Caribbean Fashion Week to showcase the region’s best
Caribbean Fashion Week, described as a long awaited celebration of all the elements of Caribbean design, fashion and street style, will be held in November at the Hilton Kingston Hotel.
The first of its event of its kind, Fashion Week is intended to introduce the talents of island designers to the international marketplace, says the event’s executive producer, Pulse CEO, Kingsley Cooper.
“Caribbean Fashion will open new markets and new opportunities for the sale of Caribbean Fashion. Regional and international buyers, designers and other industry players from Europe, North America and the Caribbean itself have been invited to attend”, he stated. He further added that this week of fashion represents the coming of age of the Caribbean fashion event as produced by Pulse in the last 21 years.
The event is being supported by JAMPRO, the European Union’s Trade Development Project, Air Jamaica, Smirnoff, the Hilton Kingston Hotel and the Jamaica Tourist Board. It is being simultaneously launched in New York, USA, Bridgetown, Barbados and Port of Spain, Trinidad.
An average of three fashion shows a day will be held in venues across Kingston. Each show will feature the collection of a different Caribbean designer or groups of designers. Nightly fashion shows will be followed by entertainment packages highlighting the culture of the region.
The inaugural event will take place at Villa Ronai and others will follow in New Kingston. Caribbean Fashion Week will culminate on Sunday November 11 with the staging of the Smirnoff Caribbean Fashion Collections.
An international caste of supporting consultants have been contracted for the event. Among their number are Christine Dinham, of New York, a former Elite model; Nadia Shahrik of Elite Click and women fashion magazines; Michael Mitchell, Entertainment Consultant of New York and Los Angeles; Lois Samuels, super model and author; former Essence Magazine fashion editor Natalie Huey and Romae Gordon, Pulse International Model. Kingsley Cooper, Pulse Founder and CEO will be executive producer of the event.
According to Cooper, the responses to the initiative have been overwhelming in Jamaica, Trinidad and Barbados. “Our proposals has been met with very strong support from designers, the media, governments and their agencies that are among the sponsors of this event”, he said.
A mini-trade exhibition during the November event will provide a forum for buyers and sellers, manufacturers and designers to meet. Information on accessing funding for marketing designs will also be provided.
The annual staging of Caribbean Fashion Week is intended to develop the concept of Caribbean style – “one that reflects the regions multi-cultural ethnicity, tempered by warm sunshine and cool breeze”, the Fashion Week promoters said.
