THE Mother City is set to strike a pose when the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Cape Town (MBFWCT) takes place at the Cape Town International Conference Centre (CTICC) from July 25-28 with legends of past fashion weeks making a return to the limelight this year to unveil their Spring/Summer 2012 collections on avant-garde runway shows.
Now in its 10th year – and the first for its new sponsor – Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Cape Town has secured the return of established designers after a hiatus of varying periods of time. Big names include Hip Hop, Habits by Jenny le Roux and Rosenwerth along with the appearance of exciting new designers to the AFI platform such as Rachel De Mart, Adriaan Kuiters and Ruald Rheeder.
In addition, revered fashion designer and convener of the inaugural Cape Town Fashion Week in 2003, Gavin Rajah, will also be showcasing his grand collection. Other designers showing collections in MBCTFW will be announced in coming weeks.
With 18 shows over four days, this year Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Cape Town presents a theme of “icons” – from fashion to cars and venues – to add an extra dimension of global relevance, innovation and lifestyle to this, one of Africa’s premier fashion events.
“Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Cape Town, brought to you by AFI, will bring a new interpretation of iconic fashion to this pre-eminent preview of South Africa’s spring/summer seasonal trends,” says African Fashion International (AFI) Global Brand Manager Allana Finley.
Full Press Release
LEGENDS RETURN TO THE RUNWAY
Stage is set for Mother City’s most beguiling occasion
THE Mother City is set to strike a pose when the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Cape Town (MBFWCT) takes place at the Cape Town International Conference Centre (CTICC) from July 25-28 with legends of past fashion weeks making a return to the limelight this year to unveil their Spring/Summer 2012 collections on avant-garde runway shows.
Now in its 10th year – and the first for its new sponsor – Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Cape Town has secured the return of established designers after a hiatus of varying periods of time. Big names include Hip Hop, Habits by Jenny le Roux and Rosenwerth along with the appearance of exciting new designers to the AFI platform such as Rachel De Mart, Adriaan Kuiters and Ruald Rheeder.
In addition, revered fashion designer and convener of the inaugural Cape Town Fashion Week in 2003, Gavin Rajah, will also be showcasing his grand collection. Other designers showing collections in MBCTFW will be announced in coming weeks.
With 18 shows over four days, this year Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Cape Town presents a theme of “icons” – from fashion to cars and venues – to add an extra dimension of global relevance, innovation and lifestyle to this, one of Africa’s premier fashion events.
“Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Cape Town, brought to you by AFI, will bring a new interpretation of iconic fashion to this pre-eminent preview of South Africa’s spring/summer seasonal trends,” says African Fashion International (AFI) Global Brand Manager Allana Finley
“With the anticipated reunion of established and celebrated designers along with the entry of upcoming designers, this year promises to unveil an abundance of extraordinary and revolutionary fashion.”
With the emphasis on iconic fashion, criteria for designers chosen to take part in Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Cape Town include standards of global relevance, commercial viability, innovation and distinctive design.
Acclaimed Cape Town designer Rosenwerth has long defined the essence of glamour, style and elegance with a range of spectacular wedding & ball gowns and ready-to-wear garments, for which the label has been awarded numerous accolades including the J&B Rare Designer Award and the Fairlady Catherine Award.
With a coveted quarter century lifespan and a distinctive custom-glamorous design essence, Hip Hop has long been the go-to label for formal, semi-formal, casual and trend pieces as well as iconic designs for matric & formal dance and bridesmaids dresses.
Finding a glorious balance between chain store and couture boutique styling, Jenny le Roux’s Habits ready-to-wear label, meanwhile, has been at the forefront of virtual fashion since the launch of its 2002 online fashion website.
New to Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Cape Town, Rachel De Mart epitomizes high-end fashion with signature black dresses much-desired by an elite clientele of fashion-conscious women.
Two strong new additions to the menswear genre include the Adriaan Kuiters label that offers timeless, tailored pieces with classic edges in a muted palette as well as Ruald Rheeder, the popular men’s label in YDE, who also produces custom couture designs for an array of elite clients and celebrities
AFI will also host AFI Fastrack Seminars during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Cape Town. To be held on 27 July at the CTICC, in providing education and inspiration for the development and success of the fashion industry, the seminars will include presentations by Foschini head of design, Johan Crouse, a report on global fashion industry trends, and an exclusive “icons of fashion” panel discussion.
History: The Cape Town Fashion Week launched in 2003 and was one of the first events to be held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre.
About AFI
African Fashion International (AFI) presents African fashion and creative talent in a manner that makes local talent globally relevant and ensures that the world has market access to African product and design. Through the organisation’s promotion, curation and support, AFI ensures that the international community responds positively and commercially to African-designed products, which are available, unique and on-trend. Through its numerous Fashion Weeks and initiatives, AFI opens up the continent to commercial projects, both locally and internationally, increasing the geographic spread of Africa’s fashion and the market access to the continent’s apparel.
African Fashion International showcases the best designers from the continent, offering them access to domestic and international market share while also growing a platform for the sustainability of the fashion industry in Africa in creating jobs through fashion and developing new designers in its Fastrack progamme. . .”
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