Centrestage Elites to witness Asia's top designers

06 Aug '18

4 min read

Courtesy: Centrestage

Centrestage Elites will feature Asia's most celebrated fashion designer labels - Facetasm from Japan, Idism from Hong Kong and Ms Min from the Chinese mainland. The three will present their latest 2019 Spring/Summer (SS19) collections for an international audience of trendsetters. Centrestage runs for its 3rd year in Hong Kong from September 5 to 8.

Centrestage offers a platform for international, especially Asian, fashion brands and designers to launch and promote their designs.

Organised by the HKTDC to consolidate Hong Kong's position as a fashion hub in Asia, Centrestage offers a platform for international, especially Asian, fashion brands and designers to launch and promote their designs.

The first evening of Centrestage 2018 will put three top Asian brands and their newest collections under the spotlight, including award-winning Japanese avant-garde streetwear label Facetasm by Hiromichi Ochiai. Facetasm will present its latest collection at Centrestage Elites, showcasing the designer's bold and eclectic designs.

Hong Kong brand Idism will launch its newest line of ready-to-wear womenswear at Centrestage Elites. Design duo Julio Ng and Cyrus Wong debuted Idism in 2016 and have since participated in Paris Fashion Week several times. In 2017, the label was selected as one of Vogue's Talents, while also being dubbed "The Future of Asia" by YOHO! magazine. With the brand's philosophy based on being active, true to nature, attuned to the senses and following a distinctive lifestyle, Idism was created for the spontaneous lifestyle of the contemporary city woman, which manifests true beauty coming from within.

At the same catwalk show, Chinese luxury womenswear label Ms Min will reveal its newest collection. Its founder Min Liu, mentored by fashion mogul Sarah Rutson, has built a fashion empire around an aesthetic that seamlessly meshes modernity with classicism.

As one of Asia's signature fashion events connecting brands, buyers, media and fashionistas, Centrestage 2018 will feature a record number of over 220 brands from around the world, presenting about 40 events including more than 20 fashion shows and parades during the event period. A series of insightful seminars and panels such as the Master Sharing Series and Trend Talk Series will be hosted by fashion design masters and industry experts, with a focus on upcoming fashion trends and the importance of sustainability in the industry.

In addition to Centrestage Elites, The Hong Kong Young Fashion Designers' Contest 2018 (YDC) will be another highlight of this year's Centrestage. The judging panel will include Lawrence Leung, chairman of the HKTDC Garment Advisory Committee and Michael Mok, general manager of Merchandising/head of Merchandising at JOYCE Boutique, while internationally renowned fashion designer Martine Rose will be the VIP judge.

YDC has successfully nurtured and promoted a new generation of Hong Kong fashion design talent since 1977. This year, 16 shortlisted candidates will compete for five awards including the New Talent Award and Best Footwear Design Award. Arto Wong, last year's champion and New Talent Award winner, will release her capsule collection Zero to Unlimited at JOYCE this August and display it at Centrestage this September.

The event will also feature the latest works by other YDC 2017 winners, including Sonic Lam, who has partnered with Woolmark to develop a new outfit made with wool, and Jason Lee, winner of last year's Best Footwear Design Award, who will showcase his capsule collection I Go to School by Bus.

Now in its 12th edition, Fashionally Collection, a highlighted Centrestage show dedicated to Hong Kong designers, will welcome 10 local designer brands, including contemporary classic menswear label Demo. and Kevin HO, a modern womenswear label that participated in New York Fashion Week 2017. The Fashionally presentation at Centrestage will feature three new local designer labels launching their SS19 collections. Unlike at conventional runway shows, the three labels - Redemptive, Tak Lee and YLYstudio - will present their collection in a storytelling format on a theatre-style stage.

To spread the fashion buzz to the wider community, the Hong Kong in Fashion citywide campaign will be held from mid-August to the end of September in collaboration with over 100 partners, including fashion boutiques, fashion design institutes, restaurants and hotels. More than 90 events will be held across the city for public participation, including workshops, competitions, fashion parades and exhibitions. (SV)

Fibre2Fashion News Desk – India