Young Turkish Designers Making Waves on the International Stage

This article features young Turkish designers who have made a name for themselves on the runways of London, Paris and Moscow. We have also compiled, with sources, the pioneering names who paved the way for them.

In recent years, Turkish fashion has often made its loudest statement from outside Istanbul. That voice comes from the runways of London, Paris and Moscow. In this article, we have compiled Turkish and Turkish-origin designers who made a name for themselves on the international stage in 2025 and 2026. We have also included the pioneers who paved their way. The source for every piece of information is listed at the end of the article.

First, a note: where is Fashion Week Istanbul?

We originally wanted to build this article around “the latest season of Fashion Week Istanbul”. However, we were unable to verify a current season in official sources. According to the page of the Istanbul Apparel Exporters’ Association (IHKIB), the event runs for two seasons a year, with more than 20 designers taking part each season. The official website, fashionweek.istanbul, however, still shows content from the 2021-2022 period.

The most recent detailed reports we could find relate to the digital season in April 2021. FashionUnited wrote that the event was a virtual format. It ran for four days, with around 30 designers taking part. TextilWirtschaft also covered the digital season held on 13-16 April. The publication listed names such as Dice Kayek, Çiğdem Akın, Özlem Süer, Hakaan Yıldırım and Zeynep Tosun. Meanwhile, a digital strategy specification document from IHKIB refers to a season dated 11-14 October 2022.

However, we could find no official season calendar or designer list from after that date. If a new season is announced, we will update this page. For current international dates, you can also check our Fashion Week Calendar 2026–2027 page. In the meantime, we are turning our focus to the achievements of Turkish designers abroad that can be verified with sources.

The new generation: standouts of 2025-2026

Dilara Fındıkoğlu: London’s gothic voice

The designer was born in Istanbul. A Central Saint Martins graduate, she is the most talked-about Turkish designer of the past two years. She won the Vanguard Award at The Fashion Awards 2025. It was the first time the award had been presented. The ceremony took place on 1 December 2025 at the Royal Albert Hall in London. Wallpaper and W Magazine described the award as a new category spotlighting rising talent. What’s more, the designer had also been nominated at the same awards in 2024.

At London Fashion Week in February 2026 (19-23 February), she showed her collection “Cage of Innocence”. The show took place at Ironmongers’ Hall in the City of London. According to TBMag’s review, the collection spoke of the lines that confine women within codes of “innocence” and “purity”, and also of the escape from those lines. The runway featured torn white dresses, corsets and headpieces made of metal trinkets from Istanbul’s bazaars. According to the same article, the brand is working on new bag designs and is planning a broader ready-to-wear line. There are also plans for stores in London, Paris and Venice.

Tayfun Kaba: a first ready-to-wear collection in Paris

According to reports by NTV and Posta, Tayfun Kaba presented his first ready-to-wear collection. He did so during Paris Fashion Week, held on 2-10 March 2026. The show was opened by singer Zeynep Bastık. Posta reported that Kaba described the singer as one of the strongest voices of the young generation in Turkey. The show is a fresh example of Turkish designers’ boldness in staging their own shows in Paris.

Neslişah Yılmaz and Barrus: from Anatolia to London

The designer founded the Barrus label in 2015. After studying textile and fashion design, she completed a master’s degree in nanotechnology design. According to a Daily Sabah report, on 19 September 2026 she showed her collection “The Anatolian Garden – Anadolu Bahçesi”. She did so as part of Fashion Britain during London Fashion Week. In the collection, the designer interpreted Anatolia not through traditional motifs but as an “endless garden” shaped by many civilisations. Structured corsets met fluid fabrics, floral appliqués and handcraft. She also announced that she would donate the sales proceeds of the opening look to the Educational Volunteers Foundation of Turkey (TEGV).

Emre Erdemoğlu: “No Apologies” in Moscow

According to Türkiye Today, the designer showed his autumn/winter 2026 collection, “No Apologies”, on 17 March 2026. The show was part of Moscow Fashion Week, in which around 300 designers took part. Sharp tailoring, strong shoulders, leather textures and metallic details stood out, combined with a palette of black, red and off-white. The designer dedicated the collection to people who are often described as “too much”.

The trailblazers: established names in London and Paris

Bora Aksu

Turkish-born Bora Aksu studied at Central Saint Martins. He has been on the London Fashion Week schedule ever since his graduate collection in 2003. According to TBMag, the designer sources handmade lace, needle lace and crochet from Turkey every season. In his February 2026 collection, for example, floaty silhouettes, layered fabrics and pastel and cream tones stood out. Ultimately, a remark by Aksu in the same article sums up the power of Turkish handcrafts: in his view, every household in Turkey has someone who has mastered handwork.

ERDEM (Erdem Moralıoğlu)

The designer was born in Montreal to a Turkish father and an English mother. He studied at the Royal College of Art and founded his label ERDEM in 2005. He is known above all for archive-inspired printed fabrics and delicate tailoring. His references to women scientists, poets and artists from history also stand out. What’s more, he kept his place on the London schedule in February 2026.

Dilek Hanif and Dice Kayek

In 2004, Dilek Hanif became the first Turkish designer to show a collection at Paris Haute Couture Week. This information appears in a round-up published by IFCO, IHKIB’s trade fair. According to the same source, Dice Kayek was among the first Turkish brands to join the official Paris Fashion Week calendar. The brand was founded by sisters Ece and Ayşe Ege.

4 lessons from these stories

Education opens doors: Fındıkoğlu and Aksu come from Central Saint Martins, Erdem from the Royal College of Art.
Local craft is an advantage: Aksu’s Turkish lace, Fındıkoğlu’s bazaar metals and Barrus’s take on Anatolia give them a distinctive language, one that appeals to international juries.
There is no single centre: London, Paris and Moscow are different doors. Each designer chooses the city best suited to their audience.
Turkey is missing a showcase: If the official fashion week calendar is not kept up to date, young designers’ visibility at home diminishes. That is why we at Fresh Models Magazin will regularly report on Turkish designers’ shows to help fill this gap.

Are you a designer or a fashion student? Send your collection and show details to [email protected]; our stories, published through editorial selection, are free of charge.

Doors opening onto the international stage for young Turkish designers

The common thread in these stories is clear. International visibility often comes with a strong education. It also takes a brand identity built with patience. A place on the official calendars of the major fashion capitals matters too. You can follow the young designer programmes of the organisation behind London Fashion Week on the British Fashion Council’s official website.

Alongside young Turkish designers, Turkish models rising on international runways are also drawing attention. We tell their stories in our New Faces feature.

Sources

Image: A sewing machine in a fashion workshop (representative image) — Cristian Ilie, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0