Over 56,000 visitors came to attend PV September edition

The decrease in visitors to PV was attributable to several factors: a challenging economic climate, marked by concerns about Brexit, a continued decline in fashion consumption, and a crowded calendar bracketing the show, which was held between the London and Milan Fashion Weeks.

Visitors to PV came once again mainly from European countries (73 per cent). France lead the pack with 30 per cent of visitors, a slight decline. Italy, in second place, remained stable at 8 per cent of attendance, and was followed by the United Kingdom, which fell sharply due to Brexit. These countries were followed by Spain (5 per cent of visitors), Germany (4 per cent of visitors) and Belgium. The Northern European countries, references in terms of creativity, were also in attendance, led by Sweden and Denmark.

A growing number of Asian visitors accounted for nearly 12 per cent of the attendance at this edition. The top three remained the same as for the September 2018 edition: China in first place with 5 per cent of attendance, followed by Japan and South Korea.

North America saw a significant increase compared to the September 2018 edition, and accounted for more than 5 per cent of visitors. In 8th place among visiting countries, Turkey registered an increase in its attendance and accounted for 3 per cent of visitors.

This edition's offer focused on key industry priorities: eco-responsible fashion, the digitalisation of the sector, the ever strengthening link between the worlds of sport and fashion and support for innovation and young creative talent.

An area of 1,200 metre square was dedicated to eco-responsible fashion in the Smart Creation Area. 50 handpicked exhibitors including 30 new ones, introduced their latest innovations - from sourcing raw materials to industrial processes - for more sustainable, eco-designed and ethical fashions.

A sports and tech universe brought together the largest suppliers of innovative materials and textiles for the worlds of sportswear and performance. This year's theme was 'Protection and insulation from the elements through clothing'.

A special showcase of the leather sector including PV Manufacturing Leather - created in collaboration with Les Compagnons du Devoir, threw light on the technical know-how of 38 companies in terms of the construction of leather bags, shoes and clothing.

The Première Vision Designs space featured 248 exhibitors - creative studios, independent designers - including 28 newcomers and the 24 finalists of the TexSelect British textile design competition. Now taken over by Première Vision, as of its next edition in September 2020 TexSelect will be integrated into the PV Awards and rebaptised as 'PV Awards NextGen'.

The 11th edition of the PV Awards was chaired by Dutch artist and designer Bart Hess. 278 fashion manufacturers from 5 continents were at the show to offer an increasingly diversified and transversal manufacturing sourcing offer, representing the full gamut of manufacturing know-hows needed by fashion and accessory brands, as part of a strengthened PV Manufacturing platform.

The conference programme of PV was a resounding success. The autumn edition highlighted the interest and trust that visitors have in the foresight the show provides regarding the industry’s challenges. A study and suggested solutions were proposed to complement the exclusive fashion information produced each season by the Première Vision Fashion team, designed to inspire buyers and guide them in the process of creating their new collections.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (PC)