Ph5 Spring 2024 Is a Love Letter to Its Factory, Penned in Colorful Knitwear

Andrea Bossi

September 13, 2023 at 5:48 PM·4 min read

"I don't think people see knitwear as an atelier-level practice," Zoe Champion, co-founder and creative director of Ph5, tells Fashionista backstage.

Based between New York and Southern China, the brand has been pushing the boundaries of knitwear since its 2016 launch by delving into textile innovation and new silhouettes. The Spring 2024 collection carries the baton from previous seasons, incorporating familiar motifs like wavy hemlines and trompe-l'œil details. But each season is inspired by something specific, often related to the broader scope of sustainability in fashion. Rather than considering plastic-filled oceans or Australia's bushfires, next spring's pieces turn to Ph5's factory workers.

"We felt like garment workers and the treatment of workers in the whole industry is such a huge other aspect of sustainability the industry. For this collection, that's what we wanted to focus on and have a conversation around," Champion says. "All of the people at our factory are incredibly talented, are artisans in their own craft and have years and years of knowledge and technique."

After all, the factory is owned by Ph5's other co-founder and creative director, Wei Lin, and her family. Spring 2024 creates a full-circle moment by fashioning an ode to the factory, where Lin grew up and where her mother started a career as a garment worker before working her way up.

This ode manifests most literally in the prints. Some are inspired by the very tiles of the factory floor. Other pieces are plastered with actual photos of the factory (and its resident dog, Whitey) or emblazoned with Chinese lettering from the factory's plaque (which states its name when it was established). Champion and Lin also debuted an industrial knitting needle detail, which looks like it's connecting the very last stitch on some garments. A shirt has decreasing scales of itself stitched on, mimicking stacks of clothes mid-production.

"We also worked really hard on creating really lightweight knitwear that is really breathable and comfortable," Champion says of making next season's pieces functional in a warmer spring and summertime. Some items incorporate the brand's viral UV-color-reactive technology, making them most fun to wear in the sun — this is part of why the brand staged its first-ever runway show during New York Fashion Week on a rooftop under afternoon rays.

Past the cool knit pieces, Spring 2024 sets itself apart with new accessories and details. Ph5 debuted handbags, in a range of colors, crocheted with faux leather and industrial knitting needle-inspired handles. In a nod to Lin's mother's love for feng shui, charms dangle from some items. Slouched leather belts thrown over a neon outfit recall a tool belt. On the runway, each look was styled with chunky and colorful Hoka slides.

Given the collection's theme, Champion offers a final message regarding how we think about factories:

"If you are not paying much for your clothes, someone didn't get paid much to make them. But it's not like, 'Oh, they come from this place, so people are being mistreated,'" she explains. "Ours are done in China, and these people are incredibly talented. They are looked after and are like family to us. They're our biggest cheerleaders in all of this."

Keep scrolling to see every look from the Spring 2024 Ph5 collection.