Copenhagen International Fashion Fair (CIFF), one of the most prominent fashion trade shows in Northern Europe, has taken a new approach to keep the event engaging and educational—and it’s working with a heritage denim brand to do so.
CIFF, in partnership with Lee Jeans, will welcome the public and offer free admission for a special events area within the conference taking place on Jan. 29-31 at the Bella Center Copenhagen.
The event will include engaging activities, including a mending bar for repairing and upcycling old denim and a “Denim Tattoo Bar” for embroidering jeans. The area will also feature CIFF’s designers-in-residence, Bethany Williams and Duran Lantink, who will showcase collections made using Lee’s deadstock denim and new innovative fabrics. The collections were made in partnership with Lee, Fashion Revolution founder and creative director Orsola de Castro and Dio Kurazawa, founder of sustainability project The Bear Scouts.
The event will also feature a popup shop for rapper A$AP Nast’s collaboration with Pangea and installations co-curated by de Castro.
Trade shows were once the optimal way for apparel buyers to do business. But a crop of issues like tighter budgets and schedules, and innovations that make it easier to review a collection without leaving the office, have spurred show organizers to seek out fresh ways to lure attendees.
One way they are doing this is by breaking down the barrier between consumer and brands. Denim Days has done so with annual events in Amsterdam, New York City and Nashville that bring together the denim supply chain, brands and consumers. The festivals are often held in tandem with Kingpins trade show. Similarly, Amazon hosted the first Amazon Destination Denim event in Berlin last fall, connecting representatives from Isko, Wrangler Kings of Indigo and more with the general public.
And beginning in 2020, London Fashion Week, New York Fashion and Australia Fashion Week will begin selling tickets to presentations for up to $550 per event.
