For the past four years, a selection of Australian designers have been invited to take part in a fashion trade event staged around the G’Day USA program. Assia Benmedjdoub reports on the 2010 New York Designer Fashion Showroom.
One week after nine local designers wheeled their collection racks through the halls of the Australian Consulate in New York, there was news which suggested their efforts had not been in vain. US retail sales should rise by 2.5 per cent over 2010, the country’s largest retail trade association claimed.
After a disastrous year for independents and major department stores alike – Bloomingdales reported a whopping $116 million loss for the nine months ending 31 October – the National Retail Federation assured businesses they’d made it through the worst of the economic downturn.
Chief economist Rosalind Wells predicted a slight increase in consumer spending for the year ahead, as signs of improvement in the US economy continued to appear.
“While we still expect shoppers to continue to be frugal with their discretionary spending, retailers will soon be able to reap the benefits of leaner, smarter inventories and a year-and-a-half of pent-up consumer demand.”
This was welcome news for Australian designer Katelyn Aslett, who invested around $10,000 to take part in a trade showcase targeted at American retailers last month. The 2010 Designer Fashion Showroom event saw over 30 American buyers, agents, stylists and journalists descend on the Australian Consulate in New York from 20 to 21 January.
Key trade representatives included Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman, Bloomingdales and Barneys; the latter of which reportedly visited several times.
This was the second year Aslett was invited to take part and, having just signed with New York-based agency Nexus Showroom, she is planning to expand her presence further over 2010/11.
“Last year was quite similar however, with a bit more of a cautious feel due to the economic climate,” she said.
“It’s a good event to get valuable feedback and to work out if you’re positioned in a place that suits the difficult US market. I’m looking forward to working with Nexus to build awareness and sales so I can head back next year with a larger and even more exciting collection. We will be part of New York Fashion Week, which is another big step.”
Aslett’s whimsical, hand-felted wool garments are currently sold through a small selection of boutiques across LA and San Francisco. Another brand which pushed its use of unique fabrications to buyers and media was cylk, a Melbourne-based womenswear label already making serious waves in the international market.
Having secured clients such as Henri Bendels and Fred Segal at the Coterie trade show in 2007, the brand presented its latest range of bamboo, silk, modal and wool garments to delegates in New York.
Brand manager Keshia Abeysekera said Barneys, Bergdorf Goodman and Bloomingdales were among those to show commercial interest in the label. Cylk’s soon-to-be-launched shapewear range, produced primarily from bamboo, generated the most interest from buyers, while consumer magazines Glamour and Nylon snapped up ready-to-wear garments for editorial spreads.
“While were over at the event, we were also able to set up meetings with showrooms and agents and are looking to appoint one of these in the coming weeks,” Abeysekera said.
“This will allow us to build momentum and establish a continuous presence in the market.”
The US currently represents five per cent of cylk’s total global exports, which include majors like Mitsukoshi Japan and Gio Moretti Milan.
For Sydney womenswear label Luela, also invited to take part in the event this year, the emphasis was on research over growth. Brand representative Jen Wakelin said as a newcomer to the market, the most important goal for Luela was to secure a showroom/ agent.
“As a result of the showcase we are now currently in negotiations with several New York showrooms who are interested in representing the label. In terms of retailers, there was particular interest from Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman and Barneys.”
Austrade’s New York-based senior trade commissioner Gerard Seeber, one of those involved in coordinating the event, said potential buyer interest would be followed up in coming weeks.
“The uptake really surprised us given it’s been a generally flat year in retail here,” he said. “In tough times, retailers look for something new and different, and walking into the showroom you could see it bursting with great colours and it was very fresh, right from the high-end looks to casual.”
Other labels which participated in the 2010 instalment included Vanguard, Dana Mathers, Amar and Pizzuto.