Fashion Week
A fashion week is a fashion industry event, lasting approximately one week, whichallows fashion designers, brands or "houses" to display their latest collections inrunway shows and buyers to take a look at the latest trends. Most importantly, it letsthe industry know what's "in" and what's "out" for the season. The most prominentfashion weeks are held in the fashion capitals Milan, London, New York ,andParis.
Characteristics
In the major fashion capitals, fashion weeks are semiannual events. January through March designers showcase their autumn and wintercollections and September through November the spring/summercollections are shown. Fashion weeks must be held several monthsin advance of the season to allow the press and buyers a chance topreview fashion designs for the following season. This is also toallow time for retailers to arrange to purchase or incorporate thedesigners into their retail marketing.
Schedule
The schedule begins with New York, followed by London, with thepenultimate fashion week in Milan ending the events in Paris. Thesefour cities are the traditional "big four" fashion weeks that arefollowed by new emerging fashion weeks globally. The Menswearshows occur in between autumn(fall)/winter and spring/summer inMilan.Some fashion weeks can be genre-specific, such as a Miami FashionWeek (Swimwear), Rio Summer (Swimwear), Prêt-a-Porter (ready-to-wear) Fashion Week, Couture (one-of-a-kind designer original)Fashion Week and Bridal Fashion Week, while Portland (Oregon, USA)Fashion Week shows some eco-friendly designers.
Controversy
The dominance of the big four benefits industry participants. Forexample, buyers, journalists, models and celebrities can limit theirtravel and simply move from one to the other over the four weekperiod. However the arrangement is criticized for stifling designtalent in emerging fashion hubs such as Los Angeles
About New York Fashion Week
The first New York Fashion Week, then called Press Week, was theworld's first organized fashion week. Held in 1943, the event wasdesigned to attract attention away from French fashion during WorldWar II, when fashion industry insiders were unable to travel to Paristo see French fashion shows. Fashion publicist Eleanor Lamberorganized an event she called "Press Week" to showcase Americandesigners for fashion journalists, who had previously neglected theirinnovations. (Buyers were not admitted to the shows and insteadhad to visit designers' showrooms.) Press Week was a success, andfashion magazines like Vogue, which were normally filled withFrench designs, increasingly featured American fashion.In 1993, the event was moved to its current site in Bryant Park,where it is held inside a series of large white tents in the almost-block-long park. Admission is by invitation only, to the fashionindustry, fashion press, assorted celebrities, and internet basedFashion press (e.g. District L, Fashionista, FWD). Beginning inFebruary 2009 (showing Fall 2009), many designers opted out of their usual Bryant Park tent fashion shows because of the currenteconomy and held smaller presentations. Notable designers whomade this decision include Carmen Marc Valvo, Betsey Johnson, andVera Wang.At the Fall 2009 Fashion Week the public got a taste of technologyas it is shaping the future of fashion. It is not only making it cheaperand easier for designers to create their collections, it is also savingthem travel time as many broadcast their lines over the Internet.Many designers opted to not only market online but also sellexclusively online. Designer Norma Kamali and the Polo Ralph
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Fashion Week
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| Upload Date: | 10/20/2009 |
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