Could Africa Fashion Week be the next New York Fashion Week?
The ARISE Fashion Week that took place in Lagos, Nigeria last week was such a success that it’s got everybody thinking big. Organizer Penny McDonald said, “You’ve got Milan, London, New York and Paris. Why not Lagos?”. There’s such a fashion culture that’s come out of that area to showcase in other countries around the world, there’s no reason to make Lagos the fifth fashion capital in the world.
Seventy-seven designers were narrowed down to five winners that will showcase at NYFW. For designers who struggle to enter the European-dominated international fashion scene, ARISE Fashion Week was a chance for them to shine. Despite difficulties that the entire country faces with electricity issues and the near threadbare textile industry, the ARISE event was certainly an insight, or sneak peek, into what the continent can do, and what potential they have in becoming a serious fashion capital of the world.
