Upbeat Mood at Première Vision Preview New York
NEW YORK—The aisles were crowded and the mood was upbeat at the Jan. 10–11 run of Première Vision Preview at the Metropolitan Pavilion and Altman Building in New York’s Chelsea neighborhood.
“Here, everybody is happy,” said Nicolas Brun, who represents French textile mill AB Creations by Fabien Doligez. “It’s not the philosophy of American people to say things are difficult. They are always in a good mood.”
Brun said buyers were interested in the company’s prints, as well as ultra-sheer micro-polyester fabrics.
In the booth for French lace mill Solstiss hung images from the movie “Twilight: Breaking Dawn.” Solstiss lace was used for the wedding dress featured in the film. Solstiss USA President Sandrine Bernard said the show was proving to be a good one, thanks to the lace trend and the continued demand for quality in the luxury market.
“Even people who were buying silk from China are coming back to us,” she said. “Customers are very demanding in the stores.”
Part of the reason for the positive mood is the slow but steady recovery of the U.S. economy—especially for European resources that have seen uncertainty in the European market.
“Confidence is coming back in the U.S.,” said Philippe Pasquet, chief executive officer for Première Vision, who acknowledged uncertainty remains for the global economy. “The economy in the U.S. is better than the one in Europe. For the time being, the visibility is not so easy to take a very accurate position for the coming months.”
French textile company Henitex returned to Première Vision after four years away, according to company representative Maud Haudricourt, who said she was seeing a mix of existing customers and potential new ones.
“The customers are optimistic and interested, but it’s a little bit early,” she said. “They’re taking just swatches.”
The show also featured 21 exhibitors from Turkey, including vertical denim producer Kipas Holding. The company, which produces fabric and garments and finishes jeans, caters to a mix of large companies and smaller manufacturers.
“We need big customers, but we have flexibility of products to work with smaller ones, [too],” Vice Chairman Ahmet Oksuz said.
Abundance of prints
This season, Première Vision’s print show, Indigo, grew from two floors to three at the Metropolitan Pavilion.
Featuring 121 exhibitors, Indigo showcased the work of art studios and vintage-textile suppliers. Held three times annually in New York, Indigo’s January show is held concurrently with Première Vision.
Indigo’s biannual Paris show is always held concurrently with Première Vision. The company also hosts an Indigo show in Brazil. A home-textile Indigo show is set to launch in Paris Jan. 19–20, during Design and Home Week. The debut show features 30 international art studios focusing on designs for home textiles, said Gilles Lasbordes, exhibition director for Première Vision.
One of the new companies showing at Indigo in New York was Laguna Beach, Calif.–based Browne Dog Studio, although owners Evangelista Sagnelli and Laura Hughes have exhibited with other print studios at Indigo in the past. The two launched Browne Dog Studio in January. They were showing a broad range of prints that included “Hawaiiana,” Navajo, new takes on batik and “extreme tie dyes,” Sagnelli said.
“We like our artists to have a little freedom,” he said. “Obviously, commercial sells, but we leave that to our mass-market customers. If I put something on the table [at a trade show], it has to speak to us.”
Sagnelli and Hughes were pleased with the turnout at Indigo, which included “serious buyers.”
Emerging markets for PV
In addition to Première Vision’s expansion of Indigo, the trade show has several growth plans in the works around the world.
This year, Première Vision purchased the remaining stake in ModAmont S.A., the fashion accessories and trim show held biannually in Paris.
The company also sees continued opportunities in China, Brazil and Russia, Pasquet said.
“They are selling very sophisticated fashion in China,” he observed. “It’s not a one-shot operation. There’s a real market there.”
Première Vision operates shows in Moscow, Shanghai and São Paulo. According to Pasquet, the Brazil show has doubled its attendance since its launch in 2010. And all three shows appear to be driving traffic to the main Première Vision show in Paris. Pasquet said the last Première Vision show in Paris drew 1,500 buyers from China and 500 from Hong Kong.
The trade show recently doubled its team in China and is currently looking to open an office in Turkey. And since the launch of Denim by Première Vision in 2007 in Paris, the company will expand the concept to Asia in October with the launch of Denim by Première Vision Asia. Show organizers are looking to draw denim makers from China, Japan and Korea to the show, set to be held in Shanghai. “We are investing again and again,” Pasquet said. “We are a global business.”
