Sunday Times 2
Colombo Fashion Week goes to Galle
Fashion lovers will be swarming to Galle early next month when the Resort Wear edition of the Colombo Fashion Week hits the southern city. ”This is the second edition of the Resort Wear show,” said president of the organising committee Ajai V. Singh at a media briefing held last Wednesday, September 4 at the Jetwing Lighthouse Hotel in Galle. “It had always been my dream to take Colombo Fashion Week out of Colombo and to the rest of the country. Last year’s Resort Wear edition was held in Negombo.
Otara Gunawardene, Perine Fernando and Ramani Fernando. Pix by Nilan Maligaspe
The progress has been remarkable and I am truly happy to bring CFW to a historic, iconic city like Galle. It will help us not only to promote the hard work and talents of our local designers but also to promote local industries, use local community involvement as well as promote Galle as a tourist destination and a fashion hub of South Asia,” Ajai said.
This year’s show will see 14 designers; including 11 local designers present their collections on October 05 and 06, seven designers on each day. The event logo, the cockerel symbolises Galle Fort. The Resort Wear collection includes holiday wear, cruise wear and swim wear catering to a wide range – both men and women from teen-agers to the over 60s. The designs promised to be casual, hip and endorsed with the sunny island seal making Galle the ideal location for this year’s show.
“I’m truly glad to join hands with CFW as retail advisor for this year’s designers,” says the CEO of Odel PLC, Otara Gunawardene. “It’s every designer’s goal to find a market for their products. This is where I will come in with an hour’s consultation with every designer giving them advice on how to market and merchandise their products to meet the demand and help them develop their brands. I have been involved with CFW before with my own collections and this year as a sponsor. All the designers participating have a passion for fashion and it’s our duty to guide and nurture their interest,” Otara said. Twenty-three-year-old Sanoji Cyril graduated from Academy of Design two years ago and has her own brand called ‘I-JANOS’. Her inspiration has been the floating lotus, and she has put forward 16 designs for the show catering to women aged 18-25 whilst also launching another brand called ‘Sanoji’. She uses beeralu and other local products to give her designs a look of chic elegance.
Catherine Rawson, 32, originally from the UK is married to a Sri Lankan and has her own apparel shop catering to women between 30 and 60. “This is the first time I am concentrating on resort wear and I am very excited,” she says. She has used the silhouette effect to give her collection a relaxed and comfortable feel while also imparting a look of contemporary sophistication. Sammani Pathiranagama, 26, a professional designer with her own label- ‘Trivium’ specialises in men’s wear and so will be showcasing a men’s wear collection on the ramp aimed at men between 18 to 35. Blues, greys and prints predominate in keeping with her nautical theme. It’s for men who are daring and want to look cool, sexy and edgy, she says.
Ajai believes the development expected from the event is collective change. Not only are the designers given exposure but pride in Sri Lankan fashion designing has increased and sales have been boosted encouraging more designers into the field. Day One of the event will be a street show on Queen’s Street using the Galle Fort as the bckdrop while on the second day, it all happens at Jetwing Lighthouse, Galle.
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