If you pride yourself on staying on top of the latest clothing styles and trends, then attending Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York City is probably a must on your to-do-list. This special event is held in Manhattan’s Bryant Park every September and February, and gives some of the most prestigious designers the chance to showcase their latest collections for fashion buyers and merchandisers, fashion journalists, celebrities and other notable fashion trend setters.
What To Expect
Fashion week usually lasts for a week, as the name implies, and is always held well in advance of the season being spotlighted. This can make it complicated, but if you think about it, it makes sense since the fashion shows offer a chance to introduce upcoming trends and allow buyers to order clothing for the upcoming season. So for instance, Fall 2008 was held in the winter of 2008, while the show held in the fall of 2008 is to reveal the clothing planned for spring 2009. There is generally a total of about 80 or so of the most well-known and most respected designers who will host their own individual shows. About 100,000 people typically attend this whirlwind of events.
History
The “tradition” of hosting a fashion week in New York dates back to 1943. During World War II, American fashion buyers and press weren’t able to travel to Paris to see the latest fashion shows, so a fashion insider in the U.S. organized a similar event (originally called Press Week) for American designers to show their lines. It’s worth noting that back then, only the fashion magazines were invited to attend. Buyers had to view the collections in the various designer showrooms at a separate time. Following the end of the war, the shows returned to Europe, but in the 1990s a New York fashion week was established as a regular event.
Today, it’s more convenient than ever to attend fashion week near where you live or work, since there is now one held in many major cities around the U.S. and also around the world. However, the four main fashion weeks today where the upcoming season’s trends are truly set are held in London, Paris, Milan and New York. And keep in mind that just how convenient and “easy to attend” these events are is relative, depending on who you are or who you represent. In fact, New York fashion week is an extremely exclusive event.
The Invitation List
Some of the smaller fashion weeks held around the country do sell tickets to the public. But in New York, space is at a premium and as a rule, only VIPS get in. In fact, the events in the Bryant Park tent are by limited to top industry representatives, buyers, merchandisers, well-known media outlets and celebrities.
