CCFN Addresses the State of Fashion Week in Atlanta
Proposes Consortium & City Involvement
07.13.2010 – Written by Layla k.
Note: Haute.lanta Fashion Week and Atlanta Intl Fashion Week are in NO WAY affiliated!
Definition of “Fashion Week”: A “Fashion Week” is a fashion industry event which allows fashion designers, brands or "houses" to display their upcoming collections in runway shows to journalists, buyers, celebrities, and socialites. Fashion Week fall shows are held the preceding winter (February) and spring shows are held the preceding late summer (September). The most prominent fashion weeks are held in the fashion capitals - New York, London, Milan, and Paris, traditionally known as the "Big Four," which are followed by new emerging fashion weeks globally. Over the past five years, innovative fashion entrepreneurs have collaborated to bring fashion weeks to other regions not normally associated with fashion, such as Atlanta, Georgia.
Where we Stand: The Couture Connoisseur Fashion Network (CCFN) represents a collective of fashion entities in the areas of show production, model management, fashion marketing, beauty, and nonprofit. CCFN seeks to provide a platform for designers to showcase their upcoming collections to buyers, consumers, and international media. For the past four years, CCFN has produced Fashion Week in Atlanta, known as Haute.lanta Fashion Week® or HLFW. Despite national television placements and local print and media recognition, HLFW has faced a number of challenges from the lack of community support and no monetary sponsorships, to the spawn of knockoff fashion weeks that claim to produce the same exact event; but during non-industry months such as April, July, and August. One media company claims that it would like to make the current fashion week better although never in attendance. Instead of working alongside the current producers, they opted to create their own fashion week instead; forgetting their publicized encouragement of a collective effort. Another event, Atlanta International Fashion Week (AIFW), which is produced by Paula Whittle in July, advertises misleading information, replicates the corporate identity of Haute.lanta Fashion Week®, and has continuously violated CCFN’s “Atlanta Fashion Week” trademark. An article published in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution stated that Atlanta International Fashion Week was already showing signs of trouble as Ms. Whittle (who does not even reside in the state of Georgia) falsely advertised a partnership with the city of Atlanta and her celebrity-signing event was “missing a celebrity.” The article goes on to say that, “With each misstep, Atlanta’s fashion credibility takes a hit.”
Challenge: Considered a top business city and transportation hub, Atlanta is the world headquarters of companies such as, CNN, Delta Airlines, and Turner Broadcasting. Atlanta has the country's fourth largest concentration of Fortune 500 companies and the world’s largest airport sits just seven miles south from downtown; yet and still, the city of Atlanta is without a respected and recognized fashion week. Since 2006, The Couture Connoisseur Fashion Network has reached out to everyone from the Atlanta Convention and Visitor’s Bureau, to the Mayor’s office, and the AmericasMart as well; with over 300 custom proposals submitted and no real results. Because too many failed and independent efforts to create fashion week presentations have resulted in fragmentation and complete disorganization, the notion of “Atlanta Fashion Week” has already left a bad taste in everyone’s mouth. CCFN is challenging the design community to come up with a solution to redefine and reverse this perception.
Impact: Fashion weeks have the potential to bring significant income to a city, such as New York, which generates an estimated $400 million in one week. The fashion industry in Los Angeles generates over 30 billion annually. With the lack of fashion week revenue, Atlanta’s fashion and apparel industry generates a modest 3 billion annually according to Allbusiness.com, although the city plays host to over 2100 companies that fit within this category as well as the AmericasMart.
Approach: CCFN is looking to create the “Official” Fashion Week of Atlanta, in partnership with the city, uniting qualified industry movers and shakers and spearheading the resources to produce a long-term bi-annual fashion week. A week that represents Atlanta as a fashion capital or “The Manhattan of the South,” as Samantha Brown of The Travel Channel asserted in her television segment covering Haute.lanta Fashion Week®. CCFN’s objective is to achieve world-class presentation, while building a significant and positive economic impact for Atlanta and its design and art community. We need to address negative attitudes toward Atlanta Fashion Week and brand Atlanta as the relevant and competitive fashion market that it is.”
Solution: The advisory board within the Couture Connoisseur Fashion Network is currently organizing a consortium, in which members of the fashion industry will be invited to participate on a panel and engage in dialogue about the state of fashion in Atlanta. Panel members will include city representatives, local designers, fashion schools such as SCAD, industry professionals, retail owners, major department store heads, and more. The panel will address significant concerns regarding the need for the Atlanta fashion community to work together as one to create an event that will not only provide financial rewards to the city, but also showcase Atlanta’s amazing talent.
We cannot make Atlanta Fashion Week bigger and better without YOU! Get Involved!
For more information about The Couture Connoisseur Fashion Network and or the Atlanta Fashion Week Consortium, please call 770.217.HLFW or
Email: Info@Atlantafashionweek.org.
References: The Politics of Fashion Week, Henry Miller, September 10, 2008 – The New York Sun; Atlanta Fashion Week has hard time catching on, Nedra Rhone, July 23, 2009, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Wikipedia (Fashion Week, Atlanta); New York Fashion Week, Cynthia Nellis, About.com Guide
ALSO READ HERE: http://pitch.pe/75653
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HLFW Model: Audinga in Youtheary Khmer Collection (of Atlanta). Backstage during Opening Night: Avante-Garde & Couture Collections
Haute.lanta Fashion Week '09 and '10 Model: Michira Williams 
HLFW Designer: Thomas Hooker for Prchaia and our second season intern, Kendahl Davis of Art Institute Atlanta)
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