London Fashion Week sales to top £100 million

Top buyers from America, the Middle East and Japan are flooding to London and pushing attendance up by 40 per cent on last year's autumn show, the British Fashion Council said.

They have been attracted to the 25th anniversary of the event this month by the return of big-name British designers. Joining Burberry and Williamson are Pringle, Stella McCartney for adidas, and Jonathan Saunders, who disappeared for years to New York, Paris and Milan.

Another draw is London's growing offering of radical young designers, such as Peter Pilotto, who counts actress Sienna Miller as a fan; Henry Holland, close friend of supermodel Agyness Deyn; Meadham Kirchhoff and Mark Fast whose designs have been worn by Twilight star Kristen Stewart.

The appointment of a specialist US-based PR agency to promote London Fashion Week for the first time this summer has also helped to pull in high-spending executives from New York department stores Barneys and Saks Fifth Avenue. They will be joined by buyers from leading independent boutiques such as Kirna Zabete and Seven of New York and Arcade and H Lorenzo of Los Angeles. US Vogue editor Anna Wintour is also expected to attend after a two-year absence.

A subsidised travel scheme to encourage overseas visitors is also running for the seventh year. The London Development Agency, which funds fashion week, and UK Trade and Investment are providing about £40,000 to help pay for air fares, a sum matched by commercial sponsorship. Some designers have said the programme has helped their business at fashion week triple in the past two seasons.

The six-day extravaganza from 18 to 23 September is expected to generate an extra £20  million in spending in London on hotels, restaurants, bars and taxis on top of clothes orders. It is the biggest and most star-studded Fashion Week yet with more than 50 catwalk shows, a further 45 or more off-schedule shows and another 100 designers showcasing ready-to-wear outfits and accessories. For the first time, a day is being dedicated to menswear.

In the spring, orders at London Fashion Week nudged £100 million and insiders say that figure is expected to be "significantly" higher this month.

It is a striking turnaround for the event, which only a year ago was under threat of being squeezed down to four days after New York said it wanted to change the timing of its shows.

Caroline Rush, joint chief executive of the British Fashion Council, said the return of big name British designers had "signalled the start of a very exciting period for London Fashion Week". She added: "Our focus for the future is to nurture emerging designers and support labels to build their businesses internationally."

London Mayor Boris Johnson, who will open fashion week, said: "What sets London Fashion Week apart is its wit and energy, as well as its sophistication. I'm committed to the capital remaining at the forefront as one of the world's greatest cities for fashion."