Digital Exposed Seminar

One represents the history of the Australian fashion industry and the other a new-gen take on luxury styling – together they are a formidable fashion force to be reckoned with.
They are Jenny Bannister and Philip Boon and together, with their varied careers within the industry, they have created a unique forum for the discussion of style and industry news called Fashion Torque. Different fashion industry guests are invited to join a panel on the last Thursday of each month, covering many different topics and encompassing all elements of fashion.
This Thursday the panel will include Fashion Exposed Online Editor, Sacha Strebe and Herald Sun Fashion Editor, Anna Byrne to discuss ‘The Power of the Fashion Press’ – Do they still have the power or is the fashion landscape changing?

To take part in the live chat show format and be informed, inspired and entertained then join the discussion at Globe Cafe, 218 Chapel St, Prahran, tomorrow night Thursday 29th September at 6.30pm.
For more info head to the Fashion Torque Facebook page.

via smh.com.au

An industry-wide campaign is needed to encourage Australians to shop again by making retail a fun and exciting experience, according to a Macquarie University consumer behaviour specialist.

Dr Steven D’Alessandro, a Macquarie University senior lecturer, said a mix of loud music in stores, disinterested sales staff and sizing that did not reflect the broad range of consumers was contributing heavily to recent poor retail results.

While he acknowledged the onset of the global financial crisis and heavily leveraged consumers were also contributing factors, he stressed Australia was still a wealthy country with a population that had funds available to spend.

He suggested the loss of physical bricks-and-mortar sales to the online channel was not as great as people might think with the ability to try on clothing before purchasing still sought after.

He urged retailers revisit their business models and come up with new ideas to make shopping a fun experience.

“If you look at fashion stores in Australia, they are very similar to each other,” he said.

D’Alessandro suggested too much emphasis was placed on meeting the needs of Generation Y who did not have anywhere near the spending power compared to Baby Boomers.

“The assets of Baby Boomers are around $1 trillion making them a key market,” he said.

And yet, these consumers were being forced to go to certain stores to get the size clothing they required.

“We need an industry-wide campaign to get people back into the shops,” he said.

“I don’t think people want to buy online; women are the largest market for fashion and they want to try clothes on.

“Retailers need to have a good look at who their market is and what size they need to sell in that market, to go back to basics.”

To read the full article, head to Fashion Source.

As always we are interested in your thoughts, head to the Fashion Exposed Facebook page to let us know what you think, here.

For more on the topic, you can also head to Trendwatching.com for their article titled Retail Renaissance which challenges the online phenomenon and explains “Why consumers will enjoy shopping for your products and services in the `real world’ more than ever.”
This is a must read for all boutique and online retailers in devising a system that marries both the traditional bricks and mortar shopping we all know and love, with the future of online shopping we are all using now and will continue to.

DIMACCI has taken its love of horses, and everything equestrian, into accessory design with global success. While the line is owned, designed and manufactured out of Germany by DIMACCI GmbH, the range is an add on line to the equestrian clothing brands, Windsor Apparel and K.Ritchie Riding Wear based in Australia.

So where does this equestrian heritage stem from exactly?

Well according to the exclusive distributor, Levi Aron, the DIAMCCI brand owner and designer Ines Dieckmann, was a competitive show jumper for over 15 years and drawing from her European background, she wanted to infuse some bright colours, quality design and craftsmanship into an accessories range that would have a signature equestrian element. Thus the brand was born.

And it seems the world also desired more colour with an equestrian flavour as the brand has received outstanding media attention and publicity since the launch, including consistent coverage in the Sunday Herald Sun fashion pages.
“The DIMACCI brand has been fortunate to receive constant attention from fashion magazines as well as TV wardrobe and we attribute this success to quality design and the great colour range that makes up DIMACCI,” says Levi.

With colour a huge hit on the spring summer runways, and colour blocking already making a huge impact on local fashion boutiques and window displays, the DIMACCI brand has included a range of 11 tailored colourways in each style of DIMACCI. In addition to this, each piece also has the option of coming either with a stainless steel clasp or a gold plated clasp all of which have been hugely popular.

We spoke to Levi about their celebrity following including Kate Richie, the craftsmanship behind the brand, and the success of their brand in the U.S.

Read more »

via mlejit.com

New York Fashion Week for Spring 2012 saw colour blocking return, hemlines lengthened, femininity making a come back, bird and floral inspired prints and twentieth century tailoring as the strongest trends that will inform the season.

Written by Eryn Behan, a resident contributor to Fashion Exposed Online and the director of Ginger Trend Consulting, a trend analayst and a provider of fashion forecast services and consumer insight trends to the fashion and interior design industries throughout Australasia.

