ASOS for 295 million pounds, the brand has lacked a physical presence and, arguably, a point of view. But this month’s carefully staged public event signals a clear shift in strategy, moving from online convenience to reconnecting with culture on the ground. And what better place to mark that return than Trafalgar Square, long a stage for protests, celebrations, and now, fashion.

From a nostalgic throwback, the Autumn Winter 2025 collection, debuting in a See Now, Buy Now format, positions itself as contemporary, wearable, and, critically, visible. For Topshop, this is not about couture posturing but reconnecting with a generation of shoppers who once queued outside its Oxford Circus flagship. That store, shuttered since 2021, is now occupied by Ikea.

In a statement, Topshop said its AW25 womenswear collection leans heavily into structured tailoring, oversized outerwear, statement dresses, and, predictably, denim. Denim, once Topshop’s cash cow via its famed Joni and Jamie jeans, returns in new cuts, perhaps hoping to recapture a fraction of its former dominance. On the menswear side, Topman touts “modern utility,” a blend of sharp silhouettes, updated suiting, and rugged indigo denim. It’s a safe but shrewd move: contemporary, with mass appeal.

Culture as capital

What makes this moment less about product and more about presence is the casting of London itself as co-star. Notting Hill Carnival sound system Good Times, helmed by Norman Jay MBE and Melvo Baptiste, will provide the soundtrack. Further partnerships, from Wilhelmina Models’ open casting of London’s new faces, to Charlotte Tilbury makeup directed by Sofia Tilbury, to cocktails by MOTH and delivery support by InPost, underscore a coordinated ecosystem of brand touchpoints. It’s a mood board of modern British cool, but with logistics.

If the goal is visibility, Topshop is playing it smart. By going direct-to-consumer in the literal sense, no velvet rope, no ticketed exclusivity, it bypasses the traditional fashion week circuit and appeals directly to the street-level audience that once made the brand relevant. It’s part of a broader trend, like Jacquemus’ open-to-public shows or Pharrell’s Vuitton parades. More fashion as festival than closed showroom open to industry only.

Still, questions remain. Can a brand born in the age of mass retail adapt to an era of micro-communities, resale economies, and Gen Z's fragmented aesthetic codes? Will physical spectacle translate into digital loyalty and sales? Only time will tell.