Here is an interview with the SCHUHKURIER magazine from Germany. The interview is in German: English text at the bottom.
Farewell Berlin. The Premium will take place in Frankfurt from 2021. How does the shoe industry rate the move of the fashion fair from the capital to the banking metropolis? shoe courier asked.
In the summer of 2021, the Frankfurt Fashion Week will celebrate its premiere. The centerpiece will be the three trade fair formats Premium, Seek and Neonyt, which will move from Berlin to the Main together with the conference formats Fashion Sustain and Fashion Tech. “This will make the economic metropolis of Frankfurt the new hotspot of the fashion and lifestyle scene and the new international fashion metropolis,” says Peter Feldmann, Lord Mayor of Frankfurt am Main. What does the shoe industry say about the move?
Uta Riechers-Wuttke & Martin Wuttke, design agency NextguruNow and Modeurop:
“The move of the Premium is a hard blow for the whole of Berlin. Unfortunately, the move proves that Berlin is once again letting the ‘butter from the bread’ be taken away. Berlin has not managed to bundle the different formats. The opportunities were there, but the support of the city of Berlin was not always there. All trade fair operators have done a great job for themselves. It is a pity that the dismemberment of the events was not resolved.
Fashion should always look ahead, but learning from past successes is important. Messe Frankfurt speaks of ‘think big’: that is very welcome. The industry needs a visionary platform. At the peak of Bread & Butter, buyers and visitors were so emotionally charged that the trade fair lingered on for months. We’re keeping our fingers crossed that the industry gets another trade fair with international appeal.
The discussions as to whether Düsseldorf or Munich would have been the right choice are unnecessary. Now it’s all about a coherent overall concept. A distinction should be made between Frankfurt as a trade fair location and the “fashion metropolis”. Choosing Frankfurt as the new fashion hotspot caused little more than a laugh in our network. The creative potential of Berlin, the energy, the density of designers, the number of fashion schools is unique in Germany. It’s about radiance, about an order platform that has to keep up with Paris, Milan or Copenhagen more than ever.
With this in mind, we wish the Fashion Week Frankfurt a start with a wow effect. We are happy. Forward ever, backward never!”
ENGLISH TRANSLATION
Uta Riechers-Wuttke & Martin Wuttke, design agency NextguruNow and Modeurop:
„The move of the Premium is a hard blow for all of Berlin. Unfortunately, the move proves that Berlin is once again letting the ‚butter off its bread‘ be taken away from it. Berlin has not managed to bundle the different formats. The opportunities were there, the support of the city of Berlin not always. All trade fair operators have done a great job for themselves. It is a pity that the fragmentation of the events was not solved.
Fashion should always look ahead, but learning from past successes is important. Messe Frankfurt speaks of ‚think big‘: this is very welcome. The industry needs a visionary platform. At Bread & Butter’s weddings, buyers and visitors were so fantastically emotionally charged that the fair continued to shine for months. We are keeping our fingers crossed that the industry will once again have a trade fair with international appeal.
The discussions whether Düsseldorf or Munich would have been the right choice are unnecessary. Now it is a question of a coherent overall concept. A distinction should be made between the trade fair location Frankfurt and the „fashion metropolis“. Making Frankfurt the new fashion hotspot generated little more than a laugh in our network. The creative potential of Berlin, the energy, the density of designers, the number of fashion schools, is unique in Germany. It’s all about radiance, about an order platform that more than ever has to keep up with Paris, Milan or Copenhagen.
With this in mind, we wish Fashion Week Frankfurt a start with a wow-effect. We are pleased. Forward ever, backward never!“