Sri Lanka apparel industry on Design Festival catwalk

Tuesday, 25 October 2011 01:46 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

For the third consecutive year, the Sri Lanka Design Festival showcases Sri Lanka’s award-winning apparel industry to a specifically invited global audience of buyers, retailers, sourcing specialists and backward integration supply chain partners.

A key event of this apparel industry agenda at the festival is its Apparel Industry Fashion Show.

The fashion show is to be an extravagant display of international collections of lingerie, swimwear, performance sports and formal wear designed and showcased by the hidden stars behind our apparel industries budding design departments matched with the technology from an industry that supplies to some of the best brands in the world. Some of the names showing are MAS, Brandix, Hirdaramani, Penguin, Orient, Timex, Union and Hayleys.

Along with some specific design – industry special collaborations from Textured Jersey and Coats – SLDF partners along with other collaborative collections from MAS Linea Aqua, Emerald Shirts and Orit Jeans. These collections promise to be a great preview to Sri Lanka apparel’s evolution from a mainly manufacturing based industry to a knowledge-based one.

Paying tribute to the one million employees of the apparel industry, who are the driving force behind Sri Lanka’s largest export revenue generator, is the second showing of the fashion show. The show gives special focus to apparel industry employees – a majority of whom are women – allowing them to view the results of their labour. SLDF requests industry leaders to take advantage of this opportunity to host their employees to view this show.

The festival will take place from 16 to 20 November at the Mount Lavinia Hotel. Tickets are available online on www.srilankadesignfestival.com or from the festival secretariat at at Academy of Design (AOD), 29, Lauries Road, Colombo 4. For more information call on +94 11 5737303 or drop by between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. from Monday to Saturday.

SLDF is conceptualised and organised by AOD – Academy of Design www.aod.lk – a dynamic catalyst of the local creative industries’ growth. AOD organises SLDF in partnership with key stakeholders, the Ministry of Economic Development and the Joint Apparel Association Forum – the apex body of the Sri Lankan apparel industry.

Other key partners include Sri Lanka Tourism, Mount Lavinia Hotel – Festival Host, Sri Lankan Airlines – Official Airline, Coats – Official Thread Partner, Textured Jersey – Official Fabric Partner, Trade Card – Official Software Partner and Hellmann – Official Shipping and Logistics Partner along with Knowledge Partner – British Council, Sparklink Travels, Bates Strategic Alliance PR, CG Hair and Makeup, Social mIdea, Norwegian Embassy and Addikt Design Movement.