FASHION ROCKS
Season after season, FN PLATFORM’s Opening Night Concert is a can’t miss event! This season’s Opening Night concert will feature the band World Classic Rockers made up of original band members: Nick St. Nicholas and Michael Monarch from Steppenwolf, Aynsley Dunbar from Journey, Randall Hall from Lynyrd Skynyrd, Greg Walker from Santana, Fran Cosmo from Boston, along with David Colye, Mark Hoyt and Juan Del Castillo as Back-up. This concert will take place Monday, August 14th, 2017 from 6-7pm on the FNP show floor.
STAR SIGHTINGS
MAGIC is known for its celebrity attendance. While many surprises do come up, below are a few you’re sure to catch at this show:
Actor Blair Underwood, will launch his new shoe collection, Q by Blair Underwood, in collaboration with famed footwear designer, Pasquale. In honor of the collection debut, Blair Underwood will host a meet-and-greet at the Pasquale booth (#83119) on Tuesday, August 15 from 1-2pm.
Actress and Warner Brothers recording artist, Laura Marano of Disney's international hit, Austin & Ally, has teamed up with Brand Headquarters on a collaboration with Not Rated Footwear. To launch the Spring 2018 collection of Laura Marano by Not Rated, she will be performing at WWDMAGIC, followed by a meet & greet. Tuesday, August 15th at 3pm, booth #72309
Vanderpump Rules star, James Kennedy will be launching his line of Kate Mesta Dog Tags. Kate Mesta Brand is most famous for their official military dog tag jewelry. Meet the DJ and star on Tuesday, August 15th from 2-5pm, booth #75046.
Emmy-award winning Mad Men and The Last Tycoon costume designer, Janie Bryant, will also make an appearance. She’ll participate on a panel titled, “Vintage: The New Black” inside the WWD Social House followed by a meet and greet to launch her capsule collection with Unique Vintage on Monday, August 14th. The meet and greet will begin at 12:30pm inside the Unique Vintage booth (#76102).
GIVE BACK
Year-after-year, MAGIC inspires the fashion industry to make time for philanthropic initiatives. This year, Make-A-Wish and National Shoe Travelers will be launching a charitable campaign on show site. Representatives will be accepting donated airline miles to further support Make-A-Wish’s mission. To donate air miles, stop by IN PLAY lounge on August 15th from 2-4pm or donate online at www.wish.org.nst.
Additionally, Right Bank Shoe Co. in FN PLATFORM will be donating 10% of wholesale pricing to Race to Erase MS on all ‘MS’ styles.
PERFECT YOUR PITCH
The Home Shopping Network (HSN) is coming to FN PLATFORM On Tuesday, August 15th. As part of their American Dreams Initiative, a panel of executives, producers and presenters will hear live product pitches from MAGIC exhibitors. The pitches will take place from 9-6pm in the FN Cafe. This is open to all MAGIC exhibitors but those interested in participating must apply to give their pitch pre-show.
ART APPRECIATION
Several installations and interactive experiences will add to the show.
‘How Espadrilles Are Made :’ Artisans from Carvacas, Spain will be crafting Espadrilles by hand in ZEN Lounge.
Famed French artist, Huit, will create a live painting on site in the IN PLAY lounge.
PENSOLE Academy will host a student workshop showcasing a special onsite display of graffiti shoe art, featuring sneakers created by students from last season’s competition.
Renowned brand, Hush Puppies celebrates 60 years with a historic footwear installation retrospective.
ONES TO WATCH
Both WWDMAGIC and FN PLATFORM will feature its very own Emerging Designer Showcase.
WWDMAGIC will bring back its well-loved ‘Emerging Designer’ showcase featuring a group of hand-selected up-and-comers. Participating brands include: 2WN, Day & Night, Hers & Mine, Million Bullpup, Style Rack, Simona Maghen and Moh Love.
