Our brand has been mainly focused on advertising on Instagram but the conversion rate is not great. There are a lot of people on the platform, but most are not there specifically to purchase clothes but to socialize. We'd love to do some fashion shows and put ourselves out there for the world to see what we have going, but most of those Fashion events are usually overpriced. 

Lilianne Venor
Rio, Brazil

I'm a one-woman show, no husband, no investor, it's all on me. So it's hard to put a heavy budget on running around the world to show my creations. In the end, I create to sell, so I would only put my money on events where I can show my stuff to people who can actually place orders, and it doesn't have to be big buyers, I actually had more luck with direct consumers, they can relate to you, and when they love your products, they buy and bring you more clients.

Amy Jadikass
Dallas, TX

I think attending a fashion show really depends on where you are at, and what your goals are. For me, I need more press and brand awareness. It's not about the money, but making sure that my name is out there so the top guys can ping me. So, it's very important to me that the Fashion Shows I attend have the ability to invite Fashion Medias and some key names in the industry as that gives brands an expanded recognition. Buyers then trust you more and place orders.

Vicky Osakoi
Tokyo, Japan

Most Fashion events prioritize big brands or designers who can help them make large sales since they receive a cut out of the deals they help engineer. That leaves no place for small brands like us. We have to fight to get people to remember us, yes they see your designs and like you, but it takes more than that to close those deals and it takes time, meanwhile we have expenses, we have to live and keep building. If organizers provide a better support to small brands, I'm convinced they will see a higher conversion rate and everyone will win.

Patrick Glawson
Liverpool, UK

My advice is to link every designer's store to their Catwalk. That way, attendees can have instant access to our products and buy on the spot. People have short memories and move on to the next thing right after you, so we need to get them right when we have their attention, but that's usually not up to us as we are not calling the shots. I also think that Fashion Events should do a better Follow-up after events, they have the contact info of all attendees and not everyone makes instant decisions. If they send a few follow-up emails and texts with content and info of designers, that could make a huge difference as more people would buy or follow the brand.

Thessa Brunk
Cologne, Germany

I love going to Fashion Shows, I think it's a faster opportunity to grow your brand and increase your revenues. But you have to be smart in picking the right events. Personally, I'm looking for events that allow me to show my brand to the maximum of markets inside and outside of my country, and bring me more customers. I also search for collaborations with other designers as we can create some combinations and share the proceeds. I know some people think of it as competition but partnerships among designers actually accomplish the opposite, it brings out more customers and incites people to buy more given that we offer more choices. So every event focused on helping designers sell more, would definitely be on my radar.

Tiffany Marron,
Paris, France