With the inaugural Arise Africa Fashion Week taking place in just a few days, I thought that it would be useful to explain some of the intricacies of fashion weeks, and take all that perceived complexity out of what is essentially a continual loop of trade shows and exhibitions. So grab your pencils and get ready for a full set of fashion week fast facts...

Fashion weeks take place all around the world, in all the major centres twice a year. These are the spring/summer collections and the autumn/winter collections for the ready to wear lines (prêt-a-porter).

The four leading shows follow successively from New York to Paris to London to Milan and take place in September (summer) and February (winter).

Other major shows take place in Australia (April and October), Berlin and Sao Paulo, with Delhi, Montreal, Tokyo and Los Angeles competing to be added to this sub-elite list.

Arise Africa Fashion Week will almost certainly become comparable to the Rosemount Australian Fashion Week, as of this year.

Breakaway shows

In addition to the major season shows, there are some high profile breakaway shows that are necessary to know about. These include the men's wear (Uomo) shows in Milan and Paris which take place in January and June, the resort collections that are shown by individual designers in May and November and the couture shows in Paris and New York.

The couture shows are very high end, conceptual shows of fantasy and magic. These shows represent fashion as an art form rather than as a commercial enterprise. Only one percent of the world's wealthiest people can afford the couture garments, which are often made to order and hand sewn.

What is 'haute couture'?

The term 'haute couture' (high dressmaking) applies to some of these shows. This is a protected term, that can only be applied to design houses who have met the stringent list of standards set by the Chambre de commerce et d'industrie de Paris and are detailed on their annual list. It is however often erroneously used to describe all bespoke fashion, which is more accurately simply known as couture.

The 2009 spring/summer season has only 29 design houses, including Chanel and Dior, who are authorised to call their collections haute couture, although they all produce a more financially profitable prêt-a-porter collection as well.

Resort collection?

A resort collection is launched between main seasons by designers whose clientele travel frequently and need to have fashion-forward garments that are 'out of season'.

These have come to be very wearable and commercial shows — all conceptual artistry stripped out and each garment ready to go straight into production and onto the lithe body of a wealthy client.

There has been some dispute in the current resort season, as to whether Calvin Klein's transparent garments were suitable for a resort collection as they were not wearable enough.

A marketing tool

Designers and design houses participate in fashion weeks to garner cachet in the fashion industry and provide exposure to their collections for media, store buyers and private clients.

It is their primary bi-annual marketing opportunity. It is essentially linked to developing and building their business and in any other industry it is called a trade show. What it is not is an art exhibition nor an excuse for a party. Although these both can be a part of the execution.

As a net consequence, the designers also provide the direction for fashion in the upcoming season. Fashion week attendees expect collections to be directional, immaculate and offer a clear point of view of the designer. They also always expect the collection to be new.

No repeats are allowed, and evolution and changes in direction are expected. A collection that has a narrative that speaks to the audience is always more successful than a simple collection of clothes. This is why production, staging, styling and music are all integral elements in the show. The theatrical elements vary depending on designer and the state of the economy.

Models carefully selected

Models are also carefully selected by the designers to reflect their collection, the design house brand and their aesthetic.

The opening and closing 'face' of the collection is often used as an opportunity to link a model to the designer, or to break a fresh face to the industry. The first face creates the first impression and should be the representation of the entire collection. The last face is the favoured model, the one who best represented the brand.

The front row?

The front row of a fashion show is also significant. The media and private clients (often celebrities) are the dominant components of any good front row. The people with the most influence on others (highest number of readers, most fans, most influential in the industry) have the best seats in the house and generally are expected to keep a totally straight face, not letting on how they feel about the collection until the reviews come in. The more influence in your front row, the more likely the designer is to get the exposure needed.

In South Africa we are often criticised for the number of fashion weeks that are held here every year. While this is not unheard of elsewhere (Australia has a few regional shows in addition to the main fashion week, and the US has fashion week in almost every state capital), the emergence of Arise Africa Fashion Week does bode well for a degree of cohesion and focus for the industry.

International media, buyers and interested parties are far more likely to attend this show than any of the individual shows of the participating nations or regions, which is excellent news for the invited designers.

One winter collection of shows in Johannesburg, one summer collection of shows in Cape Town seems like a succinct and functional accompaniment to Arise Africa Fashion Week. Let's see if this can happen.

For more information on Robyn and to follow the front rows of fashion week, go to: http://styleguidecapetown.blogspot.com

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