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Executive Board Member FDCSL Upeksha Haeger, Executive Board Member FDCSL Dirk Flamer Caldera, Executive Board Member FDCSL Fouzul Hameed, Executive Board Member FDCSL Ajai V. Singh, Executive Board Member FDCSL Yoland Aluwihare and Executive Board Member FDCSL Darshi Keertisena – Pic by Sameera Wijesinghe
By Shehana Dain
After three years of work in progress, the Fashion Design Council of Sri Lanka (FDCSL) was officially launched yesterday to champion the designer community and make fashion a major industry.
Prior to the launch of the FDCSL, Council members studied the strategies and structures of other fashion councils around the world, in order to formulate an effective model.
Over the last 10 years, the fashion industry in Sri Lanka has found a direction and a voice, due to which it is evolving and thriving. This new focus has helped local designers build many fashion labels which have grown in popularity in both Sri Lanka and in the international fashion arena.
Promoters of FDCSL said fashion design councils were not private companies but associations which had a common goal – to help fashion designers to develop their businesses and labels. The FDCSL will fulfil this purpose by promoting the common interests of Sri Lankan fashion designers and by creating an environment in which the commercial aspects of each designer’s business can flourish.
The FDCSL is the only association that represents fashion designers and fashion labels with a prospective of a fashion design industry in Sri Lanka. The council will comprise especially selected founding members and a board of trustees.
An Executive Board of six acclaimed fashion designers and personalities – Yoland Aluwihare, Fouzul Hameed, Darshi Keerthisena, Ajai V. Singh, Upeksha Hager and Dirk Flamer Caldera – will oversee the functions of the council.
Additionally, three committees have been created to focus on different aspects of the fashion design industry. Membership in the FDCSL will be available under different categories and will be based on a designer’s experience, employment and achievements.
“Four to five years ago, Fouzul Hameed approached me with thoughts of forming a council for all designers. Since then, both of us have worked on developing this council. We carefully studied other fashion councils before creating a structure for Sri Lanka, which includes the participation of all leading designers,” said Ajai V. Singh, Executive Board Member, FDCSL.
“The FDCSL will be a great platform for all of our local designers. The council includes many experienced designers as its members and, through them, upcoming designers will be guided and taught the art of building their brands and businesses,” said Fouzul Hameed, Executive Board Member, FDCSL.
“Through the formation of this council, we hope to get the support of the Government so that we can further develop the fashion design industry in Sri Lanka. Since Sri Lanka is a manufacturing base, it is very easy for designers to manufacture quality labels and establish themselves as leading professionals in fashion design.”
FDCSL also emphasised on the need for a major thrust from the Government to make fashion and design a major industry with the State as a key stakeholder.
“We need a voice and a common platform where we can promote Sri Lankan labels beyond Sri Lanka. The Government has the resources and the funding which they could bring forward to the design fraternity,” Singh said at the launch of the organisation, which was also attended by other prominent industry leaders.
At the event it was stressed that the main objective of the Council was to take the Sri Lankan fashion industry to the international market via trade fairs and exhibitions. Singh was confident that this would most likely expose Sri Lankan designers to a robust environment, which will be created by the relevant Government officials during the next three years.
He also said import and export concessions had always provided a green light to the apparel industry rather than to the fashion industry.
Singh highlighted: “A lot of policy making is done around the apparel industry due to lack of knowledge. We need to create awareness that it’s the need of the hour for the fashion industry; more conducive methods for fabric sourcing is a must.”
He also pointed out the need to recognise the fashion industry as body to promote and market the brand so the world will know Sri Lanka not only as an apparel hub but also a place for fashion forward consumers.
Yoland Aluwihare, one of Sri Lanka’s most reputed fashion designers who was a driving force since the fashion industry was in its infancy here, highlighted the complications of fabric sourcing faced by local designers.
“Most young designers use pure silk which is available in Sri Lanka at a very high price; the minimum quantity we have to order is 2,000 metres – this would cost about Rs. 1 million which they cannot afford”
She also noted this issue could be resolved by acting as a committee and requesting the relevant officials to procure in bulk and distribute among the designers.
Aluwihare shared her experiences with the opportunity EDB gave her to showcase at the Frankfurt International Trade Fair and Sri Lankan Embassies abroad, which gave her a chance to showcase her designs, becoming a stepping stone for her success today. She stated that she is confident FDCSL would be a platform which would be a starting point for many fashion entrepreneurs
She also called for support from Sri Lankan luxury hotels, asking them to provide a platform to showcase their designs during tourist seasons. “The hotels will benefit from it as well and it also provides entertainment for tourists.”
She went on to relate her success story which was very cost effective and led to the opening of her own designer-ware store at Bentota Beach Hotel.
Open to designers from all over the country, the Council is also open for all fashion designers with a provision for fashion graduates to become registered members. The key objective of FDCSL is to promote Sri Lankan fashion in international markets, whilst working with Government bodies to provide Sri Lankan designers with innovative and viable retail opportunities.
The FDCSL aims to follow global best practices to ensure that Sri Lankan designers receive mentorship from the Council as well as benefits and guidance which will help them to take their business forward in the global arena.
