New Aus Fashion Week showrooms a hit and miss

Designers who invested in boutique showrooms at Rosemount Australian Fashion Week (RAFW) managed to capitalise on strong international buyer traffic, despite a week of back-to-back runway shows. The on-site showrooms, located throughout Sydney's Overseas Passenger Terminal, were launched for the first time at RAFW spring/summer 2008.

New generation designer Ben Smith said he invested $6,500 in the space and picked up a number of key international wholesale and agent accounts as a result. The designer's womenswear label, Anon, is currently in its third season of operation.

"It was an ideal way to expose our collection to the various delegates who attend the week without having the extreme expense of all that a runway show entails," he said. "Sales are made in the showroom not on the runway."
However, the designer admitted organisers could have done more to drive buyer traffic.

"I think there needs to be more direct time allocated for delegates to view the showrooms," he said. "The schedule is too focused on show but [not] really on the business of fashion - the buying and selling of clothes."

Long-time exhibitor Estilo, which made the switch from exhibition area Emerge @ The Source to RAFW's boutique showrooms this year, recorded weaker sales than in previous instalments but said the standard of buyers improved. Sales manager Clare McPherson said the leather and accessory brand, which is still negotiating RAFW orders, had already managed to grow its international buyer base by five per cent.

"We feel it's good to have a presence overseas because we've already established ourselves," she said. "We're glad we made the switch to the showrooms because they're twice the size of a stand at The Source and we didn't want to minimise our showcase."

McPherson said the only "hurdle" was attempting to capitalise on as much foot traffic as possible, with the showroom located only in the top half of the Overseas Passenger Terminal.

"We only got the traffic that was geared towards the [Rosemount Wine] bar or the [runway collection room] OPT. Not every buyer had to go up into those areas and we felt there should have been more traffic than there was."

Womenswear label Hussy, which invested in a showroom in the lower half of the Overseas Passenger Terminal, said it was located in a strong position and attracted buyers from the UK, Middle East, USA and Asia. Business development manager Chloe Seddon said despite being an internationally established brand, the showrooms offered Hussy a stronger alternative to a runway show.

"With a show, you have a certain amount of garments which represent your collection and often buyers want to see the entire range and speak to you one-on-one," she said. "In terms of business, the showrooms were the best alternative for us."

By Assia Benmedjdoub