The Caribbean rises

The debut of Caribbean fashion at London Fashion Week has been met with glowing reviews as fashion industry insiders move to Paris, the final stop in the four-city biannual fashion carousel. London followed New York and Milan came before Paris.

Under the direction of the British Council and the British Fashion Council, several countries, including those from the Caribbean, were invited to mount exhibitions as part of the International Fashion Showcase at London Fashion Week. More than 5,000 fashion industry professionals and media attended London Fashion Week and many of them visited the Caribbean exhibition held at the Charing Cross Hotel, while a select number of press and buyers saw the collections presented by international and emerging models from Jamaica at an exclusive dinner hosted at the Corinthia Hotel.

Reflective of the general sentiments expressed by those in attendance, director and buyer Stefan Siegel of Not Just Another Label shared his delight at being invited to attend what he described as a "fantastic dinner and evening, to showcase and support [our] local design talents".

Sandra Kennedy, Juliette Dyke for JULAN, and Arlene Martin for drennaLUNA comprised the group of Jamaican designers, while the exquisite jewellery house of Atelier Doré came from Suriname. Phelicia Dell, along with counterparts David Andre and Michel Chataigne, sent collections from Haiti.

United Kingdom-based Gavin Douglas representing the diaspora, Kevin Ayoung Julien of KAJ, and design maven Meiling from Trinidad completed the contingent.

Hailing talent

It is no surprise that the calibre of designers representing the region would have an impact on those to whom their lines were exposed. From the BBC to influential international fashion publications, they were all hailing the arrival of the talent from the Caribbean.

Doré's collection was consistently praised for its fine craftsmanship and extraordinary pieces, while drennaLUNA received rave reviews for her clean understated 'red-carpet-ready' looks.

JULAN and KAJ were affirmed for their colourful pieces fit for a luxurious vacation.

It was not only London-based press which showed keen interest in the collections though.

Vogue Italia's Federico Poletti was quick to observe that it was a welcomed and refreshing change for the international design landscape.

So keen was Poletti that he is already rearranging his schedule to attend Caribbean Fashionweek, June 7-11.

While the international press response had glowing remarks for the collections, the trade personnel were equally impressed.

Harvey Nicholls' buying director, David Pun, who is now developing space for emerging international designers in a new branch and who attended the exclusive dinner and presentation, is interested in exploring the possibilities of working with Caribbean designers.

Stefan Siegel of Not Just Another Label further expressed his company's interest in working with designers from the region.

"I had a great time engaging with your designers and representatives of such a vibrant economic region and we would be keen to further support the growth of local fashion brands ... see how we can assist to build new routes to market for your designer, and put Caribbean fashion in the international spotlight," said Siegel.

Sandra Kennedy's SK Beach line garnered an excellent response from The Laden Showroom which is a renowned independent fashion designer's buyer suite of shops on Brick Lane in London. Remarking on the quality of Kennedy's crocheted dresses, Laden showroom, buyer Camilla noted that the collection would do very well in its shops. It is in these parts that Victoria Beckham and Kate Moss go scouting for pieces outside of famous European brands. In fact, the emergence of the Brick Lane locale as a magnate for 'indie' lines has sparked a convergence of household design labels such as Paul Smith and Vivienne Westwood, along with scores of others.

Glowing responses

Trinidadian Meiling also had her share of glowing responses.

David Jones, one of the founding members of the Wallis group of shops and who is also credited with launching lines such as Karen Millen and Matthew Williamson, declared Meiling's work to be of excellent quality and deemed her more than ready to take her place in the wider international marketplace.

Having completed the first phase of the initiative with the thrust to launch Caribbean brands on the world stage, project managers Pulse Investments Ltd is working assiduously to continue the next phase of development which takes shape at Caribbean Fashionweek.

Key press and buyers, including Harvey Nicholls and Not Just a Label, are committed to attending the foremost regional event. For its part, presenter and project funder Caribbean Export Development Agency (CEDA), with the support of JAMPRO, is on board to ensure continuity.

CEDA's Christopher McNair notes, "This was just the first step in a strategic plan to launch Caribbean fashion into the global arena. We are delighted with the feedback."