Super bright
Super-bright, neon and tropical hues are coming through as essential palettes for the season against contrasting colours, in fact NYFW saw a welcomed rainbow of colours brightening the gloom of the city just after the 10th anniversary of September 11. BCBG Max Azria explored a palette of yellow and orange and Peter Som’s collection showered us with bright beautiful sorbets. An amped up version of Neon hues were also seen at Jason Wu, shown in exotic lime and parrot blue colour ways on red carpet worthy gowns.

via style.com

Oversized Blooms
Suggested by many fashion critics as the must have print for summer large floral blooms are set to hit the main stream as key a must have trend for the season. A favourite again Jason Wu interpreted the oversized floral blooms alongside Graffiti artist KAWS who’s flower petal print dominate the show. Peter Som also featured a floral print in a fabulous saturated pallet of colour. This key print direction for the season was also seen at Diane Von Furstenberg yet in a more muted palette of nostalgic green, indigo and white.

via style.com

Femininity and the 20’s inspired
Floating and draped silhouettes, floor length skirts, silk taffeta and layered styling were all strong looks to emphasise the return of femininity. The look strongly influenced by the 20’s and mixed by many designers with casual every day styling such as utility boots and/or a casual tee. Marc Jacobs was the one who had everyone talking on this trend, with his boxy, drop-waist shapes of the 1920′s including loads of sequins and fringing. Another favorite for me was Christian Siriano who cited Katherine Hepburn as an unassuming inspiration for this collection. Using loads of Tulle and organza in his range I consider to be perfectly understated and retail ready. Glamorous full-length figure hugging skirts teamed back with basic tee’s. A style strongly predicted to translate into commercial retail ranges.

via fashion gone rogue

Sporting
Inspired by the upcoming London Olympics in 2012, sporty attire was again strong. We saw extreme use of mesh and high shine fabrications. Victoria Beckham embraced the sporty theme with hoods, stretch fabrications, stark construction pieces, shift dresses and the introduction of flat shoes a first for VB. Alexander Wang also taking inspiration from extreme sports such as motorcycling and BMXing and attire such as technical skiwear. Dark hues, laser cut mesh juxtaposed with bright polo’s and cargo pants were an interesting combination of mix and match co-ordinates.

via Free Paper

The market has moved through some monumental changes recently and will continue to do so, especially since large international chains Zara and Topshop (with Uniqlo rumoured to be on the way) landed on our shores and Asos gave their multi-million dollar site an Australian platform that offers free-shipping and returns to an Australian address.
But rather than bury our heads in the sand, it’s time to take a look outside our own boutique windows and see what we can improve on, how our business models can be restructured to accommodate the new savvy consumer, and how our online stores can be integrated into the bricks and mortar boutique for a highly successful and profitable outcome.
There are so many changes the retail sector needs to embrace, but the only way you are going to know what those changes are, is if you ask questions, seek information from your opposition, and do your research.

At Fashion Exposed and Fashion Exposed Online, we are also aware that changes need to be made and we want to structure our blogs, social media platforms and e-newsletters to suit your needs too.
How can we inform you better?
What industry news are you missing out on?
What business tips do you need?
So in that vein, we devised a survey in the hope of getting to know you better.
It’s over on our Fashion Exposed Facebook page and it will only take 5 minutes of your valuable time to complete, but we would really appreciate your feedback.

To go there now, visit www.facebook.com/FE.TradeFair

Nomiki Glynatsis wants every woman to feel like a million dollars. Her couture jewellery collection is exquisitely hand crafted with elaborate beading in Swarovski crystals, fresh water pearls, sequins, specialty beads and vintage beads taking inspiration from the `ornate elegance and timeless appeal’ of the 1920s and 1950s. Each one-off piece is as unique as the individual wearer and a stunning compliment to her elegant couture evening gowns.

Having completed her Advanced Diploma of clothing, textiles and footwear at MSIT in 2008, Nomiki Glynatsis furthered her studies in the romantic city of Paris for three months in 2009. It was here where her passion was ignited, taking classes at the renowned ‘Ecole Lesage’ and participating in the ‘Paris American Academy’ Couture Intensive Workshop. That same year, her graduate collection starred on the live telecast runway of the NRA fashion awards and this launched a stunning career and the beginning of her self-titled label, Nomiki Glynatsis Couture.

Nomiki was a standout designer at the recent Fashion Exposed, Melbourne. We asked her how she fell into fashion, how she makes her designs stand out from the fashion pack, and what inspired her current Autumn/Winter 2012 Couture Jewellery Collection titled “Jewels of the Night”.

