Fashion buyers get up close and personal at Le Cuir à Paris
As the event drew to a close on Saturday (September 21), the vast majority of exhibitors at last week’s Le Cuir à Paris (September 19-21) appeared well satisfied at the outcome of the show - even if visitor levels were down slightly on the previous year.
Held Thursday-Saturday at Porte de Versailles, this year’s autumn show – the third in the series - previewed the autumn/winter 2003 collections of some 214 high end European leather and fur producers – all of them looking make meaningful contact with Paris-based Haute Couture and Ready to Wear designers and fashion buyers.
As with the spring 2002 show, the fair was not overrun with visitors, attracting 3,900 individuals – 200 or so less than the year before. But then again – bearing in mind the nature of the target audience - big crowds were never the idea in the first place. Nor would they have been appropriate.
Far better to get up close and personal with a select number of high fashion buyers – on their own turf - than have a never-ending procession of volume enquirers traipsing through your stand, was the organiser Sociêté Internationale du Cuir SIC’s rationale. And by and large, by the end of the show, most exhibitors appeared to have been convinced of the argument, with a number reporting high levels of sampling.
Though the new badges that identified buyers from the big name fashion houses as ‘VIPs’ rather than named individuals (intentionally) made the identification of the wearer difficult to the onlooker, it was evident from the intensity (and length) of the discussions going on that the right people were in attendance.
Naturally, exotics were well to the fore, with furs from Scandinavia and Iceland, as well as lizard and fish skins, being given an especially high profile. There were some especially fine displays of furs from companies such as Italy’s Albatros and Denmark’s Saga Furs.
As with the first edition, there was a Trends Gallery – a large open area provided by the exhibitors. The samples were categorised into four different colour collections; ‘Estompe’ (dark and stormy), ‘Sanguine’ (darkish reds reds, burnt umbers), ‘Lavis’ (faded tones on softer materials) and Laser (contrasting bright neons). There was also a Designer’s Gallery, providing a shop window for the talents of up-and-coming design professionals plus, on the Friday afternoon, a fashion conference presented by the French General Union of Leather, Hides and Skins. All in all, an upmarket show for upmarket buyers.
The next (spring) edition, previewing collections for spring/summer 2004 will take place April 15-16 2003, again at the Porte De Versailles exhibition centre.
