Emerging and established local fashion designers celebrated on March 2 as they marked the start of a new partnership to host the 11-year-old Fiji Fashion Week with a new partnership and sponsor.
The designers, all members of the Fashion Designers Alliance of Fiji (FDAF) will now in effect be partners with Fashion Week Ltd, the holding company which runs FJFW.
FJFW managing director Ellen Whippy-Knight, who hosted the designers at a party to mark the partnership, said FWL and FDAF would co-host the event this year.
The French owned BRED Bank have come on board as major sponsor to FJFW which will be held at the FMF Gymnasium in Laucala Bay on May 25 and 26.
“The idea is that this year they see how I run it. Next year they, FDAF will be running it with the help of our project manager and then after it whether the Alliance feels it is something they want to do and they will take it on as something they want to do as a show for the designers, run by the designers and owned by the designers,” Ms Whippy-Knight said.
“We have a really fantastic memorandum of understanding here which will basically make sure we run a 200 per cent show together.”
FJFW will not be sold to FDAF but instead be licensed to the designer organisation at a token price.
Ms Whippy-Knight said the organisation was pleased to be partnering with BRED Bank, the second biggest bank in France, which is largely considered the fashion capital of the world.
Fiji Times Ltd, Fiji TV and Communications Fiji Ltd are media partners of FJFW.
