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2013 offers Two Fashion Weeks for Malawians

Fashionistas in Malawi should prepare for a chance to showcase their designs twice this year following plans to have two Malawi Fashion Week events this year.

This follows a statement from the Fashion Malawi Edition (Fame) that it will hold Malawi’s first ever fashion week from August 28 to September 2 at the Bingu International Conference Centre in Lilongwe.

The development is as a result of some seemingly misunderstandings between Fame and two firms, Elegant Resources and African Dzuwa Magazine, who have joined hands to hold a Malawi Fashion Week from May 30 to June 3 in Lilongwe.

However, designers, without making much ado about the feuds, have welcomed the idea of Malawi holding two national fashion events.

“We are happy with the development as it will work to the advantage of us designers as well as models. The events will create more platforms for our exposure and recognition. In fact, we need more of these fashion weeks and not just two. But this is a good start,” said celebrated designer Lilly Alfonso.

The press statement from Fame reiterates that people should not be confused with the two fashion weeks.

“To prevent any confusion, we would like to clarify that the recently announced fashion week organised by Dawa Loga-Lemberger from Elegant Resources and Chikumbutso Mtumodzi from African Dzuwa is not a Fame event,” reads a statement from Fame.

In an interview, Fame financial and event director Eveline Sibindi Van Dam, said the statement is to clarify issues as there have been many questions as regards to their fashion week and that of Elegant Resources in conjunction with African Dzuwa Magazine.

“We are not complaining that these two have stolen our idea because we were the first to announce of a fashion week this year. All we are doing is to clarify to models, designers and all those involved with Malawi fashion that these are two separate events,” said Van Dam.

Loga-Lemberger, on the other hand, said there is no harm with Malawi holding several national fashion weeks.

“Throughout the world, fashion weeks are open and welcome to people. Our initiative is borne out of passion as such, we will be holding it every year so as to build Malawi’s fashion industry,” said Loga-Lemberger.

She said she named the event Malawi Fashion Week because “In the first place, I was not aware of another Malawi Fashion Show in the offing by Fame. So I gave it that name because it was the first of its kind in the country, we have never had a fashion week.”

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