Brooklyn Borough Hall Plaza is turning into an outdoor catwalk again. Borough President Antonio Reynoso and KidSuper founder Colm Dillane announced the return of The People’s Runway, a free fashion show putting five emerging Brooklyn designers on one of the most visible stages in the industry during New York Fashion Week.
Mark it down: Saturday, September 12. The show takes over the plaza in front of Borough Hall as part of the Council of Fashion Designers of America’s Spring/Summer 2027 New York Fashion Week. It’s open to the public, first-come, first-served, standing room only, with ADA accommodations available. Registration is encouraged through the borough president’s event page, though RSVPing does not guarantee entry.
The five designers get more than a runway slot. Each will receive a $5,000 grant plus direct mentorship from Dillane and other industry figures, according to the Brooklyn Borough President’s Office. Reynoso and Dillane reviewed hundreds of applications to pick the cohort.
“The People’s Runway is proof that nowhere in the world is doing it like Brooklyn,” Reynoso said in the announcement. “Fashion, culture, and self-expression are so integral to our identity as Brooklynites, and I am proud to highlight five talented designers who represent the very best of what Brooklyn has to offer.” He said the 2026 edition “will be even bigger than last year.”
Dillane, whose brand KidSuper is rooted in Brooklyn and who also holds the borough’s Arts Ambassador title, framed the show as a rethink of what a fashion competition can actually do for a young designer. “Not just give someone a trophy or a title, but give them a real platform, funding, mentorship and access at the exact moment when those things can make a difference,” he said. “There is so much talent in Brooklyn. Sometimes people just need someone to bet on them.”
The 2026 cohort: Kuai Li, founder and creative director of Quine Li, earned an MFA in fashion design from FIT and makes sculptural work that plays with body, structure, and space; her designs have run in Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar and Glamour and been worn by Katy Perry, Kylie Jenner, Michelle Yeoh, and Doja Cat. Lamin Rey Jaiteh is a Gambian-born, Harlem-based designer whose handcrafted menswear draws on childhood lessons alongside his father, blending luxury streetwear with refined tailoring.
Laurel Tiange Fang, founder of Laurel Blue, works at the intersection of fashion, technology, and the natural world; she holds a BFA from Parsons and an MPS from NYU ITP, and her work has appeared in ELLE, Grazia and L’Officiel. Moses Aina leads IGBO-SISUN, an award-winning label of statement pieces that has dressed United Nations leaders and Emmy and SAG nominees and shown in Vogue and OUT. Roderick Reyes was born and raised in Brooklyn off the N line to immigrant parents of Dominican and Mexican descent, trained at FIT and the High School of Fashion Industries, and works with stylists and brands on red carpet, stage, and press looks.
The return builds on a debut that pulled a crowd. The first People’s Runway, held during New York Fashion Week SS/26, drew more than 1,000 spectators and a front row that included Ms. Lauryn Hill, A$AP Ferg, Busta Rhymes, Ne-Yo, Kodak Black, Jordan Clarkson, and Francisco Lindor, per the Brooklyn Borough President’s Office. That first show spotlighted designers Amhrii Johnson, Daveed Baptiste, Kent Anthony, Rojin Jung, and Shriya Myneni.
The show is backed by a roster of partners including the Brooklyn Arts Council, Fashion Week Brooklyn, Poppi, Brooklyn Org, City Point, Orange Barrel Media, Symphony No. 3, MAC Cosmetics, and Chemistry Creative. New York Hispano reported the same lineup and details for the September 12 show.
You can register for the September 12 show on the borough president’s People’s Runway page.
Featured image: Courtesy Brooklyn Borough President's office
