Miami Swim Week The Shows: 6 Emerging names that lit up Miami’s runways

Over the course of May 29 to June 2, Miami was inundated with a slew of swimwear-related events, shows and parties, bringing to the city a vast array of established and emerging brands. One of these collective events was Miami Swim Week The Shows, an event owned and managed by the DCSW group.

This year, the occasion played host to over 60 runways, many of which were hosted by emerging labels that, for the most part, were making their swim week debut. As such, the platform serves an important role in providing these young brands with the opportunity to speak to a new crowd. Here are some that contributed to both MSW’s missions of sustainability and diversity.

Kené Kaya, Peru

Incorporating ancestral Peruvian techniques into its designs is at the core of contemporary fashion brand Kené Kaya. The label, which works with a collective of women artisans from the Shipibo-Konibo tribe of the Peruvian Amazon, hopes to reclaim traditional indigenous techniques, for which the artwork acts as both a method of healing and generating income during times of hardship. The term Kené refers to the geometric patterns embroidered into every garment by the brand, with many of these distinct shapes unique to each artisan and reflecting the fauna of the Amazon.

For Kené Kaya founder Alessandra Durand, who descends from Peru herself, support of these individuals has gone far beyond simply working with them on clothing collections. The brand has supported the local community through Covid-19 relief funds and donations to the Bilingual Shipibo-Konibo Elementary School. A similarly personal perspective also runs deep into Durand’s production, which, when she was asked about, she said: “I have a personal relationship with every point of my supply chain and seek to collaborate and work with talented women from underserved communities. In my country, there is too much talent trapped in poverty, and I look to not only provide avenues of economic empowerment but also highlight their remarkable work on a global scale.”

For Durand, Miami Swim Week provided her with the perfect opportunity to debut into the swimwear market, having previously stuck to resort wear in past collections. This presented a challenge in the form of incorporating the embroidered textile art into swim pieces, alongside a selection of additional resort wear. “I wanted the opportunity to create other mediums of pieces that share [the artisans’] heritage art forms and create access and agency for talented artists whose work would otherwise be limited to the streets of Lima [where artisans have settled in a diasporic community, ed.],” Durand told FashionUnited.

Salpica, Puerto Rico

“Salpica is focused on female empowerment, sustainability and quality,” designer and founder Marly Cortes emphasised when describing the heart of the brand. Defined as “eco-conscious playa wear”, Salpica’s ecocentric values are rooted in its production process, for which the design is based in Puerto Rico while creation takes place in Bali. Here, the brand incorporates materials made from recycled ocean plastics in what Cortes says in an “effort to reduce waste”, a mission that is further reflected in the designer’s decision to stick to limited quantities in a bid to avoid overproduction.

This mindset further carries into Salpica’s hero product, the 4-in-1 swim, which has been a staple of the brand since its launch. The “one-piece, multiple options” can be worn, as the name suggests, in a variety of ways, with both shape and colour entirely adjustable depending on the needs of the wearer. In fact, colour and print are also a crucial element of Cortes values. “Our prints are designed in-house every season,” she explained. “We found inspiration mainly from nature and island living, making our designs very bold and fresh.”

Humans, the US

The concept for unisex brand Humans came to designer Troy Sylvester in the midst of the pandemic, and has since become a mainstay in his home city of Los Angeles. Having previously exhibited on the Miami Swim Week runway, this year Sylvester returned to the limelight, bringing forward a selection of both swimwear, ready-to-wear and eveningwear looks that encapsulated the curated yet still wide reaching expanse of Humans’ offering. It was also an opportunity for Sylvester to once again emphasise the inclusive values he holds close to the heart of the brand.

The company in itself functions close-to-home, an important aspect of what makes Humans human, according to the young designer. The entire line is hand sewn, dyed and embroidered in LA, where Sylvester has formed long-term bonds with his production line. On this process, Sylvester said: “We’ve worked with this production company for three years, and it truly feels like a family. It’s rewarding to work alongside a team of people who genuinely care about the brand's best interest.”

Mars the Label, the UK

Arianna Ajtar’s mission of bolstering the confidence of women was the driver behind the launch of her brand, Mars the Label. Her collections, spanning swimwear, dresses, loungewear and accessories, cater to “women of all shapes and sizes with an eclectic array of offerings” and have helped her to expand her business across the globe, from the US to Australia. Atjar’s focus on “functional glamour” has further helped her garner a notable fan base of internet and TV personalities among her consumers, including Mary Bedford, Sophie Kasaei and Chloe Burrows.

To show in Miami, however, has been on Ajtar’s ‘to do list’ since founding the brand from her parent’s home. “I’ve worked towards debuting for so long, that by the time we were ready as a brand, the pandemic had hit and borders were shut,” she explained ahead of the brand’s Miami debut. “However, this time allowed us to prepare and make a serious impact on the US swim scene. Miami is the ‘home’ of all things swim so it aligns perfectly with Mars the Label. Although we cover a wide range of clothes options, swimwear is our bread and butter.”

HeartGlass, the US

HeartGlass was founded on the basis of addressing the very real need for swimwear and shapewear that caters to women with specific body shapes. As such, the brand said it was one of the first to offer one-piece garments for different top, bottom and waist sizes, a concept that continues to be central to the brand. Its neutral colourways also help in giving each product the dual ability of serving as solely a shapewear piece or as swimwear, the latter being supported by a number of special features, such as being chlorine resistant and blocking out UVA and UVB rays.

Founder and designer Demi George sees HeartGlass as a tool of empowerment for women of different shapes and sizes, as evidenced by her approach to her Miami Swim Week show, where indeed there was a diverse selection of individuals modelling the brand’s looks. George herself also debuted on the runway sporting one of her swimsuits, a move she said came with support from the models she had personally selected. She added: “I only want to work with people that truly want to support me and the other designers. I told myself I had no choice but to do the show. I figured out how to get everything done, from getting sponsors to expanding into new styles, really pushing it to the limit and believing in myself.”

Omray Swimwear, Australia

Omray Kupeli initially launched what is now known as Omray under the name Little Croissants Swim, however, as the vision for the brand evolved, the designer opted to undergo a rebrand to “establish a deeper connection to our roots”. Kupeli set out to embrace a new perspective that aimed to push boundaries in the swimwear realm, through timeless designs that evoke eras of fashion’s past for a new audience. As such, many of the brand's products merge Australian aesthetic with inspiration from Parisian style, as seen in the use of colours some of which Kupeli said draw on Yves Saint Laurent’s time in Morocco’s Jardin Majorelle back in the 80s.

Thoughtful design also extends into Omray’s production process, which takes place in Bali at a woman-led factory. Here, the brand utilises “100 percent sustainable Italian Carvico vita fabric” to create its looks, incorporating Econyl nylon and Xtra Life Lycra or recycled Repreve Nylon. Next to its swimwear collections, Renaissance and Mesdames, Omray also recently launched its first Resort wear line, Osmose, bringing to its overall offering dresses, oversized shirts and flared pants.