Auckland’s Inaugural Fashion Festival Set to Impre

Auckland’s Inaugural Fashion Festival Set to Impress

The inaugural Auckland Fashion Festival is open for business with tickets to the opening show officially on sale today.

16 of New Zealand’s leading designers will take to the runway on March 16 with the first public showing of their Autumn/Winter 2010 collections in a spectacular A-List event.

The full list of designers is impressive, including: Adrian Hailwood, Andrea Moore, Annah Stretton, Barkers, Cybele, Helen Cherry/Workshop, Huffer, Juliette Hogan, Kate Sylvester, Moochi, Paula Ryan, Stolen Girlfriends, Trelise Cooper and Zambesi. The Carpenters Daughter will show their sassy styles for the fuller figure and Ed Hardy will be the first international brand on show this season – and it is expected that this number will boom in future seasons.

Created by New Zealand Fashion Week founders Pieter and Myken Stewart, the Auckland Fashion Festival will become an essential stop on the Auckland fashion calendar.

In this first year, the Festival comprises one major show and a weekend Designer Garage Sale, but in future years will expand to include a full schedule of shows and events around the city for the fashion public.

“We wanted to create a fashion festival that everyone could attend,” says Pieter. “Fashion Week is primarily a trade event and is closed to the public, so we have created a Fashion Festival that is open to all the fashion followers of New Zealand,” she said.

“And what is more, the garments shown on the runway at the Auckland Fashion Festival are in-season and immediately available in store,” said Pieter.

Visitors to the opening night are in for a treat, with a delicious flute of Pelorus NV by Cloudy Bay on arrival, before the designers will take to the runway, each showing 10 garments each from their Autumn/Winter collection to live mixed-music by George FM djs. Afterwards guests can party til late with djs music and cash bar.

Only 700 seats will be available to the show at $45 per guest and are expected to quickly sell out.

The New Zealand Herald Designer Garage Sale also returns as part of the festival, with its first showing at the end of our longest and hottest season – summer. Around 40 designers will be putting their end of summer garments on the racks at dramatically discounted prices.

Designer Garage Sale spokesman Paul Blomfield, said that the sale is growing at around 40 percent each year and it was logical to create one in the biggest season on the New Zealand calendar. “Around 13,000 came to the Designer Garage Sale last November and we know they’ll be excited to return for another season and another exciting collection of designers,” he said.

Tickets to the inaugural Auckland Fashion Festival can be bought through www.iticket.co.nz.

Thanks to Sponsors: The New Zealand Herald; official print media partner, George FM, Cloudy Bay, Pelorus NV Pandora Jewellery and Tresemme.

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