Rotate’s AW25 collection redefined Copencore with eclectic layering, bold textures, and effortless street style appeal.
As OG Danish influencers. Rotate founders Jeanette Madsen and Thora Valdimars had a hand in defining Copenhagen street style as we know it. Namely, that magpie mix of high and low that first dominated the blogosphere before migrating to Instagram (and it’s controversy-embroiled little cousin, TikTok). Though many designers have tried to capture the Copencore spirit on the runway, Madsen and Valdimars are uniquely qualified to nail it. For autumn/winter '25, Rotate did just that, sending looks down the runway that could have come straight from the streets outside.
But Madsen and Valdimars didn’t start by perusing throwback images of themselves and their well-dressed Danish peers. Rather, they started in the library, flipping through editorials in the likes of Vogue Italia and iD from the late ‘90s and early aughts. “They were so beautiful and so daring and it was such a creative space for everyone,” says Valdimars. “What we really loved about it was that it was so styled. You added a shirt and then a knit and then a blazer and then a little bow. You have all these details in the styling.” Total looks these were not.
That eclectic sensibility was found on the Rotate runway, where unexpected mash-ups gave way to effortlessly covetable looks. Leather moto jackets, with ruffled finishes, were paired with slim black trousers and scarves worn as hoods, slinky silk gowns were paired with big faux fur hats. Elsewhere, ladylike tea dresses with exploding skirts and sexy silk dresses tops with plunging necklines, paired with leggings. Models, who walked a runway centred around giant speakers blaring a live set by the DJ Tarzsa, said wore thick wool socks with ladylike patent platform heels – a styling hack that deserves its own post on main.
But the standout was the parade of faux fur coats, arguably the street style item du jour (I spotted several on attendees sitting in the front row). Rotate’s, which are deliciously oversized, aren’t in candy colours, but natural browns and rich burgundies. The cast of mostly-Danish cool girls looked ready to head straight from the runway to the afterparty. Madsen summed up the allure of the aesthetic best: “Everybody wants to look like a Scandinavian girl.”
See the full Rotate Birger Christensen autumn/winter '25 collection below.
