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CFW is the first fashion week in Asia to focus on Resort Wear and propel the growth of the season regionally. This shows the importance that CFW places on developing a season, which is relatively new in the world of fashion and is growing rapidly.
“In our efforts to make an impact on the international fashion scene, we continuously evaluate our strengths and identify opportunities. We have been closely following the growth of Resort Wear which is still in its initial stages and we realised this season is very relevant to Sri Lanka and this region. Given that Sri Lanka is a vibrant, tropical country, designing for this season comes very naturally to our designers. We realised that Resort Wear is one of CFW’s greatest strengths so we started focusing on it more. CFW is committed to uplifting Sri Lankan fashion and is leading the development of the Resort Wear season in Asia,” said Ajai V. Singh, President, Colombo Fashion Week.
Colombo Fashion Week, in the last decade, has found its own 
niche and has created a valuable platform for Sri Lankan designers. CFW is popularly known as the backbone of Sri Lanka’s fashion design industry and the Resort edition of the show has become a highly anticipated event. CFW is one of the few fashion weeks in the region that is over 10 years old.
Now in its 11th year, CFW has also become an important South Asian platform where designers from neighbouring Bangladesh, Pakistan and India regularly showcase their work. Many of th
ese designers share common environments and challenges and CFW is the first platform of its kind in South Asia that provides an opportunity for them to interact and share their knowledge and experiences.
CFW, which showcases its Spring and Summer seasons in February every year, added Resort Wear as its second season in 2012.The Resort edition of CFW takes place between September and October each year and provides a platform for designers to showcase their work and their new fashion perspectives for the season. CFW also plays a crucial role in driving retailing opportunities for designers.
Now in its third season, the HSBC Colombo Fashion Week Resort Show, premiers from 1 to 4 October 2014 at Jetwing Blue and Jetwing Beach in Negombo. The showcase will include ‘Bright Spark’ shows featuring 15 of the brightest emerging fashion designers in Sri Lanka on 1 and 2 October, followed by 20 shows featuring established Sri Lankan fashion designers on 3 and 4 October.
Focusing on the Fashion + Food series of CFW, a Michellin star chef from Paris and an internationally acclaimed Malaysian chef will provide special menus for the first two days of the show and the menus will continue to evolve until the show comes to a close on 5 October. Additionally, six iconic restaurants on the famous Negombo strip and the renowned tourist street will participate in the show by creating interesting menus throughout the week. 
This year the noteworthy HSBC CFW Resort Show workshop will be held on 4 October and will focus on the theme titled, ‘The use of indigenous textiles in fashion’. Renowned designers Bibi Russell, Harare and Abraham & Takore will also join the workshop to share their knowledge and experience.
The HSBC CFW Resort Show will end with a fabulous, themed after-party on 4 October following the final show. Anticipated to be the party event of the season, tickets for the after-party are now on sale.
The CFW partners this year include; HSBC, Colombo Jewellery Stores, Land Rover, Jetwing, Ponds, TATA Housing, Vision Care, Spa Ceylon, Brandix, Wineworld, Hameedia, Hellmann Logistics, Leo Burnett, Cotton Collection, zMessenger, Ramani Fernando Salons, Mal-key rent-a-car and Fashion TV.
Those interested can follow the CFW official website on www.colombofashionweek.com and the official CFW Facebook page on www.facebook.com/colombofashionweek for regular updates.
