DURBAN - South African Menswear Week announced that for their July 2020 scheduled showcasing for the Spring/Summer 21 collections will be held online.
Three days of live-streamed virtual shows will be presenting over 24 designers in the best of menswear, and for the first time on the platform, selected womenswear designers.
Speaking to Jen Deiner, the head of production for SAMW and director of Group of Creatives, says that a virtual week is not simply about filming shows and live streaming them.
“There’s got to be a visual texture, and a glue holding the hour-long stream together, we’ve worked hard to ensure that the designer’s shows are optimised for this new format, working on choreography, set design and even the timing of the camera cuts and perspective to keep it interesting,” she said.
The fully virtual platform for July will also be directly linking garments and designers to the new Cape Town Fashion Council Marketplace, a dedicated designer store for the designers to directly retail to consumers.
“The digital link of seeing a show and immediately being able to click and pre-order that garment for shipping a week or so later has never been done before,” said Kerry Bell, CEO of Cape Town Fashion Council.
“We work hard to support and grow designer businesses, and now finally we have a last-step in assisting with a retail channel, closing the show to sales loop that has been missing at fashion weeks,” added Bell.
With SA Menswear Week leading the charge into digital fashion, Deiner also touches on the challenges of putting together a show like this.
“The comprehensive backstage and showcasing Covid-19 protocols and segmented approach, from makeup to catwalk rehearsals, and we can see that the challenges of holding a fashion week under these conditions require planning beyond the usual steps. And if that wasn’t enough,” she said.
SA Menswear Week SS21 Collections will live stream from 29 to 31 July 2020 via multiple platforms, so please check www.menswearweek.co.za for the full schedule and designer line up.
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