Yep, another week has passed and the stand out show for me had to be Phoenix and her extravaganza. Her theme was all the movies that we love from Flashdance to Dirty Dancing and so many more. It really was one hell of a production from one so very young. I actually forget how short of years she is (just a couple of years older than my daughter), especially as I get to liaise with her most days in our collaborative capacity. She truly is one very capable woman and I saw this again this week. Facebook and the internet are peppered with great moments from her show.
Fashion Week… A necessary evil or not? Do we need it to showcase the brand each year and get it back into the forefront of our customer's minds or should we simply stage a similar event that showcases our in-season collection to the many women who love the brand? I, for one, am so over the jibes and negative reviews that make reference to our customer base, the perceived positioning of the label and capability of the design.
Reality check. All of us have a hand writing that has a fit with the market. To not do so would see us fail! Surely we can all co-exist in harmony without the yardstick of measurement as to who is truly fashion and who is not. I mean, shouldn't the individual be the judge? Surely it has to all be about the consumer rather than the designer.
It is frustrating to see yet another reference that labelled my show guests as 'Matamata women'. What is that all about? And considering that none of them came from Matamata, I can only assume that women from this region look different to others? Really what a crock of self-absorbed shit!
"Thursday 7.00 pm Annah Stretton I didn't make this one but as I was leaving I saw lots of ladies arriving from Matamata. She has a very loyal customer base. It was a twenty year retrospective including the infamous taxidermied boar's head taken out of retirement to walk the runway on a model's head once more."
This year I approached Fashion Week with very little anticipation. Sure, it's great to work with our collaborative partners and thank our VIPs that attend the show, but in an environment such as this, maybe not.
The whole feeling this year was one of mild disinterest from the organizers and given the amount that we pay, surely some customer love wouldn't go astray.
We have little need for the international delegates that were apparently lacking in so many of the designers' eyes, hence the rapid and on-going attrition of so many of them. Maybe designers such as ourselves become a pathway forward. God knows, Trellise's shows keep increasing year after year.
And it is also doubtful as to how much everyone pays to show on this platform. The sliding scale of payment being dependent on the brand desirability is a huge cause for concern by participants such as myself, as it's definitely not a level fee paying field. But then I suppose it's all attaching to levels of desirability and the business one's brand will attract to the event. Hmm enough discourse as to what this event is and isn't as with anything in life, it's all about what you make of it in the moment.
And I loved the resultant outcome of our show. It was possibly our most commercial yet but after the weak returns from the Living Dolls collection at retail, I was determined to get this one right. I mean, isn't it all about selling clothes in the end?
The twenty years showcase was also a fun retrospective to do. A big thank you to so many that often work with little or no payment to stage these events for us. Emma, Phoenix, Deb and their teams. I loved reviewing the pathway we have followed, and seeing it re-enacted was a wonderful testimony to so many that have made this company and my brand so successful.
Will I be back next year???? Hmmmm I just don't know.
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