Forza Collective's SS26 show at Nikolaj Kunsthal distilled the brand’s essence into effortless dresses, razor-sharp suiting, and a femme fatale edge – designed for real life, with just the right dose of drama
The simple yet considered white slip dress that opened Forza Collective’s spring/summer '26 show, which took place this afternoon under the soaring church ceiling of Nikolaj Kunsthal, says it all. “It does everything I want a dress to do,” says designer Kristoffer Kongshaug. “You can wear it at a cocktail party, you can wear it at an event, you can wear it at work if you want to. It’s not too much.” Rendered in lightweight crape, the spaghetti strap dress, with its gentle cowl draping, is straightforward yet specific – everything we know Forza Collective to be.
“This is our fourth collection, so we’re now at a point where I can go back and look at the brand DNA and expand on what is really working well for us,” says Kongshaug. Specifically, as he puts it, “dresses, draping, power suiting, gowns”. Like that opening look, many pieces are designed for real life, begging to be styled and adapted to suit several occasions.
Take, for instance, those aforementioned power suits, most notably a waist-cinching one-buttoned blazer (“This blazer is magnificent,” says Kongshaug, proudly), paired with deconstructed trousers (a flourish introduced last season), defined by their pleasantly unusual draping along the back. The blazer, which here is met with an extended-collared shirt and tie, could easily be worn with a good pair of jeans, whilst the pants, with their signature silhouette, would look at home with a simple t-shirt or tank top. Elsewhere, a high draped collar – another emerging Forza signature – is applied to a simple crepe dress with a handkerchief hem, its open back making it appropriate for a swanky event or – with a shirt underneath – undeniably office appropriate.
While Kongshaug isn’t big on themes, the blunt-bang bob wigs worn by most of the models gave the collection a certain '90s femme fatale bent. “I wanted to make it a little bit gritty,” he says, noting that both Annie Lennox and Julia Roberts from Pretty Women appeared on the moodboard this season. The don’t-mess-with-me 'do gives even those ultra femme ballgowns – the pretty pink mesh number with the brand’s signature cut-out bra cups, most notably – a bit of edge. The throbbing soundtrack’s fitting refrain said it all: 'Money, Success, Fame, Glamour' (some may recognise the track from the early aughts cult film Party Monster).
But the look that got all the iPhones recording was the floor-sweeping, white gown, with its dramatic dropped waist, a necktie sitting on the second-skin transparent top to cover the chest just so (still, it’s not exactly suitable for work). Yes, Forza may be focusing on practical clothes for all aspects of a power woman’s life, but that isn’t to say she doesn’t need to bring the drama from time to time.
See all the looks from Forza Collective's SS26 collection below.
