The main purpose of my trip to Paris was family business; we all attended Premiere Vision Paris. This is a giant fashion convention where members of the industry come to find new suppliers and see what are the upcoming fashion tendencies. Being in the fashion industry back in Guatemala, my mom thought it was time for my sister and I to become more involved in the process of selecting merchandise for our stores. If you did not already know, the main stores that my mom manages are Lanificio Di Livenza - which sells textiles and fashion accessories for men - and Modas Y Textiles - the women's branch.
The convention took place at the Exposition Center, which is located in the outskirts of Paris, and let me tell you... that place is GIGANTIC! We attended the convention for all three days; the first day being primarily focused on scouting the entire area, and the second and third day were focused on networking and finding new suppliers.
The fair is divided into different sections; women's fashion, men's fashion, leather & suede, and accessories, along with different cafes where you could take a breather from all the exhibitors. Some sections featured really incredible advances in fashion, particularly involving technology in the fabrics.
One of my favorite areas in the convention center was the accessories one, I wanted to get every single piece and put it onto all of my clothes! And the displays of every exhibitor had incredible set ups, I was able to photograph some of them, but others you were not able to take pictures of. Just walking through those aisles I was getting so much inspiration as to how to mix and match the clothes I have, and some new ideas as to how I can spice up some old jackets.
As you can see from the pictures, it appears that embroidery is not going anywhere any time soon - thank God! I also noticed that big accessories are still going to be around. Minimalism was present, but by just looking at the accessories section I can tell that the louder you get with fashion, the better.
Throughout all of the convention center, you could find focus areas dedicated to what is upcoming in fashion. Most of these areas had a beautiful set up, but you were unable to take pictures of the area - mainly because it is only intended to be seen by those who bought passes. The picture above is from one of the focus areas, my favorite one! I had to ask permission to take the picture and say that I just wanted to capture the area and not what was being showcased.
Overall it was a phenomenal experience. I learned a lot on how the family business works and even more on what's to come in fashion. Maybe in the near future I will be able to strike up some deals on my own for the business!