Wednesday 13 February 2013

Fashion Forward (FFWD) to Develop a Dynamic, Sustainable Platform for Regional Fashion in 2013



Collection showcase for emerging and established talent, Fashion Forum education module and industry award among highlights of twice-annual Fashion Forward (FFWD) event, delivered by Brag

Recognizing the need for a dynamic, sustainable platform to develop the region’s fashion industry, the entrepreneurs behind Brag, the leading experiential live marketing and event management agency, have created Fashion Forward (FFWD).

The inaugural Fashion Forward (FFWD) is scheduled to take place 26-29 April 2013 at Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai.  Three key elements differentiate FFWD as a regional fashion development platform: collection showcase opportunities in several distinct presentation areas for both established and emerging designers in the Middle East, a Fashion Forum education module to foster debate around key industry issues, and an awards event conferred by the Fashion Forward Association – Middle East, a trade body which supports the professional development of fashion in the GCC, Levant and North Africa.

“The Middle East has a wealth of design talent living and working across the region, as well as tremendous retail infrastructure and a keen base of shoppers – what we lack is a fashion movement to take the industry forward.  Fashion Forward (FFWD) has been created to address the development of the regional fashion sector as a whole – from identifying and fostering emerging designers to recognizing more established design houses, while furthering fashion debate, education and industry momentum,” said Bong Guerrero, Creative Director and chairman of Fashion Forward (FFWD) and managing partner of Brag.

During the next six months, FFWD Limited, the management behind FFWD, will work with the Fashion Forward Association Middle East (FFAME) – now in its formative stage -- to develop programming including panel presentations, workshops, and discussion sessions to complement the three catwalk areas within FFWD, providing a critical educational complement to the women’s wear and menswear collections being showcased.  Negotiations are currently underway with a number of leading luxury and blue-chip consumer brands to support FFWD ME for its first several seasons.

Anticipating almost unanimous participation from the region’s fashion community, FFWD Middle East will provide both emerging and established designers based in or originally from the Middle East with a platform to highlight their latest work to consumers, prospective buyers, industry decision-makers and the media.
Brag, the Middle East’s most trusted live marketing and event management agency, has been appointed to deliver FFWD, creating a vibrant, professionally-produced fashion platform that combines the designing flair of the region with the exacting standards of more mature markets. Created by Guerrero and Ramzi Nakad, who together bring more than two decades of experience in the region to FFWD, Brag has envisioned and brought to life some of the Middle East’s most talked-about events for clients including Mercedes Benz, Google, Virgin, Splash, Moet Hennessy, MMI, Puma, and Abraaj Capital.  Brag has previously collaborated with both celebrity and commercial designers to create must-attend fashion presentations across the region, from Dubai to Beirut.

“Fashion Forward (FFWD) is set to become a catalyst which spurs the creativity, infrastructure and professionalism of the region’s fashion players into a more cohesive, results-focused industry.  With the entrepreneurial spirit of this region as well as the increasing international profile of designers from the Middle East, now is the ideal time for FFWD to become a must-participate event for designers, industry experts and brands which are keen to see the region’s fashion sector develop to its full potential,” added Guerrero.

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