The Big Four fashion weeks always take place in the same order—New York, London, Milan, and Paris.

New York is the oldest fashion week and London the newest, having started in 1943 and 1984, respectively. As the grandmother of the fashion weeks, New York is considered the "safest" and shows the most conservative, wearable clothes. London is the rebellious teenager of the family, and its designers tend to ignore current trends and show whatever they like!

An Italian event was added in 1958, but it was held first in Florence, then Rome, and finally Milan. Today, Milan Fashion Week hosts some of the most commercially successful labels in the world, such as Gucci, Prada, and D&G. However, Paris is still considered the fashion capital of the world, and that is why its collections are always shown last. It was added to the Big Four in 1973.

四大時裝週的開場順序慣例為紐約、倫敦、米蘭和巴黎。

紐約時裝週的歷史最悠久，時間可追溯至1943 年，而最晚起步的是1984 年開始舉辦的倫敦時裝週。時裝週始祖級的紐約，可說是最會打「安全牌」的秀展，所展示的時裝最為保守實穿。倫敦時裝週則堪稱叛逆分子，設計師們常不顧現有趨勢潮流，隨心所欲亮相自己的作品！

義大利於1958 年加入時裝週活動的行列，剛開始場地設於佛羅倫斯，爾後至羅馬，最後才固定於米蘭舉辦。如今，米蘭時裝週專為全球經營最為成功的品牌舉辦秀展，例如Gucci、Prada 和D&G。不過，於1973 年加入四大時裝週的巴黎，仍是屹立不搖的時尚首都，這就是巴黎時裝週壓軸的原因。