Leeds has always known how to dress itself

From Burton’s tailoring empire to Marks & Spencer’s first penny bazaar on Briggate, the city has spent more than a century quietly shaping how the country shops. So when Victoria Leeds Fashion Week rolled into its third edition this May, the choice of stylists for The Dressing Room felt less like a booking and more like a homecoming.

Laura Fawcett and Ruth Preston aka @wearitlikeruth to her 25,000-strong community, set up shop outside John Lewis in Victoria Gate on Saturday for a day of 20-minute styling appointments. Laura led with express colour analysis, helping guests find their season. Ruth followed with capsule wardrobe advice built around personality, not minimalism. Walk-ins queued through the afternoon, with proceeds going to Smart Works Leeds.

For Laura, the day was personal. A Leeds native, she talked about feeling the city’s fashion heritage in the buildings around her the arcades, the tailoring history, the sense that Leeds has been a style city for far longer than most people realise.

For Ruth, it was a full-circle moment. She arrived in Leeds as a student at the same timr Harvey Nichols opened its doors on Briggate, and got completely sucked into the retail therapy side of the city. She never left. Years later, she was back outside John Lewis, styling strangers in the same square mile that taught her to love clothes in the first place.

That’s the thing about Leeds. It doesn’t just sell fashion, it makes fashion people. The city has a knack for keeping the ones who come for three years and stay for thirty, because somewhere between Trinity, Victoria Gate, the Corn Exchange and the indie boutiques tucked behind them, you find your look. And then you find your people.

Victoria Leeds Fashion Week continues until 17 May, with The Show at Victoria Gate on 14 May and Notes on Fashion Live at The Cut & Craft on 16 May.