Enclave to Launch at MAGIC

Friday, December 13, 2002

Woodland Hills, Calif.–based trade show giant MAGIC International has come up with a new concept in alternative marketing: Enclave, an exclusive showcase premiering independent designers and artists.

Organizers said the concept behind the show is to create a place where exhibitors can connect with trend-setting retailers, introducing them to hard-to-find fashion. The show will also highlight the connections between fashion, music, art and entertainment.

Jed Wexler, account executive for both the edge and Enclave, said, “DJ culture has become more complex over the years; it has become more elegant-streetstyle, intelligent, progressive and metropolitan. That’s why we’re taking the show beyond fashion and into arts and entertainment.”

The show, which will debut in Las Vegas for the February run of MAGIC, will be located within the edge, said MAGIC spokeswoman Ernae Mothershed.

“The edge will still have its own entrance, but the format will look slightly different,” she added.

Wexler is the founder of Ritual Events/The Authntik Group with partner Patrick Courrielche. The organization hosted music and fashion events including the Ritual Expo, a day of independent music and shopping featuring alternative lines including Freddi Rojas, A Liquid Affair, Private Circle and 555 Soul. The two pitched their ideas for cutting-edge marketing programs to MAGIC, and the outcome was the edge. (Wexler is also a contributing writer at California Apparel News.)

There will be approximately 15 lines featured at Enclave, although Wexler said organizers have not yet determined which brands will exhibit.

Similar to the edge, organizers say Enclave’s diverse offerings in alternative music and fashion will give the trade show the much-needed push it’s been looking for.

“It’s going to attract members from all different types of industries and put a destination for them on the floor,” said Wexler.

The show will feature an offbeat format. Instead of booths, Enclave will set up showcases on 4-by-4-by-8 wood boxes.

Wexler said, “We’re taking the best lines and having creative presentations. It’s up to the lines to determine how they want to market themselves.”

MAGIC organizers are planning Enclave to be a microcosm of the creativity of the entire fashion industry.

“The creative vibe inside Enclave will be what’s going on in the industry, and it’s MAGIC’s commitment to the artistic community,” said Mothershed.