Haute in the city
By Michelle Woo
The Arizona Republic
Nov. 9, 2006
The flyers have been sent, the goody bags have been stuffed, the final buttons have been sewn.
On Saturday, the curtain rises on the second annual Phoenix Fashion Week, which opens with the LabelHorde Fashion Ball at El Pedregal in Scottsdale.
There will be VIP seating, throngs of models, champagne-sipping socialites and all the pinkie-raising fabulousness you’d expect from one of the Valley’s most style-conscious events. And, of course, there will be clothes. Lots of them.
“We’re putting Phoenix fashion on the map,” said Brian Hill, owner of Scottsdale activewear boutique Femme Athletic and director of Phoenix Fashion Week. “We want the world to understand that we have the dollars. We have the boutiques. We have the talent. We’re saying to designers, ‘Look, you can stay here and be successful in this industry.’ ”
Yes, here. As in, not New York, Paris or Milan, the glorified fashion capitals of the universe. Not even the celebrity-saturated Los Angeles, which has capitalized on its beach-inspired, surfer-chic threads.
A growing number of fashion weeks are detouring from the paths of haute couture, emerging in Phoenix and other cities such as San Francisco, Boston, Chicago, and even Portland, Ore. With the conveniences of the Internet, more fashion designers are staking their grounds wherever they choose, whether it’s Park Avenue or Litchfield Park.
“It’s not about where you are, it’s about what you do and how good you are,” said Susan Di Staulo, 43, a Scottsdale designer who will be showcasing her evening gowns at the fashion ball and is working on launching her label in Paris and Prague.
“It’s a global market. As long as Bill Gates is around, you can do anything.”
Valley to ‘Vogue’?
The Valley’s fashion industry is blossoming. Trendsetting boutiques saturate high-end shopping areas, and designer trunk shows crop up regularly in hip nightclubs and art galleries. And LabelHorde, the Valley’s network of fashion designers, stylists, photographers and other industry folks, has swelled from about 10 members when it started a few years ago to more than 200 today.
Still, with New York remaining the American fashion hub, some question how far Valley-based talent can go. In Arizona, there are no garment districts, major fashion houses or national fashion magazines. Can a designer really land on the pages of Vogue while working in Ahwatukee?
It isn’t likely, according to Steven Kolb, executive director of the Council of Fashion Designers of America, the governing body of the nation’s fashion industry. Of the nearly 280 members in the organization, about 85 percent are based in New York.
These new mini fashion weeks, he said, are similar to musical productions making their out-of-town runs before they hit Broadway.
“They are a fine opportunity for young designers to fine-tune their shows,” Kolb said. “They’re a good learning place. But ultimately, for designers, their goal would be to show in New York.”
Major fashion weeks, like the twice-yearly extravaganzas in New York and Paris, are typically for the trade only, with runway shows packed with buyers, journalists, celebrities and the social elite. There, designs are unveiled and trends are born.
The smaller fashion weeks have different missions. Some are genre-specific, such as Miami Fashion Week (swimwear), the upcoming Palm Springs Fashion Week (resort collections) in California and Bridal Fashion Week in New York.
Others, like the one in Phoenix, are mostly open to the public and have a local focus.
The big week
Here, the week, sponsored by Bentley Rolls Royce of Scottsdale, includes fashion career seminars at the Art Institute of Phoenix and a lineup of runway shows featuring new designers, established designers and local boutiques. A few national lines will participate, including the new Starbury Collection, an urban-inspired athletic line created by NBA All-Star Stephon Marbury.
Marshal Cohen, chief industry analyst for the NPD Group, a national consumer-tracking company, said the new fashion weeks’ success emphasizes a shift in the industry, as high fashion continues to inch closer to the masses.
“Traditionally, fashion shows were so far removed from the customer that they had no meaning,” Cohen said. “Now, they can see fashion in their own backyard instead of from a distance. They can touch and feel and be a part of the experience.”
For the Art Institute of Phoenix, a partner in Phoenix Fashion Week, a goal is to show fashion hopefuls that they can stay in the Valley with considerable success.
A few years ago, Jenni Franich, 27, a fashion merchandising student at the art institute, considered moving to California to start her career but opted to stay after watching the industry burst forth in the Valley. In a market that’s so fresh and elastic, she said, there’s plenty of room for growth.
“LA already has an established fashion scene,” Franich said. “There, it’s more about who you know. Here, well, it’s also about who you know, but it’s also about what you can bring to the table. It’s about what you have to offer.”
Franich is one of about 110 Phoenix Fashion Week volunteers. She’ll be backstage prepping the garments and making sure the models step out on beat.
At its heart, Phoenix Fashion Week is a grass-roots project. Planners attracted interest through e-mail blasts, media blitzes and a MySpace page that has racked up more than 350 friends. They’ve rounded up local makeup artists, stylists and DJs to bring the events to life.
Home-grown talent
For new designers, there often comes a point when they must decide where they’ll be most successful, whether it’s in the Valley or beyond.
At age 16, design phenom Cassy Saba of Chandler already has seen her whimsical jewelry featured in industry trade journal Women’s Wear Daily and ElleGirl and Teen magazines. Her goal is to trace the career paths of world-renowned jewelry designers Stephen Dweck and David Yurman, both based in New York.
“I mean, (Arizona) is a great place to start,” said Saba, who is looking into New York design schools. “It has definitely grown. Maybe it will even someday be LA or New York.”
Perhaps. But for some up-and-comers, there are perks to being right here, right now.
“It used to be that you had to have a New York address. Not so anymore. You can work here without paying the rent you would pay in Beverly Hills,” said Dax Logue, creative director for Real Apparel, whose new boutique line, Jessica Kinni for Real Chic, will be showcasing at Phoenix Fashion Week.
According to Angela Johnson, founder of LabelHorde and director of the Fashion Ball, Arizona is best known on the fashion scene for its under-the-radar designers who have a unique edge. Phoenix Fashion Week will allow buyers to scout new talent.
“It isn’t anything like the Fashion Week you see in New York . . . but it is a good way to provide something local for the local boutique owners to attend so they can pick up an Arizona line or two,” Johnson said. “If you want to be a Donna Karan, then yes, you still have to work in New York or LA, because that’s where everything is. But it doesn’t mean that we still can’t be successful.”
