The Dubai Mall welcomes over 1 million visitors at 2nd Vogue Fashion Dubai Experience

• Charity gala dinner raises almost AED 4 million for World Food Programme
  A-list celebrities including Janet Jackson, Franca Sozzani, Philipp Plein, Roberto Cavalli, Peter Dundas, Latifa, Elissa, Lira, Soko, Lola Lennox, among others attend

The Dubai Mall, the world’s largest and most-visited retail and lifestyle destination, welcomed over one million visitors during the three-day Vogue Fashion Dubai Experience (VFDE) which attracted the world’s leading names in fashion and continues to position Dubai as a global fashion destination.

The inaugural fashion show hosted by supermodel Karolina Kurkova and Wissam Hanna which launched the second edition of VFDE, organised by Emaar and Vogue Italia, was highlighted by a stellar line-up of global celebrities and a record turn-out of visitors. The in-store activities organised by over 200 fashion retailers in The Dubai Mall also contributed to the significant boost in footfall, further underlining The Dubai Mall’s credentials as the ultimate destination for luxury shopping.

The fashion show was a resounding success and astounded attendees with a creative presentation of the S/S 2015 collections of eight talented international designers. The selected brands were: Asudari Studio by Lamia Asudari from Saudi Arabia, Christopher Esber from Australia, J. JS Lee by Jackie JS Lee from South Korea, Madiya Al Sharqi from the UAE, Miuniku by Tina Sutradhar and Nikita Sutradhar from India, No3 Design by Bushra Badri and Amira Al Khaja from the UAE, Stella Jean from Italy and Piccione Piccione by Salvatore Piccione from Italy.

A charity dinner gala hosted by Vogue Italia and Emaar to raise funds for the World Food Programme, under the patronage of UN Messenger for Peace and Chairperson of International Humanitarian City, Her Royal Highness Princess Haya bint Al Hussein, wife of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, also witnessed overwhelming attendance including celebrities such as Janet Jackson, Latifa, Elissa, Lira, Soko, Lola Lennox, Franca Sozzani, Philipp Plein, Roberto Cavalli, Peter Dundas, Alberta Ferretti, Emmanuelle Seigner, Elisa Sednaoui, Farida Khelfa, Afef Jnifen, Ali Mustafa, Liya Kebede, and Lily Cole. The event raised almost AED 4 million towards the charity that works to address global poverty and highlighted the role of the fashion industry in making a positive difference to humanity.

Mohamed Alabbar, Chairman of Emaar Properties PJSC, said: “We are thankful to the support and patronage of the world’s fashion legends to Vogue Fashion Dubai Experience, which continues to cement our city’s role as a global fashion capital. Alongside the celebration of fashion, the event also put the spotlight on emerging talent from around the world, further establishing Dubai as a springboard for the next generation of designers. As the home to the largest collection of luxury brands under one roof, The Dubai Mall will continue to play a key role in driving the growth of Dubai’s luxury retail market through such initiatives and our planned expansion of the Fashion Avenue to bring new and innovative fashion brands to the city.”

Franca Sozzani, editor-in-chief of Vogue Italia, added: “The Dubai Mall has set a new era in retailing which served as an inspiration to launch Vogue Fashion Dubai Experience. Through the event, we are providing a sustainable platform for supporting talented young designers. Fashion is a media and social tool for positive social change, and the success of Vogue Fashion Dubai Experience in raising funds for World Food Programme is a good example of how the fashion and retail industry can unite people from all walks of life to make a difference to humanity.”

VFDE also featured the International Talents Showcase at Armani Hotel Dubai, which served as an exclusive stage for 20 upcoming designers, selected by Vogue Italia and The Dubai Mall through a scouting contest. The showcase reported robust interest from buyers and retailers for the collections and several potential leads for business and marketing collaborations.

The selected brands, which presented their women’s S/S 2015 collections, were: Anabela Chan from the UK, Astrid Sarkissian from France, Augustin Teboul by Odély Teboul and Annelie Augustin from France and Germany, Faiza Bouguessa from France/Algeria, Charline De Luca by Carlotta De Luca from Italy, Coliac by Martina Grasselli from Italy, Dora Abodi from Hungary, Endemage by Lubna and Nadia Al Zakwani from Oman, Eun-Jung Lee from South Korea, Heaven Tanudiredja from Indonesia, Hema Kaul from India, Hooked | HKD by Farah Nasri from Lebanon, i’Alave by Eva Lai from the USA, Marius Janusauskas from Belgium, Mies Nobis by Millicent Nobis from Australia, Omelya by Kostya Omelya from Ukraine, Reem Al Kanhal from Saudi Arabia, Sarah Angold Studio by Sarah Angold from the UK, Shamsa Alabbar from the UAE and Steven Tai from Canada.

A highlight of the event this year were the exclusive Fashion Talks led by international designers and fashion icons at Armani Hotel Dubai which were open to the public and saw huge crowds eager to gain insights into the fashion industry. The prestigious speakers included: Franca Sozzani, Roberto Cavalli, Peter Dundas, Philipp Plein, Alberta Ferretti and Sara Maino. The talks were moderated by fashion journalist JJ Martin.

Two unique fashion exhibitions were also held: ‘The Italian Way,’ at The Dubai Mall’s Fashion Avenue, celebrated the Italian style gathering 80 looks from the most important fashion brands of the last decades, while the 10th edition of ‘Who is on Next?’, a project organised by Altaroma in collaboration with Vogue Italia, highlighted the new talents of the Made in Italy brand.

VFDE 2014 official partners were Sephora, Emirates Airline, LG Electronics, Pepsi Co and Maserati, with OSN as the official TV partner. For more information visit www.vfdebyemaar.com or follow on Twitter (@TheDubaiMall #VFDE), Facebook or Instagram.