For SS26, Baum und Pferdgarten trotted into a working stable with a derby-inspired collection rich in equestrian textures and playful nods to race-day styles
A runway show is a sensory experience and that includes smell. And while some brands carefully concoct scents that reflect their collections, spritzing or diffusing the fragrance into the air, for Baum und Pferdgarten’s spring/summer '26 show, that wasn’t necessary. And that’s because, the derby and horse-inspired collection was presented in a working stable. “Last summer we were at a sports stadium, and that was also very much inspired by the theme,” says Rikke Baumgarten speaking of the brand’s spring/summer '25 show. “But taking it into the stables area is a bit more rough, much more sporty, much more horse feeling. And the smell, as well.” Indeed, as guests entered, they were met with the faint whiff of hay and a few handsome horses posing for photos.
Brand founders Baumgarten and Helle Hestehave, meanwhile, landed on the theme not in the stables (though Hestehave is a longtime horse girl) or whilst watching a derby, but at Salone del Mobile in Milan a couple of years ago. The duo came across an exhibition about the horse equipment used for derby; the sturdy leather boots, the silk jockey jackets, the gorgeously realised saddles. “It was so colourful and so beautiful – the mix of leather, silk and wool,” says Hestehave. It was the sumptuous mix of materials, lovingly crafted into these beautiful function-forward items that laid the groundwork for this collection.
While the location takes the inspiration quite literally, the clothing does not. A sporty striped track jacket, for instance, rendered in muted purple and met with matching shorts, is more Copenhagen cool girl than day at the races. Elsewhere, sturdy A-line midi skirts with herringbone panels and faux suede rider jackets recall the sumptuous textures favoured by equestrians. Also on display, looks inspired not by jockeys but the colourful guests who turn up to clink champagne glasses and take in the action. Feminine frocks with tiny ruffles running along the neckline harken to a horse-adjacent Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman (you know the scene). “For us, it’s trying to make a new version of it, so it’s not a copy of a woman at a horse show,” says Baumgarten. Also illustrating a more abstract take of something specific, the ruffled appliqués in white applied to simple t-shirt dresses, recalling a show ribbon.
Lately, Baum und Pferdgarten shows have favoured a sort of magpie, more-is-more styling, leaning on power-clashing prints and intricate layering. This season, however, they opted for more straightforward looks, allowing the garments and their love of tailoring to shine through. And if that isn’t blue ribbon-worthy, I don’t know what is.
See all the looks from Baum und Pferdgarten's SS26 collection below.
