Salon De Lingerie & Interfilѐre

By Ellen Lewis

For a variety of reasons, financial, logistical and personal, it’s not always easy to attend trade shows.  New York, Las Vegas, Miami, LA, Paris, Milan, Shanghai, Hong Kong there are a multitude of choices and as Intimate Apparel merchants and designers, we need to weigh the pros and cons.  In my opinion, the biggest priority is the impact this investment will have on your bottom line.  Like any other business decision, it is just a balance between risk and advantage.

I have attended many exhibitions in my career and depending on objective, have found each and every one worth the effort.  And yes, for sure, I have skipped a few when family, business obligations or monetary concerns beckoned.  In my opinion, for my purposes, I find two shows critical to product research: Curve and The Salon De Lingerie.  Both are selling venues showcasing brands established and emerging in North America, Europe and the Far East.  These shows are a microcosm of merchandise that is critical to the foundation of a retailer’s inventory and important to the customer profile of the businesses.  It’s an opportunity to review trends: the fabrics, colors, and style details that flood the fashion media and guide a consumer’s purchasing decisions.

In 10 days, I will travel to Paris to attend the Salon De Lingerie and Interfilière, the premiere international Lingerie expose, celebrating their 50^th anniversary of successful branding from January 19 -21.  It takes time and money to orchestrate this trip, although I have discovered several ways to mediate the expense making the effort so much more manageable.  But as always, I stand by my merchant’s credo:  “Where do I get the most bang for my buck?”  In just 3 days of total immersion at the Paris Expo- Porte de Versaille, here’s what is available for us:

1. 550 Exhibiting Brands covering lingerie, corsetry, homewear, loungewear, luxury and designer collections, men’s wear, and my favorite : Limited Edition Young designer collections; to me,  this is the birthplace of new ideas.
2. The Forum – A Ticket to Ice Land:  In collaboration with the renown NellyRodi agency, this spectacular trends forum will showcase emerging trends, exclusive trend guides, archival garments and collaborations with artists and designers worldwide
3. The Retailer Club – A dedicated area where retailers can get together and share and discover new opportunities.  It will include merchandising ideas for in store and window displays, a business center an personalized training on social networking
4. A host of seminars, conferences and fashion shows highlighting the critical creative messages for both Fall 2013 and Spring 2014.
5. A Concierge Service – Help planning your trip, personalized greetings at airports and train stations, free shuttle service to the show, welcome kits, telephone assistance, and more.

For me, the icing on the cake is the Interfilѐre show, which is integrated into the Salon and perhaps the foremost presentation of fabric innovation and trends.  As I believe that fabric drives the majority of Lingerie Design, this show is critical to my understanding of product evolution.

This year 20,000 buyers and 400 journalists are expected to attend the show.  If you decide it is a viable alternative for you, contact: pierrenicolas@curvexpo.com