Ever wondered what industry buyers get up to at Rosemount Australian Fashion Week? Sarah Pavillard, founder of online boutique Frockaholics, offers an insight into Day One of this year's industry event. Stay tuned for more...
Diary of a Frockaholic - Day 1
9.30am Arrive at Circular Quay. Meet with the rest of the team and collect passes for the week. Grab coffee. First of many. Look forward to a day of shows Monday and Tuesday. Lots of buying appointments scheduled for later in the week.
10.30am Seated for Ginger & Smart's show. A beautiful show for opening Fashion Week - new takes on Ginger & Smart's classic neon prints will have our customers clicking to pre-order and their recent accreditation by Ethical Clothing Australia will make a great talking point.
11.00am Scoot over to the MCA for an appointment with NMI to look at a few collections, including French label Iro - one for consideration. Also view Elissa Coleman which features some lovely customer-friendly prints and hand finished shapes. Have to dash for Camilla's show but will be back later in the week to see the ranges presented by emerging designers.
12.30pm Camilla's show is an absolute stand-out. Kaftan after beautiful kaftan sweeps down the runway, the staples as well as some fresh new styles. It's exciting viewing a show filled with clothing that we know that our Frockaholics will love. The only problem? The edit. Looking forward to tomorrows buying appointment.
1.30pm Lucette presents their first fashion week runway show. The brand continues to evolve and their urban tribal look will add a different element to our product pages.
2.00pm Met with journalist from the Sydney Morning Herald at the onsite Rosemount wine bar. Had a few quick snaps taken for a feature on buyers at fashion week. Incidentally, Frockaholics' co-owner and buyer Ros has been to 15 Australian Fashion Weeks. Every single one since its inception.
2.30pm
The first ready to wear group parade kicks off. Some talent amongst the new
designers showing, and one or two to watch over the next few years.
3.00pm Run back to car to off load bags and re-charge computer and phone (would be great to see some provision of phone and computer charging points for buyers at future fashion weeks!). Miss the next show.
4.30pm Rachel Gilbert sends her stand-out party frocks down the runway, perfect for formal and wedding season. A great designer who has a knack for producing excellent sellers. Requests are already hitting our in-box.
6.00pm Grab a drink and review tomorrow's schedule.
7.00pm
Aurelio Costarella's collection is simply sublime, and would fit in
beautifully on the runways in Paris. He is a designer who never
compromises.
8.00pm
Despite missing the first few looks because of too much smoke on the
runway, Bec and Bridge show a great commercial collection and we hope to feature
them in-store for summer.
8.15pm
Head back to accommodation. Lots to do before hitting bed, including
ensuring everything is in order for an early start tomorrow. Review the day's
website sales and approve mail-out.
1.00am Sweet sleep!