FN PLATFORM will debut its first Emerging Designers Showcase this August. It will feature six promising designers hand-selected by FN PLATFORM executives. Participating designers include: Tiannia Barnes, Becki Coackley, Anniel, Frou Frouz, Fringe by Ella & Rubi and Chelsea Paris.
SQUARE ONE
SQUARE ONE is a new interactive shared space curated and created by leading trend forecaster, Fashion Snoops. It will showcase cultural trends and leading innovators behind the trends for Fall-Winter 18/19 and highlight “What’s Next.” The space will come to life through experience, live on-site installations, real time art creation and talks by creative trailblazers. Attendees will have the unique opportunity to see artists physically demonstrate the feel and influence of four cultural trends while engaging everyone involved in the creative process. For example, an artist will demonstrate zero waste weaving, a process where waste is repurposed into yarn which will coincide with one of the trends presented.
WELCOME HOME
SOURCING at MAGIC HOME will be in its fourth edition this August. The HOME show only comes once a year to bring the international home textiles supply chain to North America’s most comprehensive fashion sourcing show. This year’s show will allow attendees to tap into the interior textiles, décor, and accessories marketplace from exhibitors around the world. The HOME show is the ideal platform to shop materials and products specific to the home market.
TALK TECH
See technology and witness live demonstrations featuring fabric printing, scanning, 2D/3D production tools and robotics. Participating companies include EFI, REGGIANI, OPTITEX, ZUN, NEXTWAVE, TUKATECH, WHITECLOUDS 3-D PRINTER SERVICE, ROYAL EXCLUSIVE CUTTING & SEWING MACHINES.
EDUCATIONAL PANELS + NETWORKING
Join one of our many educational panels taking place over the course of 3-days. Each panel will address industry hot topics and will be led by leaders in their respective areas. Featured panels include:
Instagram: It’s More than Just Posting a Photo: On Tuesday, August 15th at 10:30am, we'll evaluate how the social network has changed from inception; and what it means to be an "influencer" on it. How do we capitalize on the different parts of the app (live, stories, posts, albums) as a brand and utilize each aspect of the app to our advantage? We'll talk with fashion influencers who live in this space to see what type of content their followers respond to the most, ways in which they use each vertical of the app and how you as a brand and retailer can use them too.
Five on Five with Footwear News: Footwear News brings together five footwear industry influencers for an open discussion about what’s happening in fashion, embracing the new consumer and where the footwear industry going. Tuesday, August 15 2-3pm, FN PLATFORM, Bond Lounge. Participants include: Eileen Tetreault, Sr. Director of Fashion Strategy – Zappos.com, Gillian Meek, President – Keds USA, Andrew Kiernan, Global Director, SVP, President – United Nude, Seth Campbell, Sr. Vice President of Business Development – BBC International LLC, Albin Johansson, Co-Founder & CEO – Axel Arigato.
Retail Isn’t Dead and Where Ideas Come From: Beginning Sunday, August 13th the National Shoe Retailers Association kicks off with inspiring and educational programs topical to the footwear industry. Register online at www.nsra.org.
WWD PRESENTS: You Know What I Think? With Alex Badia: WWD Style Director, Alex Badia is back! For many seasons, Alex has voiced his opinions on the latest women's fashion trends alongside fellow fashion influencers like Joe Zee and Christopher Kim of Yahoo Style. We gave On Tuesday, August 15th at 12pm, get ready for another edition of an all-out "Alex Badia Fashion Fest" as he brings us up to speed on what’s hot—and even better, what's not—for the upcoming season.
THE GO-TO SOURCING DESTINATION: Vietnam Continues to Lure U.S. Firms: On Monday, August 14, 1:00-2:00PM, Shifting global sourcing strategies affect fashion sourcing executives of all levels as they attempt to find the appropriate mix of regions, countries and product requirements. VIETNAM has become a leading force in the U.S. supply chain and today’s expert panel will explore the ins and outs of their experiences working in this world-class production hub.
Learn about SOURCING at MAGIC August 2017 Vietnam Sourcing
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