The International Exhibition of Light and Textile Industry "Fashion Industry" for the 50th time has become a meeting place for manufacturers and buyers, designers and end consumers. The largest industry event of the North-Western Federal District of the Russian Federation was held from September 28 to October 1 in St. Petersburg.

Both commercial companies and officials congratulated the event on its 25th anniversary. A welcome letter for the anniversary season was sent by the Vice-Governor of St. Petersburg Sergey Movchan.The highlight of the runway shows was the performance of the opera diva Natalie Orly.

About 200 companies from 13 countries presented their products at the site of the CCM. The exhibition has been updated by more than 30%. The Belarusian representation has significantly expanded, the range of men's clothing has increased, the presence of bright fabrics and accessories has allowed attracting an additional audience of visitors to the exhibition, as well as establishing long-term contacts between exhibitors.

The collections presented by the permanent participants of the exhibition reflect the fashion trends of the spring–summer 2018 and autumn–winter 2018/19 seasons. Many companies have developed a new range specifically for the exhibition. Daily shows on the central podium allowed specialists to identify the most interesting and best-selling clothing models.

The main business event of the exhibition has traditionally been The Economic Forum of the Fashion Industry, where a professional discussion was held on topical issues of the development of the light and textile industries. The specialized conference that opened the Forum "St. Petersburg" is the center of the fashion industry, the next stage. The synergetic effect" gathered about 150 light industry specialists. The main topic for discussion was the interaction of all representatives of the industry: designers, sellers, manufacturers, government agencies. The conference participants put forward a number of proposals that touched upon the problems of taxation, labor resources, promotion of Russian goods on domestic and foreign markets.

The International Competition of Young Designers "Generation NEXT" has significantly expanded its geography. Representatives of 20 educational institutions in Russia, Lithuania and Italy competed for awards from the organizers and partners of the event. The professional jury noted the high level of the submitted projects in all directions, the variety of topics with the general literacy of implementation and the exact targeted orientation of the projects. The winner in the direction of "Costume" and a contender for the National Award of the fashion industry in the category "Debut" was Olga Matyukhina (Saint Petersburg University of Technology and Design) with a collection of men's clothing;#Pinkogram». For the second season in a row, the main prize in the direction of "Textiles" went to Anastasia Ivanova (St. Petersburg State Art and Industrial Academy named after A.L. Stieglitz) for the development of a collection of dress and costume fabrics «Graphics of contrasts». In the direction of «Graphic Design» the project graphics «F 63.9» by Elizabeth Avimskaya (St. Petersburg State Art and Industrial Academy named after A.L. Stieglitz) was recognized as the best.

The exhibition "Fashion Industry" was visited by 9,344 people, 48.3% of them industry specialists. The next exhibition will be held in St. Petersburg from March 01 to 04, 2018..

Author: Elena Vinogradova