FOURTH ARAB FASHION WEEK
The fourth edition of Arab Fashion Week starts at Meydan Hotel & Grandstand in Dubai today, falling in the same month as New York’s Costume Institute Gala and the Cannes International Film Festival, two of the most glamorous events of the year
dubai — The fourth edition of Arab Fashion Week will start today at the Meydan Hotel and Grandstand with the participation from leading designers across the world. Taking part in this regional fashion week are Marchesa from New York and Antonio Marras from Italy alongside Ingie Paris and Michael Cinco.
Jacob Abrian, chief executive officer of Arab Fashion Council said: “The focus of the Arab Fashion Week is not only to promote regional fashion talent but also to allow international designers to strengthen their presence in this region by showcasing their collection to a very affluent and fashionsavvy audience.”
The Arab Fashion Week is one of the few global platforms to focus on pre-collections — these being the fashion collections that come out in-between seasons — and emphasising clearly on evening wears. “The fact that we chose to hold Arab Fashion Week in May, in between all the major international fashion weeks and right before summer, was a strategic decision. Our concern is to meet the requirements of the fashion industry, where buyers tend to spend 75 per cent of their budget on pre-collections. Therefore it’s vital that there is a global platform that allows you to showcase these collections,” said Abrian.
The Arab Fashion Week is titled ‘Ready Couture’ and held in partnership with Sheikh Mohammed
The focus of the Arab Fashion Week is not only to promote regional fashion talent but also to allow international designers to strengthen their presence in this region” Jacob Abrian CEO, Arab Fashion Council
Bin Maktoum Bin Juma Al Maktoum Investment. Attending the function will be international celebrities like Cav Mario Boselli, honorary president of National Chamber of Italian Fashion, Caroline Rush, chief executive of British Fashion Council, Georgina Chapman, wife of film producer Harvey Weinstein to name a few.
The WWD magazine, a journal specialised in international fashion trade, will have its first Middle East edition highlighting the Arab Fashion Week. “The challenge for this emerging fashion week is to address their presence in the international calendars. Ultimately fashion weeks are trade events. If you are to attract trade from the region and globally, there needs to be a compelling reason to come,” said Ritu Upadhyay, WWD’s Middle East correspondent.
A fashion week that puts this region on the international map, the event confirms the region’s position in the glamorous global markets. The week ends with Arab Fashion Awards grand gala dinner on Saturday, May 20.
sujata@khaleejtimes.com