Where are the buyers?
The three-day long Van Heusen India Mens Week (VHIMW) has come to an end, and according to a source from Van Huesen there are discussions of making it a bi-annual affair. Yet people in the fashion fraternity are wondering about one thing — where are the buyers? Three years back when the capital became the fourth city in the world to boast of an independent Mens Week almost 30 designers participated in the event, which incidentally has reduced to 17 participatants in the third edition.
Organisers claim that although it isn’t a B2B event, it can’t be called a promotional exercise. Sunil Sethi, president, FDCI, mentions that designers who are showcasing here are primarily participating to make their presence felt in the menswear segment. He says, “Due to lack of space there are no stalls at the venue, however, people who come to watch the shows are the potential buyers because they can watch the shows and choose from them. Van Heusen too is buying menswear from the designers and there are a few domestic stores that have shown interest. This is a new property and we are still establishing it, we aren’t doing anything much to attract buyers right now because right we are still at a stage where we are getting people interested then we'll go on to the next level.”
Lack of buyers or not, the designers value the visibility that they get through such a platform. Mumbai-based designer Troy Costa emphasises on the fact that most of the good designers get good business if they make good clothes. He says, “Today, everything is available on the Internet and buyers don’t have to be physically present to pick clothes.”
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