Berlin kicks off fashion week with look toward next summer's trends

Berlin Fashion Week visitors set their sights on vertically striped shirt dresses, airy wrap blouses and platform sneakers on Tuesday, as the four-day event kicked off in the German capital with Dutch designer Erik Frenken's collection for Avelon.

In addition to runway shows, Berlin Fashion Week features trade exhibitions, parties, salon talks and model competitions, with a list of designers including Guido Maria Kretschmer, Michael Michalsky, Ewa Herzog, Rene Storck, Dorothee Schumacher and Anja Gockel.

European online retailer Zalando announced with a party on Monday that it was entering the trade fair business with its takeover of the insolvent Bread & Butter streetwear expo. The Bread & Butter trade event, once a huge to-do at Berlin's old Tempelhof airport, will be a bit smaller and open to the public under Zalando, with brands such as Adidas and Converse signed on for the event planned for September at the Berlin Arena.

Since 2007, Berlin Fashion Week has taken place twice a year. Due to the Euro 2016 game-watching are set up along the road leading to Brandenburg Gate this year, the main exhibitions are set up in an ice-skating stadium in Berlin's north-western Wedding neighborhood.

About 200,000 people are expected to attend, according to Berlin's finance department, with an audience consisting mostly of fashion professionals, including buyers, designers and fashion journalists.