Trade show season kicks off in the UK

This weekend saw the start of the UK trade show season, starting in London with Scoop International and ending in Birmingham next month with Moda. During the course of the next three weeks there will be six trade shows covering womenswear,

menswear, accessories, lingerie and swimwear, and streetwear.

The season kicked off with directional and contemporary womenswear show, Scoop International, which this season has expanded and is split over two venues to accommodate almost 400 exhibitors including See by Chloe, The Purotatto, Hoss Intropia, Vivienne Westwood, Johnstons of Elgin, Urban Nude, and Goat. The three-day premium showcase, takes places at both the Saatchi and Phillips Gallery, and closes today.

Menswear trade show Stitch, opens for its eight edition today, July 23 for two days and has revived its offering with a new venue, a midweek slot, and new format to include four curated sections – menswear, streetwear, emerging, and a debut womenswear section, as well as a catwalk show. Taking place at the Old Sorting Office on New Oxford Street, the show has around 70 brands including Bench, K-Way, Ruby Rocks, and Pretty Green.

Scoop International starts UK trade show season

The other menswear contender is Jackets Required, which will be held at Victoria House in London from July 31 to August 1. This will be the shows fifth edition and will include more than 130 brands such as Billionaire Boys Club, Duffer, Edwin, Henri Lloyd, John Smedley, Lacoste, Levi’s, Original Penguin, and Superga.

Then before the large tradeshows Pure and Moda take to the stage, the only independent fashion trade show in London, Margin opens in its new venue at the Hilton London Olympia Hotel. The show runs alongside Pure London from August 4-5, and will showcase numerous international labels making their debut including Itsie Bitsie, Schmatta, Dream Nation, Romy Rory, Bijouxellery, Lecicale, Stars & Tart, and T-Republic.

Then all attention turns to Pure London, the UK’s leading directional fashion event held at London’s Olympia, which attracts more than 12,000 fashion buyers each season. The spring/summer 2014 show will once again be popular with buyers as the event will showcase more than 1,000 brands from six sectors covering womenswear, young fashion, footwear, accessories, lingerie and swimwear and childrenswear, as well as daily catwalk shows, seminars and trend panels.

Closing the trade show season as usual will be Moda, held at the NEC in Birmingham from August 11-13, organised by the ITE Group, which also operates Scoop and Jacket’s Required. This season the event will host more than 1,450 brands across womenswear, menswear, lingerie, swimwear and footwear, as well as streetwear, urban and denim sectors covered within Flip, which is celebrating its third edition. Also new to the show this August is The Big Live Lingerie Debate, which will see a panel of key industry figures discuss relevant and pressing topics, as well as offering invaluable insight into what to expect in the future of the industry.

Images: The Purotatto stand/Scoop London