The week was one-of-a-kind, filled with glitter, dazzle, pomp, and pageantry.

The recently concluded international BRICS+ Fashion Summit, held in Moscow from November 28 to December 2, 2023, brought together over 200 fashion experts from 60 countries.

This event served as a platform for discussing the challenges and opportunities facing the global fashion industry, with a focus on collaboration, entrepreneurship, and technology.

The summit’s packed schedule included:

• Over 60 sessions, panel talks, and round-table discussions covering diverse topics like sustainability, cultural appropriation, celebrity style, and the democratisation of fashion.
• A business programme featuring prominent speakers like Yang Jian from the China Fashion Association, Alia Khan from the Islamic Fashion and Design Council, and David Tlale from South Africa, sharing their insights on industry trends and business strategies.

• The new fashion industry forum about the Russian fashion landscape, its best practices, and future outlook, with experts like Irina Ryabko from the Remark department store and Lyudmila Alyabyeva from Fashion Theory Magazine.
• A fashion-intensive course led by professors from renowned fashion schools, offering participants valuable skills and knowledge.
• A B2B showroom facilitating connections and fostering business opportunities between brands and buyers.

• Fashion shows showcasing the creativity and talent of emerging and established designers from across the globe.
• World Fashion Shorts, a festival celebrating the art of fashion film.

The summit emphasised the crucial role of BRICS nations as major production hubs and consumption markets, and their potential to be trendsetters in the evolving fashion landscape. Through collaboration and knowledge exchange, the BRICS+ Fashion Summit aims to drive sustainable and inclusive growth within the global fashion industry.

While the summit offered a comprehensive programme covering a diverse range of topics, we’ll be touching on three specific events that captured the essence of the summit: the B2B Showroom, the fashion shows, and the World Fashion Shorts:

The B2B Showroom

The B2B Showroom, buzzing with activity in the Parking Gallery of Zaryadye Park, brought together 130 fashion brands from 20 countries.

This space presented an opportunity for buyers and brands to connect and explore new partnerships.

The B2B showroom features Moscow brands like Akhmadullina Dreams, Naushad Ali, Chapurin, Victoria Andreyanova, Loom by Rodina, Surovaya, BLCV, Gapanovich and many other renowned brands.

There was an exhibition, a fusion of styles, including sports chic, casual, evening wear, kid’s fashion, and a plethora of accessories.

Buyers from China, India, Russia, Malaysia, and other countries partook in the event.

The fashion shows

The fashion shows illuminated the Moscow scene with beautiful collections from designers across 12 countries. The prestigious Pashkov House, the Russian State Library, and the State Historical Museum served as backdrops for these fashion shows.

International talents like CHNNYU, LUCAS LEÃO, and Arzu Kaprol shared their vision with the world, alongside renowned Indian designers like Naushad Ali, KHANIJO and Shruti Sancheti.

A renowned African brand, David Tlale from South Africa, whose collections have graced runways in New York and Paris, also showcased his collection.

World Fashion Shorts

The World Fashion Shorts, a special movie event, took place on November 30, 2023, in the multimedia hall of ARTPLAY Design Centre.

It was a one-day multimedia installation featuring a fusion of fashion, cinema, and video art, transcending the boundaries between fashion and film. Award-winning short films from diverse regions, including South Africa, North America, and Southeast Asia, showcased the creative potential of this genre, which has been rapidly gaining traction across the globe in the recent decade.

The format of the show was not a usual cinema performance, but full immersion into a striking, and might we say, exotic visual environment based on multimedia tools.

Interestingly, the videos were displayed on several screens around the perimeter of the room at the same time, allowing viewers to personalise their experience and discover connections between the works.

This immersive approach created an environment that celebrated fashion through the lens of cinema.

These three events represent a fraction of the offerings at the BRICS+ Fashion Summit and celebrate the multifaceted world of fashion.