This month’s Paris Fashion Week goes totally digital

PARIS – Ending the confusion over the fate of Paris Fashion Week, French fashion’s regulatory body has said that this month’s Paris men’s and haute couture shows will be strictly audience-free over coronavirus fears.

The Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode has told luxury houses they will not be allowed to invite guests this season, after instruction by police.

In a statement to the AP, the federation said Monday that “we confirm that there can be no public gatherings” at Paris Fashion Week adding that “houses can still organize ‘real’ runway shows with models broadcast live, provided that their events take place behind closed doors.”

Although Paris is technically not in a lockdown, stringent restrictions limiting movements are in place nationwide, including a 6 p.m. or 8 p.m. curfew. Repeated failure to obey rules can lead to a six-month prison sentence.

France’s second lockdown ended Dec. 15, but restaurants, bars, cinemas, theatres and museums remain shuttered.