Santander Design Runway cements its first edition with more than 500 attendees
Santander, 29 May 2026.— Santander Design Runway held its first edition on Saturday 23 May with an excellent turnout and level of participation, bringing together more than 500 people at the Adarsa Mercedes-Benz dealership in Santander. The event confirmed the growing interest in emerging fashion and established this new brand as one of the creative events with the greatest reach in northern Spain.
The runway show, driven by CESINE and co-presented with Adarsa Mercedes-Benz, marked the official debut of a new identity for the long-running Cesine Fashion Show, which for more than a decade has served as a platform to discover and showcase the talent of new Cantabrian designers.
The event brought together industry professionals, students, institutional representatives, the media and the general public on a day defined by creativity, innovation and emerging talent. A total of twenty collections were shown on the runway: seventeen created by students on CESINE’s Degree in Fashion Design and three from labels born in the school’s academic environment and now established in the industry: Rraguez, by Mario Rodríguez; Utahia, by Beatriz Acosta; and Cabero, by Alai Madruga.
The collections presented on the runway stood out for their creative diversity, combining contemporary tailoring, textile research, artisan techniques and new visual narratives. The event also showcased the professional potential of the young designers trained in Santander and their ability to enter the fashion industry with their own projects.
The godparents of this first edition were designers Álvaro Calafat and Ana Ponf, whose label CASA CALAFAT has been part of the official Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Madrid calendar since 2022. Their presence brought an artistic and cultural dimension to the event, strengthening Santander Design Runway’s position as a platform that connects fashion, creativity and innovation.
The collaboration with Adarsa Mercedes-Benz also added an experience linked to design and the mobility of the future. Attendees were able to discover the new generation of Mercedes-Benz SUVs, including the electric GLC and the new GLB in its electric and hybrid versions, models that represent the brand’s commitment to sustainability and technological innovation.
The event also enjoyed institutional support and the presence of the Mayor of Santander, Gema Igual, demonstrating the commitment of the City Council and its Department of Culture, Youth and Education to initiatives that promote emerging talent and strengthen the city’s creative profile.
With this first edition, Santander Design Runway opens a new chapter for emerging fashion in Cantabria, reinforcing Santander’s role as a meeting point between education, industry and contemporary culture. The strong turnout and the audience’s response cement the birth of an event set to grow and become a fixture in the national cultural and creative calendar.
