What will the Final chapter in a high level shake up of trade fair fashion exposed mean for traders at the event this month? Pippa Chambers reports.
Just over two weeks before Christmas, the director of Fashion Exposed revealed she had sold her share in the Australian company she founded and would be departing by year’s end.
Marie Kinsella, who launched Australian Exhibitions and Conferences (AEC) in 1997, had run 24 cycles of the nation’s premier fashion trade event under AEC since 2000.
The change-up had been in the pipeline for some months, and by the time of her official departure on December 12, Elissa Duke, who had been exhibition manager for three years, was announced as new exhibition director. These developments dated back to 2010, when the largest publically owned organiser of conferences in the world, Informa, acquired AEC and its cluster of trade events. Having spent 12 months learning the ropes, event guru and new managing director Harvey Stockbridge has now fully taken over control from Kinsella.
He says the company is well armed to meet the needs of the sector.
“Moving forward, the whole industry faces challenges, but with the reputation and knowledge I’ve inherited from Marie, I know that Fashion Exposed will be there, leading the way as Australia’s most successful fashion event.”
Stockbridge, who previously worked at Informa and IIR Telecoms, explains how this year a two-staged area will become a multi-functioning space that will morph between business seminars, to a full program of ‘dynamic’ fashion shows under the Live Look Books initiative. The recently launched ‘concierge service’ will also continue, allowing buyers to access personalised advice on how to navigate the show and where to find the labels and products they are looking for.
“With our renewed focus on positioning Fashion Exposed as a true business event for the fashion industry, exhibitors and visitors alike can expect to see some great new initiatives and
exciting changes within the event,” Stockbridge says. “I do think we can improve on the event and we should aim to do that every season, not so much just on the look and feel of the show, but in getting back to basics for our industry – it’s about buyers and sellers doing business on the show floor.”
Stockbridge and his team have also developed a comprehensive and targeted business seminar program, which will be held over the three days at Fashion Exposed, across two separate stages. Industry professionals, who are experts in their respective fields, have been secured to speak across a number of key topics - from sessions on how to achieve 80 per cent sell-through on new arrivals in-store, to the latest developments in international trends and how to increase online presence.
“As we all know, the fashion industry runs at a very fast pace, so in order for Fashion Exposed to remain relevant and important to the industry we must continue to change and evolve,”
Stockbridge added. “Across all of my previous roles there’s one common theme that I’ve strived to deliver and that’s putting sellers in touch with relevant buyers - be that through fantastic
industry shows such as Fashion Exposed or with advertisers reaching out to readers.”
Stockbridge says together with the Fashion Exposed team, who all come from backgrounds within the fashion industry working for the likes of Harris Scarfe and Frontline Stores, they will
continue to make the event the driving force behind the industry by adding to and improving it each year. He says each member of the group speaks to an average of 150 wholesalers and
retailers every week, gaining insight into industry trends, knowledge on movements and new directions.
“This first-hand information keeps the team on the ball and up-to-date with the industry, which can then be translated into new developments across the show,” Stockbridge says.
Stockbridge says buyers want to be able to specify product, but also be educated on how to run their businesses more effectively, learn from international best practice and network with their industry peers. This year, he says Fashion Exposed is fully embracing this concept over the three days by adding more seminar sessions aimed at both metropolitan and regional retailers.
“We understand that the role of trade shows has changed and evolved over the years and we now need to deliver the ‘complete’ experience to the visitor,” Stockbridge explains. “Our team is not only dedicated to delivering an event that is relevant with regards to trends and collections on show, but to also ensuring visitors to the event complete their experience feeling
inspired, educated and motivated.”