THE LOOK PARTNERSHIP BLOG

We’re excited to be hosting our first Roundtable for Fashion Week Los Angeles, next Monday at The Standard Downtown LA.

Press release follows.

For Immediate Release: January 18, 2010 / Updated: January 22, 2010

Fresh Vision for a Fashion Week That Fits Los Angeles
January 25 roundtable to identify threads of truth for proposal to City of Los Angeles

There is a new voice for fashion week in Los Angeles, and the strategy is to deprivatize by partnering with the City of Los Angeles. The goal of Fashion Week Los Angeles is to provide the fashion industry with a world-class, worldwide platform based on a high level of organization, design, style, efficiency, and exposure.

Fashion Week Los Angeles, and forthcoming website fashionweek.la, is the concept of event producer Michael Venedicto, of L.A.-based Trapeze Partnerships, and design director Jeff Warrington, of LA.-based The Look Partnership, who are taking initial steps as producers.

The first step is a January 25 roundtable taking place at The Standard Downtown L.A., with 25 key fashion influencers—the first of many conversations to tailor a thoughtful, informed, and competitive program that uniquely fits Los Angeles.
On Fashion Week Los Angeles’ proposal to provide a long-term vision for the program, Venedicto states, “By involving the City of Los Angeles as a business partner, we’re confident that attracting the necessary talent and sponsorship dollars will be possible, to create a real impact on behalf of both the fashion industry and the city.”

Trapeze Partnerships is spearheading an effort to change the face of fashion week in Los Angeles— and of the overall L.A. fashion industry—with several goals in mind: 1. To make L.A. a coveted destination for buyers during the seasonal fashion buying cycle; 2. To promote L.A. as a credible venue for global editorial coverage of established as well as emerging fashion designers and trends; 3. To enhance business opportunities and increase revenue influx for Los Angeles—and for the fashion industry in general—through its fashion week.

A summary of key insights and expressed opinions from the roundtable will be presented to Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, in seeking the city’s official endorsement and support for subsequent phases of this initiative.

“We don’t think that L.A. needs to try to be anything other than itself in hosting a fashion week, but recent shows and venues, and their promoters’ intentions, seem diffused. We’re ready to take the opportunity to organize something that’s engaging and cohesive,” says Warrington.

The proposed permanent location for Fashion Week Los Angeles would be downtown, transforming a large city-owned parking lot into a well-appointed, accessible, tented venue. The roster would consist of hand-selected designers—both established and emerging, local and international—with all given prime popular and commercial exposure for their collections. The production quality of the event would fit the template of other world-class events produced by Venedicto over the past 25 years. The runway shows, as well as original programming, resources, and social networking, would be available on the official website. The complete first draft of the proposal will be available upon request in late February 2010.

For more information, see: http://www.fashionweek.la, or contact press@fashionweek.la.