HSBC Colombo Fashion Week collaborates with Turkey to explore opportunities in fashion development

Tunca Ozcuhadar (left) and Ajai Vir Singh 

• Istanbul a seat of Asian and European confluence in fashion and textile now collaborates with Sri Lanka

HSBC Colombo Fashion Week, in its 16th year, as per the vision The Next 15 expands the scope to include formal international collaborations to create opportunities for Sri Lankan designers and for the fashion design industry of Sri Lanka. This collaboration with the Embassy of Turkey will open doors of collaborations with the fashion design industry in Turkey in a deeper way.

Istanbul sits comfortably on the banks of the Bosporus, being the meeting point of East and West, and more than a mere physical position it has been a centre r of confluence from textiles, to influence in fashion, from being the leading producer of cotton, to also being a manufacturer. Its tradition dates back to thousands of years, goes back to time before BC. 

“I am excited with this collaboration as I see this develop into something significant for the fashion design industry, it holds great potential for us in Sri Lanka in fashion design. I am also thankful to the Ambassador Tunca Ozcuhadar for facilitating this, as he understood where we were headed with this. Year 2019 is an interesting year with the expanded vision which leads us steadily. There is more to come,” said CFW Founder and Managing Director Ajai Vir Singh.

As the first step in this collaboration, an important Turkish designer, Cigdem Arkin, will show her Summer collection at Colombo Fashion Week on Day 2, that is 28 February. She has been inspired by Sri Lanka in her point for this collection.

“Since the existence of human beings, people have dressed to cover themselves for warmth or to protect themselves from the elements of the nature or for cultural/religious reasons. Another motivation to dress has been to look attractive and get attention. The need to dress created their own economy. Thanks to this basic need, Turkey exported $ 17.6 billion worth of garments/apparel in 2018. Today, with around 200 professional fashion designers, Turkey is an important player in the world of fashion design.

“I am very pleased that Çiğdem Akın, a Turkish fashion designer, is taking part in the Colombo Fashion Week this year. For the first time, this will give the opportunity to the Sri Lankan audience to get a glimpse of Turkish fashion design. I am looking forward for more cooperation in the fashion design field and textile industry between the two countries,” said Ambassador Ozcuhadar.

One of the objectives of Colombo Fashion Week is to create a knowledge-sharing platform between international and Sri Lankan designers as this medium expands exposure between both and mutually benefits the craft of fashion. 

This has been done successfully since the beginning with important international designers from Spain, Italy, France, India, US, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Malaysia showcasing and interacting with Sri Lankan designers. This has also opened the doors for Sri Lankan designers to show in US, France, Dubai, Malaysia, Russia, India and Hong Kong, among others.

Colombo Fashion Week is planned for 27 February to 2 March and will be hosted at the Hilton Colombo, Shangri-La Hotel and Galle Face Hotel.

Each partner of the Fashion Week is a partner in the vision to create and develop a unique identity for Sri Lanka through the development of the fashion design industry. Title Partner HSBC, Official Hotel Partners Hilton Colombo, Shangri-La Colombo and Galle Face Hotel Colombo. Tresemme is the Official Hair Care Partner, SML Frontier Automotive – Jaguar Land Rover is the Luxury Automobile Partner, Vision Care is the Official Eyewear Partner, Serenia Residences is the Official Residences Partner, Ramani Fernando is the Official Hair and Make-up Partner, Hameedia, Colombo City Walks, Mullen Lowe as the Official PR Partner, Emerging Media as the Outdoor Digital Media Partner and Daily Mirror, Sunday Times, Daily FT, Hi-Magazine,  Hi-TV, Hi-Online – all who share and extend their support towards the vision and aspirations of CFW.

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