Togetherness way to fashion success

By DITA DE BONI

Six local fashion designers have banded together to attract Trade New Zealand dollars and put themselves on the international catwalk at the Mercedes Australian Fashion Week in May.

The costly event has traditionally featured only New Zealand's highest-profile labels, such as Karen Walker, Kate Sylvester and Zambesi.

But this year, knitwear producers Andrea Moore and Sabatini, screen-prints fabric designer DNA, evening wear maker Carlson and contemporary labels State of Grace and Silk Road will stage two exhibition shows at Fox Studios, the venue for the fashion fiesta.

Trade New Zealand said that because the group was able to demonstrate clear foreign exchange earnings in a business plan, it would chip in $20,000. But it will still cost the group well over $40,000 to take part. Trade New Zealand account manager Anne Chappaz said the cost to the six was well worth it, because smaller labels would gain great benefit from being marketed under the New Zealand brand.

"New Zealand Designers Inc, if you like, has a high profile in fashion and one that will help attract key media and business interests," she said.

The six producers are already exporting to Australia, but hope to build that market and impress the 15,000-plus industry representatives scheduled to attend, including international media reps from Vogue, Elle and CNN Style.

"Australian Fashion Week is a well-established platform for showcasing design talent and for creating new business in Australia and worldwide," says State of Grace designer Caroline Church, who is also co-ordinating the network.

New Zealand's apparel exports to Australia dropped in the late 1990s. The country sent $130 million worth of apparel across the Tasman - excluding textiles - in 1999, down from $147 million in 1998.

Some of the shortfall is because New Zealand companies now largely manufacture overseas, so some portion of their products might not be counted in domestic export statistics.