Mfpen is no longer one of Copenhagen’s hidden gems. Yes, the office remains in a space above an Irish pub, but the “at home” shopping experience (you could buy things at the studio) is no longer available. That’s because the brand opened a shiny new flagship store last year which better serves their ever expanding fan base. (LVMH’s stake in Our Legacy, whose play book Mfpen has hewed close to, bodes well for the Danish brand.)
When I asked Sigurd Bank—who once likened Mfpen to an indie band—if he’s now playing bigger “venues,” he said: “I feel the venue is the same size. It’s just harder to get a ticket and the repertoire of songs is slightly bigger. But at the same time, there are still no hit songs.” Translation: Bank is trying to maintain a low profile despite Mfpen’s expansion. At the same time, the brand’s success has spurred the designer to take some extra teeth out, which is a translation of a Danish expression relating to putting in extra effort. “It’s just going deeper; it’s becoming more and more like a ‘real’ brand,” said Bank on a call. He noted that many of the upgrades in this are more to be felt than seen as they relate to fit, fabric, and production. Yet even at a glance, it’s plain to see that the collection is tighter and Bank and team have doubled down on their formula of the clash between the classic and the countercultural.
As always, the collection was made using recycled and deadstock fabrics. For fall these included a dense and luscious wool herringbone, used for a double-breasted coat with the closures moved up just a bit. One pair of jeans had a retro stitched seam center-front on the legs. A generously cut car coat had a kind of modish flair; suiting materials were used for jackets that might more traditionally have been made using nylon or leather. In terms of surfaces, materials were brushed and treated to have an almost supply and soft suede-like touch, and there were unexpected transparencies as on patterned sweaters worn over shirts and ties and a wrap skirt and top set for women. The T-shirts printed with a face and the word “fear” referenced the “No Fear” T-shirts popular in the ’90s, and which one Reddit user described as “peak Xennial.”