Read more »

Did you spot the Fashion Exposed exhibitor in the Sunday Herald Sun yesterday?
The Come Fly with Me fashion spread by fashion editor, Anna Byrne featured the iconic style of the 1960s flight attendants and Catherine Manuell airport trolley was featured.

The fourth annual iSelect Fashion+Aid charity event was an 80′s inspired fashion and dance extravaganza.
The night, aptly titled Strike a Pose, opened in spectacular style with a rendition of Madonna’s Vogue sung by 17-year-old Melbourne schoolgirl, Annabelle Eve, followed by a theatrical fashion show and exclusive song performance by 2009 Australian Idol winner, Stan Walker, before 1200 guests.
Local celebrities Ashley Hart, Miss World Amber Greasley, Nick Bracks and Brynne Edelsten hit the `pink’ carpet in support of this year’s nominated charity, Lighthouse Foundation that provides homeless young people (from backgrounds of long-term neglect and abuse) with a home, a sense of family and around-the-clock therapeutic care.
The adrenalin-pumping, high-energy fashion parade featured designers including Wayne Cooper, Bettina Liano, Tony Bianco, Jason Grech, mossee, Nathan Paul Swimwear, Robb & Lulu and more.

New Sydney label mossee, represented by Garland & Garland Fashion, was a highlight on the runway.

Since 2006, the highly coveted Debut has become a prestigious industry entry platform and design competition for new fashion and accessory labels at Fashion Exposed. Anticipating its 13th season and celebrating over 150 labels launching their fashion profile at Debut, including Limedrop, Alexi Freeman, Trimapee, Since Grey, Kuwaii, Donna Sgro, Sebastian’s Sister and Eternal Safari…
Debut is the place to be at Fashion Exposed Sydney 12-14 Feb 2012, Australasia’s premiere fashion trade fair co-located with Bags & Accessories Fair and Australian Shoe Fair.

Each year the line-up continues to dazzle the Fashion Exposed judging panel, and this year was no exception.
Stella Blanche was a highlight of the Debut runway show with their daring designs. Showing creative talent from a young age, Jessica Yorston and Zoe Sandow have shared a love affair with all forms of art and started making clothes early on in their lives.
The pair both started fashion design courses at RMIT and despite Jess leaving early to work in the industry, Zoe stayed on to complete the course and the combination of their varying areas of expertise proved to be an explosive recipe.
After presenting their collection at the recent Fashion Exposed Melbourne, we asked the girls to discuss the inspiration behind their current range `Scandal & Stages’; the fabrics and technical applications of the range; and their plans to open a flagship in Melbourne.

Read more »

via Sassi Sam

Love Anna Wintour or hate her, the formidable Editor-in-Chief of Vogue U.S and the brainchild behind Vogue Fashion Night out has definitely come up with a winner.
Sydney city was a buzz with hype and activity and it was great to see. They improved it drastically from last year by centralizing it by moving it to Pitt Street Mall from Martin Place. It had the same buzz of a regular shopping night in Hong Kong and there was a real excitement in the air. I have nothing but praise for Wintour’s commercial success of creating this event to promote retail spending during the after effects of the G.F.C. Especially from an editorial perspective, as a means I imagine, of looking after her prized advertisers who were the major chains and luxury boutiques and department stores. Genius!

Phoebe Garland co-owns Garland & Garland Fashion, along with Robert Garland who was described by Ragtrader as a “veteran rag trader” with over 30 years experience. Between the two of them, Phoebe & Robert Garland have over 45 years sales experience. Garland & Garland Fashion is a leading fashion agency based in Sydney representing women’s fashion labels targeting the 30+ market. Garland & Garland Fashion is regularly sought for comment from various media on business fashion issues and topics.

Whilst the event was incredibly successful in Sydney CBD, and by successful, I mean I actually saw people with some serious shopping bags, what I would love to see is a similar event aimed at supporting the smaller independent retailers and held on a national scale.

The need for an industry body, magazines and/or a group of apparel companies plus the buying groups to band together to support the smaller independent retailers couldn’t be more critical. Whilst some of the larger apparel companies may be turning towards more vertical markets, I think there is a need to remember exactly how their businesses got started in the first place. Especially for the larger apparel manufacturers such as Pacific Brands, Levi’s, Billabong, Quicksilver, and many others, also let’s not forget the buying groups like ARL and Frontline. Now is the time, they need to look after their retailers as their retailers have supported them throughout the years.

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