Dubai emerging as 'global fashion hub'

The continued success of the fair is seen as evidence of Dubai's role as an international fashion hub, and the main driver of booming trade between Europe and the UAE.

Held in partnership with the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) and Dubai World Trade Centre, the exhibition is aimed at the high-end fashion market and runs at the Dubai International Exhibition Centre from October 23 to 25. The event will cover more than 4,000 square metres and accommodate over 160 international fashion brands from 16 participating countries.

The three-day exhibition is aimed at showcasing the latest trends in women's wear, men's apparel, lingerie, swimwear, footwear, leather goods, sport's wear, children's wear and accessories from participating brands' 2008 Spring/Summer collections. The show will also provide a platform for buyers, retailers, distributors and sales mediators from around the Gulf to meet with leading international fashion houses and designers.

"PRESTIGE has proved to be an excellent venue for fashion houses across Europe, the US and Asia to exhibit their brands and further understand GCC markets," said Michael Mueller, Managing Director, planetfair Dubai. "With the number of shopping malls increasing at a dramatic pace and Dubai now established as an international business hub, it is vital for these brands to gain a foothold here and play a part in the region's rapidly growing fashion industry."

PRESTIGE 2007 arrives during a period of substantial gains in the regional fashion industry. According to Reinhard E. Doepfer, Managing Director of the Brussels-based European Fashion and Textile Export Council (EFTEC), officially registered exports of textile fashion from member states of the European Union to the Gulf Countries increased from US$945 million in 2005 to US$1,023 billion in 2006, or 8.3 per cent.

The United Arab Emirates is considered to be the most important export market for clothing in the Gulf region in 2006. The best performing exporter of textile fashion to the UAE was Italy, Doepfer said, followed by the UK, France and Spain.

The 2007 fashion fair will see France's official debut at the fair with a national pavilion of 20 leading brands, organized by UBI France - the French Agency for international business development as well as expanded offerings from Italy. Germany will be taking part for the fifth consecutive year with a national pavilion sponsored by the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology (BMWi). Other exhibiting countries include Australia, Canada, Greece, Latvia, Lebanon, Nigeria, Russia, South Africa, Spain, Turkey, the UAE, the UK and the US.

EFTEC - the initiator and sponsor of PRESTIGE - is representing various European Fashion Associations. ITMM (International Textile and Fashion Marketing and Management), a renowned fashion consultancy based in Stuttgart, Germany, oversees the quality standards of all collections on display.

"As Dubai is turning into an international business hub of this region, the emirate has also set itself up as a cosmopolitan city of fashion and design. PRESTIGE 2007 is a significant fashion fair that Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry supports as it brings together many international leading fashion houses to Dubai where our members working in textiles and garments have the opportunity to interact with the exhibitors and get deeply involved in the development of the fashion industry in Dubai," said Nuha Safar, Director of the Marketing and Communication Department at the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

PRESTIGE 2007 has partnered with Dubai International Fashion Week, held at The One & Only Royal Mirage from October 22 to 25. The collaboration of the two will create synergies for the success of both events. Fashion buyers will have the opportunity to build relationships with leading designers as well as negotiate business opportunities with exhibitors.

PRESTIGE 2007 will run from 11am to 7pm from October 23 to 25 in Hall 1 at the Dubai International Exhibition Centre. The exhibition is open to trade visitors only.