Stel Copenhagen Spring 2025 Collection

At the launch of Astrid Andersen’s new line Stel, a presentation held outside on a pier, The Street’s 2002 song ‘Turn the Page’ blasted from the sound system. It was a symbolic moment in a row, as the London-trained designer begins a new chapter in her fashion life, this time where the work revolves around herself.

Andersen’s much-admired eponymous menswear brand was focused, colorful and streetwise. With Stel, she explained in a pre-show interview: “I have to sit comfortably in the middle of it; Maybe even more so this time because it’s now a women’s clothing brand, and it’s really more about me and my personal references.” Couple also reflects Andersen’s evolution as a person. After closing her line, the designer moved back to Jutland in northern Denmark and had two children. She is no longer the person she was then.

It’s not easy to change gears in fashion. Brands seem to take on a life of their own, and it’s easy to be pigeonholed. Couple breaks with a number of fashion conventions. The label will be displayed during the season, so what is presented is for sale. At the same time, seasonality is less important in the Stel equation than relevance. Collections are identified by number (01, 02 and 03 were shown in Copenhagen), the concept being that you can mix and match pieces across seasons, both in your wardrobe and on the sales floor. Andersen doesn’t think it’s necessary for a well-thought-out garment to be abandoned just because the calendar pages turn. “The direct translation of couple is body,” she said, but it is [refers more to] a basic structure in a kind of industrial way; It [also describes] a set of collectibles – if you talk about a tea set, you would call it a set. For me, that was a pretty interesting starting point in terms of the idea of ​​creating both collectibles, but also something that sets a new foundation.”

It was a coincidence that models posed on scaffolding, as it suggests different metaphors. There’s construction, which relates to building a new brand, and the idea of ​​support relates to her belief that clothes should work for you. Stel is essentially a kind of modular offering, but not one with the angularity of something like Lego or stacked Mærsk shipping containers. Movement, freedom of choice and empowerment are part of Andersen’s plan. “When I talk about the brand, I have this slogan: clothes you can skate in, denim you can dance in, shirts you can travel in.” Freedom, joy, movement.