As someone with a deep interest in fashion, some people want to be designers while others, stylists. Some find the hustle and bustle of organizing a fashion event to be the most rewarding of pleasures.
Fashion Events don’t just come in the form of runways. In today’s article, I will share the process that a general fashion event takes place.
STEP 1: ESTABLISH YOUR CONCEPT/THEME
For a fashion event, coming up with a concept and getting sources of inspiration is the core planning step. Just as you would design a collection, you also need to communicate to your public audience. Concept research is not only applicable to fashion events like Fashion Show, although other types of events such as Workshop, Talkshow, Virtual event, Online Exhibition...theme, story and color tone are the foundations to develop branding. If the event does not have a clear concept/theme and values, it will be difficult to attract the attention of the target audience. Establishing a theme for the event means that you turn the event into an “experience”. From there, we will determine other elements of space, sound, light…
So, what you need to do is to clearly define the purpose of the event, start collecting inspirational images that are closest to your idea, then gather and build a moodboard, concept board for the event. . Don't forget "personalization" when formulating ideas, because whether you organize an event of your own or a group of people, you always need to be different to impress attendees, partners and sponsors.
STEP 2: COME UP WITH A DETAILED PLAN
When making a collection you need to establish your target customer. Likewise, a fashion event needs to know its Target audience. You need to paint a picture of your attendees (who are they? where do they come from? what do they need and what’s their lifestyle like?). From there, careful strategies come to life in your detailed plan. I often build a plan from the Who - What - Where - How - Why? questions.
There are many factors to consider in a fashion event plan:
Place, space
Scale
Sound, lighting
Runway & set design (if it's a fashion show)
Costume/makeup
Communication, branding
Publications (catalogs, posters, ...)
Packaging
Social media
Catwalk style
Casting
rehearsal
Guest/Performer
Human Resources (BTC positions)
Behind the scenes
…
Depending on the event, different factors will change throughout the planning stage. But at any point, each task needs to be attended to with utmost care and precision. This is why an Event Checklist is most needed to ensure this!
STEP 3: EVENT PROPOSAL
After you have carefully planned out your event, the next step would be to create the Event Proposal. The main goal for the proposal is for the committee to present it to partners such as media agencies, sponsors, distributors, etc. Instead of verbally discussing their entire event, they also need to visually marker and present their ideas in order to have their audience fully understand the aims of the event.
For each fashion business/organization, building an event proposal will be different. Fashion clubs often write their event proposals on the basis of asking for Sponsorships. However, larger brands will have a different proposal. For example, they’ll create a show plan, a collaboration invitation and a sponsorship request. Aside from this, event proposals are also the “face” of the brand. When a partner isn’t familiar with you or your event, an event proposal needs to be crystal clear with its image and content. Especially for fashion events, everything from the images to the stage planning needs to have fashion elements. You may include concept boards and moodboards in your proposal.
So, what does a fashion event proposal need?
Open letter
About Us
Program/event introduction
Collection inspiration, creative materials (if it's a fashion show)
Event layout, information
Guests (especially if you are inviting celebrities)
Event Timeline
Communication plan
Sponsorship plan (if it is a sponsorship application).
…
STEP 4: MARKETING YOUR EVENT
Communication or how we promote the program is one of the key factors determining success. Designers or brands often hold fashion shows to launch their special collections and boost sales. However, no matter how beautiful that collection is, if the communication is not effective, it will be difficult to create a buzz.
So how do we successfully promote a fashion event? In the communication plan, the committee needs to outline a clear communication direction with its audience in each period (pre-event - during the event - after the event). At some point, communications will need to push to the climax. Create a specific timeline for fashion media products such as pre-show photoshoots; motion graphics; trailer/teaser;... Make a list of celebs, influencers, KOLs to collaborate and create more influence for the event. In addition, the strategy of making content and posts on social networking platforms such as Facebook, Instagram is indispensable and needs to be optimized. You can create your own filter for events, or seeding plans… Apply marketing models to build communication strategies: SOSTAC, AIDA, 4C, SMART,...
In addition, make a list of newspapers/magazines you can invite to collaborate (fashion magazines such as L'Officiel, Elle, Dep, Style Republik...). For a fashion or art event, having a Creative Director is essential. That person will direct the creative style for media publications, branding or during the event.
STEP 5: THE EVENT ITSELF
Finally, the day or week has come, which is when the event takes place. During this period, the committee has gone a long way and has done almost everything they can with the best spirits in order to make a polished event where everything goes smoothly. Usually, events will have rehearsals which can be tiring. The committee needs to do a test run of the event and know how to prevent any mishaps that may occur. For a fashion show, the rehearsal that comes right before can last up to 2-3 hours and be stressful.
3 years ago, I ran into a sound issue merely 30 minutes before my own fashion show. Members of the committee need to know exactly what their roles are before the event and make sure they are done. With online events you need to exercise the same degree of caution for technical issues. If it’s a fashion event, make sure that all the outfits and accessories are in order. Model/outfit managers need to bring sewing kits to fix any clothing issues that come up. Models themselves need to make sure their catwalk fits the music and the atmosphere of the runway event.
With my personal experiences in organizing fashion events for the past 4 years, here are 5 steps I can summarize in the most general way. Do you have a passion for the fashion event industry? Please share your own experiences! Hope this information is useful to you!