Première Vision Paris welcomed 53,156 visitors from 127 countries this month. © Première Vision Paris

Welcoming 53,156 visitors from 127 countries at its latest edition, Première Vision Paris illustrated the strength of its leadership and influence on the global creative fashion industry. Its 70%-international visitorship – still unsurpassed in the sector – is particularly notable for its high quality, demonstrating the show’s robustness in the face of strong political and economic uncertainties in world markets, organisers report.

“This impressive performance was nonetheless marked by a slight decline in visitor numbers, a direct consequence of the market's jitteriness in light of the impending exit of the United Kingdom from the European Union,” the say.

“British fashion brands and buyers are playing it safe as Brexit edges closer, solidifying fears and slowing down decision-making. This is evidenced by a significant 16% decline in British visitors, which alone accounts for two thirds of the decline in attendance at the show.”

Hub of inspiration

This season, the show once again fulfilled its role as catalyst for the creative fashion sector. The event offered a selective, transversal offer, up by 3.3%, compared to February 2018, presented by 1,782 exhibitors. Highly acclaimed fashion information for Spring/Summer 2020 was presented to visitors. Developed by the Première Vision fashion team, the fashion forums along with the Trend Tasting seminars were all well attended.

This season, the show once again fulfilled its role as catalyst for the creative fashion sector. © Première Vision Paris

There was also an enthusiastic response to the Première Vision Marketplace, now being adopted by industry professionals as a complementary tool to enhance their sales development and communications. “The physical implementation of the Marketplace deployed at the show was a resounding success. Buyers from major international brands and exhibitors clearly expressed their excitement. Launched last September with the weavers' collections, the digital platform integrated tanners in February,” organisers report.

The success of the Wearable Lab as a true hotspot for meetings was confirmed by a third edition with non-stop attendance. With start-ups, innovative materials, embedded technologies, a forward-looking exhibition, expert conferences and more, the space dedicated to Fashion Tech was steadily busy, confirming that technological innovation is central to the sector's priorities.

Attendance

This edition, 53,156 visitors from 127 countries came to Première Vision Paris to discover the latest innovations in materials – yarns, fibres, fabrics, leathers, textile designs, accessories – and manufacturing solutions tailored to the development of their Spring/Summer 2020 collection.

The show recorded 70%-international visitorship, demonstrating the show’s robustness in the face of strong political and economic uncertainties in world markets. © Première Vision Paris

This premium visitorship, above all 70% international, is also diverse. This is true in terms of their size. Beyond the usual and natural fluctuations in international visitor contingents, the decline in attendance from the United Kingdom appears to be a sign of market distrust in face of the impending challenges related to Brexit.

The top five visiting countries remain unchanged since February 2018. China enters the top 10 in ninth place, Belgium moves from tenth to eighth place, and Japan moves down a place, dropping to tenth place in the ranking. Visitors to Première Vision Paris are primarily European. France leads with nearly 16,000 visitors. This demonstrates the indispensable nature of the show for French brands, which are among the most important in the sector.

In second place, Italy had 5,985 visitors, followed by the UK. This trio is followed by Spain, Germany, and Belgium. Visitors from Asia rose by 8%. With over 1,996 visitors, North America registered a rise in its attendance. Turkey maintained its position as the fifth ranked visitor-country.

www.premierevision.com