PARIS — Despite supply chain pressures like the rising cost of raw materials, things are looking up for the next round of Paris trade shows.
Organizers of the Première Vision textiles salon said they expect the positive attendance trends reflected in recent sessions internationally to maintain momentum in the first half of 2011. The July edition of fledgling show Première Brasil in São Paulo, for instance, saw a 50 percent leap in visitors, while attendance at the long-established Paris edition of Première Vision in September rose by 7 percent versus the equivalent session in 2009, with more than 42,000 visits.
PV said it plans to add seminars tailored to the needs of buyers from emerging countries such as China and Russia. For its upcoming sessions, it has also focused efforts on developing its Web services, spanning preregistration, links to exhibitors’ sites and illustrated fashion information.
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Men’s wear will be among the main focuses at the next edition of adjoining apparel and accessories trade shows Who’s Next and Premiere Classe, reflecting heightened levels of creativity in the sector. The shows are scheduled to run Jan. 22 to 25 at Porte de Versailles.
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“It’s a market that is rapidly expanding with subtle evolutions in style,” said Luc Biermé, commercial director and manager of men’s wear collections for the fairs.
Biermé noted a shift from classic men’s wear to a more “natural,” casual mood, with a focus on comfort. Among some 100 brands due to present men’s wear lines at Who’s Next are new exhibitors Hussein Chalayan, Polo de Deauville and Daggs.
Prêt à Porter Paris, also running concurrently, will ring in its January edition with a new advertising campaign designed by Market Place that features a model suspended in a gravity-defying position, designed to convey movement and new takes on fashion and accessories trends. The salon will feature eight fashion and accessories sectors, including a new division devoted to luggage, Secret By, which is expected to draw about 30 exhibitors, said Muriel Piaser, its director.
Coming off of a “positive” season, with a strong turnout for the most recent edition of Premiere Classe at the Tuileries Gardens in October, Sylvie Pourrat, the show’s director, said designers were feeling upbeat.
“It’s a good moment for accessories and there are still a good number of new brands coming into the market,” she said.
Accessories brands due to present men’s lines at the fair’s upcoming edition in January include Epice for scarves, Borsalino for hats and Mamet for leather goods.
At fabric fair Texworld, the outlook was also bright. Attendance was basically flat, registering a 0.7 percent dip at the September edition, which drew 14,764 visitors. Rising raw materials prices were prompting buyers to make decisions more rapidly, with the bulk of deals struck on the first day of the four-day show, said Michael Scherpe, president of producer Messe Frankfurt France.
“We were no longer used to this kind of behavior, since in recent years prices have been more in favor of the buyers, who could afford to wait until the last day and still get a good deal or even a discount,” he noted.
For the next edition, scheduled for a four-day run beginning Feb. 7 at Le Bourget, organizers plan to group exhibitors into three categories — women’s, men’s and sportswear casual — instead of by raw material.
Clarity and accessibility will be the key words at the Tranoï Woman show, which takes place March 4 to 7. Its format will continue to evolve within the Carrousel du Louvre, one of its four Paris venues, which hosts avantgarde designers.
“In terms of the facilities and the zones, the show will be even more pleasant to navigate,” said organizer Michael Hadida. “We’ll be avoiding alleys with stands, that kind of standardized approach, and focusing more on quality of service.”
In the foyer of the venue, nonprofessional visitors will be able to view the previous day’s fashion shows in 3-D, in addition to ordering selected items by 10 designers six months before they go on sale in stores. The initiative is part of Tranoï’s ongoing efforts to engage with the general public, which includes the launch of its e-commerce site in late September.
“Opening up to the general public is a new target for us,” Hadida said. “We are just starting out, but we have been getting good feedback. We are quite surprised. It’s generating buzz.”
Designers & Agents is expanding its D&A Paris show in March. The second edition of D&A Paris will grow to two locations: the Galerie Nikki Diana Marquardt, the show’s original venue at 10 Rue de Turenne on March 5 to 8, and a new larger space, Blancs Manteaux, at 48 Rue Vieille du Temple, on March 4 to 6.