WHITE, the main tradeshow for Milan Fashion Week, is set to arrive in Shanghai this season for Shanghai Fashion Week next month. This will be the first time that the internationally renowned show, which sees over 21,000 visitors each season in Italy, will be held outside of Italy.
The Federation of Italian artisans will work together with the Italian Trade Commission to bring 56 Italian brands to Shanghai, in the hopes of promoting Italian lifestyle and luxury to the Chinese market. The three-day event, which will take place at the West Bund Art Center opposite the established Shanghai-based tradeshow "On Time," will showcase the garments of recognized Italian designers including Casadei, Le4uadre, and Avant Toi, among others (see the full list below).
Brenda Bellei, the co-founder and CEO of WHITE, told reporters at the Shanghai Fashion Week opening press conference, about the reasons the show chose Shanghai as its first international location.
"Shanghai, for us, is like Milan," she said. "Shanghai is becoming a fashion capital for...the world. China is a very important market and it is growing quickly. Shanghai is the most important fashion week in China."
As more and more international brands strive to successfully break into the Chinese market, Bellei acknowledged the great potential of launching at Shanghai Fashion Week.
“The Chinese market is very difficult for European designers to understand," she said. "It is difficult, but it offers great opportunities for Italian companies. We want to introduce these brands to China. We've been here at Shanghai Fashion Week since the beginning, and have found it’s very important to come to China to discover emerging designers and talent.”
“We really hope to develop our platform here in Shanghai," she continued. "We hope that lots of buyers will visit our tradeshow this year. We really want to stay in China, and grow and develop in Shanghai with the support of everyone here.”
Here is the complete list of brands participating in WHITE Shanghai:#
ALESSANDRA GIANNETTI
AMEN
AVANT TOI
BE POSITIVE
BLUi
BONOMEA
CARDILLO DESIGN
CASADEI
CAVALLI CLASS
CORDIEN
DAMIR DOMA
//DELIRIOUS EYEWEAR
DANIELE CARLOTTA
DELFINO FERRARI-GABRIELSI
FALIERO SARTI
FEDERICA TOSI
FILIPPO LATERZA
GARAGE NOUVEAU
GIOIELLI DOP
GIOVANNI FABIANI
GRAZIANO MAGGIO
KUBERA 108
L’AUTRE CHOSE
LA BELLE
LE DANGEROUGE
LE4UADRE
LE SARTE PETTEGOLE
LUCIANO MILANO
MALLONI
MANUEL RITZ
MARCELA SALVADOR
MAY MOMA
MEMORIA HATS
MICHELE LUPO
MOI MULTIPLE
OFFICINE CREATIVE
ONES
PIER ANTONIO GASPARI
+MINI
POURQUOI ME
ROBERTO DI STEFANO
ROSSORAME
SAN ANDRÈS
SMARTEEZ
SOSUD
STEFANO MORTARI
TRANSIT PAR-SUCH
VIRGINIA BIZZI
WOO CLASS + JOCHEN ANDREAS ZEH