Urban Expositions and the American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) will launch a West Coast fall edition of Material World, September 30-October 2, 2009, at the Los Angeles Convention Center in California.
Titled Material World West, the new edition will complement the well-established spring Material World Miami Beach event by bringing the extensive resources of the global fashion and style production event to a key target audience of apparel, home and footwear industry members from the Pacific Rim and United States, with special emphasis on the Western region.
?°The industry has been encouraging us to bring Material World west for many years,?± explains Tim von Gal, President of Material World. ?°California has the most important fashion manufacturing and import base in the United States. It is the home of top name brands and leading designers.
California??s international accessibility lends itself to a diverse mix of participation. For those reasons and L.A.??s indisputable reputation as a Fashion city, it is the ideal location for a fall edition of our event.?±
?°The addition of Material World West will create new opportunities for all members of AAFA and our partnering organizations,?± said Kevin M. Burke, president and CEO, AAFA. ?°Further, the new show will highlight the dynamic and growing West Coast apparel industry to our international partners.?±
Material World West is an official event of the AAFA and is endorsed by other leading associations, including the American Apparel Producer??s Network, California Fashion Association, National Textile Association, and National Council of Textile Organizations. Material World West plans to work with other local and regional industry associations to benefit their membership.
Leading trend forecasters Pantone and Stylesight will extend their support of Material World to the California edition. Pantone is the official color authority of Material World and Stylesight is the official trend partner of the event.
Material World West will be a comprehensive presentation of the fashion and style industry supply chain. ?°Material World is more of an international product-development show for the fashion and style industries than it is just a textile show,?± said Ilse Metchek, executive director of the California Fashion Association.
?°My understanding is that it will focus more on technology, equipment, facilitation, and the supply side of product development, including denim textiles and finishing organizations; segments not currently included in the local show.?±
\"Los Angeles is where fashion trends begin and we are delighted to welcome Material World to the Downtown region, the hub of the apparel industry on the West Coast,\" said Mark Liberman, president and CEO of LA INC., The Los Angeles Convention and Visitors Bureau.
\"The apparel and textiles industry is the largest manufacturing sector in LA county and we are looking forward to hosting such a popular trade show that will showcase one of our City\'s most well-known attributes.\" The apparel and textiles industry generates $24.5 billion annually in wholesale volume, and Los Angeles employs more people in the apparel and textiles industry than New York City.
American Apparel & Footwear Association (Jun9,2008)
