Pure London off to a flying start

The opening day of Pure London, the UK’s largest Festival of Fashion, welcomed hundreds of retailers from across the UK with including Velvet & Rose, Domino Style, Roxtons, Jessimara, Lucindas and many more. Buyers commented on the new layout, vibrant atmosphere and the quality and variety of the international brands showcasing, whilst exhibitors were upbeat about the high calibre of visitors.

Abigail Edmunds from Domino Style said, “This season is much bigger, there are lots of great brands and some new and interesting that we have not seen before.  Plus it’s great to see some of the old favourites back.”

Jane Davies from Jane Davies said, “We see a lot of brands in showrooms but always come to Pure London to pick up a wildcard. We came today looking for womenswear and found some beautiful accessories. We loved Alexandra Tsoukala!”

Sue Jones from Tallia said, “We’ve come to Pure London to find new brands and today has been great for that. We don’t usually sell shoes, but I have found a lovely new shoe brand, Esqualo that I’m very interested in.”

Exhibitors were equally positive, Josie Juritz, founder of the Jocie Juritz Collection said, “This is my first trade show and it's a totally new experience, but it's been really interesting so far. I feel like I've made great new contacts and networked with a lot of people that I otherwise wouldn’t meet which is exciting. I have got the best spot, I'm right next to the networking hub and not too far from the catwalk so there's a lot of footfall here.”

Sinead Bradford from Jayley said, “We've had a great first day.  Our location is perfect, we're right next to the catwalk and there's been a fantastic response to our pieces in the show.  There is really high and positive energy – it’s wonderful.”

Aaron Frankel, founder of Yevont said, “This is my first fashion trade show and it's great, I like the flow and the networking. The stand is a bit of a head-turner, there are people who have never seen 3D printers so it's good telling them the benefits such as no waste and recycled materials - showing people that there is an alternative out there to the standard models. It's been a good first day, we’ve got good leads and a few people exhibiting here have also connected with us wanting to collaborate, so it's been great for business opportunities, it's great being able to network with others that are in the industry.”

The Pure London Catwalk drew excited crowds as visitors eagerly anticipated the first preview of SS24/25 trends.  Opening, and brand new for this season, the catwalk welcomed designs from the winners of Graduate Fashion Week, in a partnership designed to foster new talent and give the graduates a unique platform to present their designs to the fashion industry.  Featured graduates included Lucy James from Arts University Bournemouth, Rachel Hunt Piers from Birmingham City University, Phoebe Potter from Edinburgh College Of Art, Sofia Segalla from University Of Hertfordshire, Erika Roznyte from Bath Spa University and Eloise Collett from Sheffield Hallam University. This was followed by four directional trend stories Nature-Verse, Soothing Luxury, Freaks & Geeks and Romantic Wanderer alongside key looks from brands showcasing at Pure London.

Malaika Ewande, Founder and Creative Director of Vesuvius opened Pure London’s innovative seminar programme with ‘Nature-Verse: A Discussion on the Collide of Digital and Conscious Fashion’. During the conversation, Ewande defined how textile advances, computer assisted creations and digital textile design are paving the way for sustainability and consciousness in the fashion industry. Malaika said, “The growth of Digital Fashion is no surprise; it’s completely true that the digital era has been created by millennials and Gen Z. The digital realm is embedded in the search for innovation, and sustainability in digital fashion is immense; there is 97% less CO2 footprint in a digital garment.”

Keynote speaker and retail legend George Davies, renowned for revolutionising the British high-street by creating three of the UK’s most successful fashion businesses, NEXT, George at Asda and PER UNA at M&S, was joined by prolific fashion journalist Eric Musgrave in a warm and insightful discussion on Davies’ career and the UK fashion market.  Davies referred to retail as, ‘The Love of his Life’ as he shared the value of visiting stores and positioning yourself as close as possible to your colleagues and customers.  He credits his success with understanding how to build a brand, knowing product and how to create the right retail environment. Davies reiterated the value of bricks and mortar stores and the physical shopping experience.

Renowned Cognitive Psychologist and Fashion Business Consultant Dr Carolyn Mair joined Pure London’s Sustainability Advisor, Olivia Pinnock for the insightful panel; “Decoding Consumer Behaviour & the Psychology of Fashion”. The duo delved into the captivating realm of consumer behavior, and how subconscious factors, self-perception and societal influences intertwine to shape our unique personal styles whilst also understanding how these psychological aspects can transform the way fashion brands approach business. “Fashion is moving away from aspirational to authentic, consumers want to see themselves in the brands they buy from. The crux going forward for brands is understanding that you can be profitable whilst also being ethical and sustainable.”

Closing the first day of Pure London, Jill Geoghegan, Editor of Drapers, chaired a panel on ‘Empowering Communities and Engaging Generations: Thriving as Independent Retailers in the Modern Era’ with Lesley Farrow of Niche, Shirley Leader of Velvet and Rose, and Abigail Edmunds of Domino Style.  The panel identified footfall as the biggest challenge facing Independent retailers.  Farrow said, “Customers coming into our stores need to enjoy their experience. Fun is what sets us apart from buying online, the retailers that do well provide exceptional customer service and an exciting and personal shopping experience.”

Gloria Sandrucci, Event Director at Pure London says, “Day one has been overwhelmingly positive. Since the doors opened this morning, the show has been full of energy and excitement as crowds of buyers explore the show. Exhibitors are reporting brisk trade and have been positive about the season ahead. The Pure London Catwalk is creating a fantastic atmosphere, with visitors gathering for every show.  I can’t wait for the next two days!”

Visitors joining Pure over the next two days can look forward to beautiful catwalks, trend presentations and seminars from inspirational speakers.  Highlights include the Circular Fashion Panel on Monday at 15:30 focusing on sustainability and tackling some of the most important challenges facing the industry and on Tuesday at 11.30 ‘The Colour Counsellor’, Jules Standish will host an inspiring styling session.

Pure London runs until Tuesday 18 July 2023 at Olympia London, for further information and to register please visit www.purelondon.com.

Pure London’s mission is to become the UK’s most inspiring and diverse celebration of fashion, providing the most trusted trends insights, speaking up for sustainability, and offering transformative business opportunity.

For further information on Scoop and to register please visit https://scoop-international.com/Home

For further information on Source Fashion and to register please visit https://www.source-fashion.com/

For further press information please contact: Emma Hussain or Philippa Suitters at Good Results

Email: emmah@goodresults.co.uk Tel: 07535 807367

Email: philippas@goodresults.co.uk  Tel: 07866 362980