This month kicked off with a handful of the UK’s best fashion designers en route to Los Angeles to showcase their SS14 collections at LONDON show ROOMS in association with Farfetch.com. One in six residents in Los Angeles works in a creative industry so it seems fit that such a vibrant and diverse city plays host to some of London’s brightest designers. After two days at the Ace Gallery for LONDON show ROOMS the British Fashion Council team travelled to Chateau Marmont to open London Style Suites, a new initiative in partnership with StyleBop.com. The London Style Suites is an opportunity for British designers to travel to the epicentre of the film industry to showcase an edit of existing and exclusively designed dresses to the West Coast stylists and VIPs behind some of the world’s biggest red carpets moments.
In addition to British Fashion Council events in LA, stylist Elizabeth Stewart hosted a dinner for Rupert Sanderson at Tower Sunset; Stephen Webster is hosting a series of events encompassing the world of fine jewellery, art and food; and on Rodeo Drive, Saks Fifth Avenue is celebrating Great British Fashion with windows, installations and a series of trunk shows to coincide with the British fashion invasion. From LA, the journey continues to Brazil where LONDON show ROOMS will place an edit of London’s best designers in one of the world’s fastest growing markets. All of this travel and all of the introductions serve as a reminder that building global relationships and working closely with other countries to advance business is absolutely key to a thriving industry at home. This month, the well coined expression, ‘the world is your oyster’, resonates with our British designers.
However as these initiatives prove, the industry relies on ambassadors to wear their creations off the catwalk – the ambassadors who have made the international stage their home and support design talent through their inimitable personal style. Yesterday we announced the names of twenty British men and women we think help promote our designers globally for the British Style Award. We hope you will join us in casting your vote for who you think best represents ‘British style’. The winner will be announced on the 2nd December at the 2013 British Fashion Awards.
In other news, I’d like to say how thrilled I am at the response we’ve had to the newly published menswear schedule for January’s London Collections: Men. With such a strong roster of names we are certain it’ll be our best yet. Registration is now open.
Caroline Rush, Chief Executive, British Fashion Council
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