Caribbean Designers are being invited to capitalize on the opportunity to showcase their talent at the next staging of the Scandinavian International Fashion Week (SIF), to be staged in Stockholm, Sweden, next summer.

This after a successful inaugural staging in July, which saw designers and models from across the globe, including Jamaica’s new model sensation, Chay Hanna, showcasing the best of their talents, in the northern European territory.

CEO, and organiser of SIF, Sonja Anderson, still basking in the success of the event, said that “We (are) offering Caribbean designers an opportunity to showcase their work here in Sweden, and explore the Scandinavian fashion industry,” she said.

Anderson added, “It will open our eyes to something different in a positive way. I believe we will enjoy the Caribbean influences very much and we will welcome you.”

The spectacular event captured the imagination of designers across the globe, as they trekked from countries including Angola, Portugal, South Africa, Ukraine and Colombia to showcase their designs in Europe for the first time.

With better than expected participation and patronage, Miss Anderson told BUZZ that she expects greater participation and turnout for next year’s event. “Persons are already asking to be listed for next year’s show,” she said, adding that despite July being the time of year that many choose to go on vacation, she’s still in awe at the turnout.

When asked if she would consider staging the fashion show elsewhere, Miss Anderson shared that “Stockholm will always be the base of this event, of course, but not the only one. We have other plans or wishes that we hope to be able to accomplish in the future.”

An Angolan by birth, her parents were Diplomats who moved to Sweden when she was 7 years old to set up residence at the Angolan Embassy. Her mother, however, is a Fashion Designer, and so with that art in her DNA, she has sought through various means, throughout her life to express her love for fashion. “When I create a piece, it takes me to another dimension. To construct a piece of fabric from, fantasy to fashion, that’s magic, that’s history and immortality.”

—Article written by Stephanie Elliott