Fashion Week brings visitors and their cash to Berlin
Posted by Lucky on Jan 20, 2010
The event, which runs between January 20 and 24, is not only a sought-after showcase for new designers, but also a noteworthy source of income for the cash-strapped capital. According to Christian Tänzler, representative of Berlin’s tourism board, the average Fashion Week visitor spends around €240 per day.
While the temporary influx of fashion industry professionals is a boon to Berlin’s tourist trade, Tänzler said that the transformation of Berlin’s image is just as valuable.
“The image of Berlin as a fashion metropolis – you can’t measure that,” he told The Local.
With the increase in tourist traffic, temporary work opportunities also arise. BREAD & BUTTER, a jeans and streetwear trade fair located at the historic Tempelhof Airport, has hired 4,700 provisional employees. Among them 3,500 have assisted in the construction of a temporary façade, runways and a display area for BREAD & BUTTER’s 600 exhibitors.
In July 2009, Mayor Klaus Wowereit lured BREAD & BUTTER back to Berlin after a four-year stint in Barcelona. Around 80,000 buyers and urbanwear industry professionals are expected to attend the trade fair this year.
Concurrently, the 6th annual Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at Bebelplatz will feature fashion shows every 90 minutes. International and local designers such as Anja Gockel, Paolo Errico, Patrick Mohr, Rena Lange and Sam Frenzl are scheduled to display new collections.
“The German capital is becoming a fashion centre of truly international appeal,” deputy mayor Harald Wolf said recently.
Meanwhile the burgeoning green fashion industry will also be represented this week at THEKEY.TO forum in Kreuzberg’s Heeresbäckerei. The three-day event will host a variety of sustainable lifestyle workshops and a green shopping event open to the public. Renate Künast, head of the Green Party is expected to speak at the opening event on January 21st.
source:http://www.thelocal.de/national/20100120-24691.html
