In Kingston, Jamaica - June 6-10, 2007
Caribbean Fashionweek 2007 was launched on Monday February 12
at a glitzy reception in London, England, before a packed audience
of celebrities, diplomats, fashion designers, business executives,
financial sector representatives, press and supermodels. Organised
by Pulse, the producers of CFW and jointly hosted by Jamaica’s High
Commissioner to London, His Ecxellency Burchell Whiteman and
Pulse’s Chairman Kingsley Cooper, the launch attracted
representatives from the United Nations, The Office of the Mayor
of London, Catwalk The World, The Barbados mission to the United
Kingdom, other diplomats and prominent members of the London
community, including well known individuals from the Caribbean,
now resident in London.
Held at Prince Consort Street, in Kensington, the event was covered
by a wide range of press, including the BBC. In attendance were
supermodels Jaunel McKenzie and Nell Robinson; Deola Sagoe,
arguably Africa’s top fashion designer, His Excellency L Edwin Pollard,
High Commissioner from Barbados to the United Kingdom,
Dr Roli Degazon-Johnson of the Commonwealth Secretariat,
Pulse General Manager Romae Gordon, Tessa Sanderson,
CBE Antoinette Olivia, Sharei La’Mar, and Gavin Douglas all British
fashion designers. The models, including Mac campaign girl Nicola Gray,
showed off designs by Deola, The Mushroom, Mutamba and Biggy.
Cooper, in his address to those in attendance, outlined his vision for
the expansion of Caribbean Fashionweek to include a much greater
presence and participation by industry players from Europe, North
America, Africa and Latin America, and indicated that this was now
an ever increasing reality, given the commitments already received
for 2007. Confirming their participation while addressing the launch
were Deola Sagoe, whose designs, displayed on new age mannequins
at the launch, were a mouth watering auger of the collection she will
show at Caribbean Fashionweek in June; Gavin Douglas, who started
at Caribbean Fashionweek two years ago and who now shows at
London Fashion Week as well, Antoinette Olivia and several others.
In his address, Greg Barrow, Senior Public Affairs Officer at the
United Nations, outlined the UN’s recognition of Caribbean Fashionweek
as an important event on the international fashion calendar and
indicated the support of the UN’s World Food Programme for CFW.
He declared that the UN has now added Caribbean Fashionweek to
its agenda of official WFP events. The event can expect to benefit
from the presence of the UN’s celebrity ambassadors as well as members
of their roster of top ranking designers who support the work of the
World Food Programme’s Fashion for Food initiative. Matthew Mensah,
General Manager of Catwalk The World, also lauded CFW and indicated
that the Catwalk The World Project had formally entered into an alliance
with CFW and would be strongly represented at the event this year.
Rosemary Emodi, Business Affairs Manager of the Office of the Mayor of
London, commended Pulse on its work with the development of the creative
industries from the Caribbean, especially fashion, and announced a
partnership with Caribbean Fashionweek and the Mayor’s Office,
organizers of the Kulture to Couture project. She will lead a delegation of
British designers to CFW this year and will partly fund the participation of
Caribbean designers who appear on London’s Culture to Couture show later
in the year.
