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What happens when 4 Pakistani designers show collections at London Fashion Week?

What happens when 4 Pakistani designers show collections at London Fashion Week?

First off: Visa rejections abound! Still, Wardha Saleem, Zaheer Abbas and Kamiar Rokni may benefit from the exposure
Updated 23 Feb, 2016

London Fashion Week. It was going to be Pakistani fashion’s chance to rub shoulders with international movers and shakers and to try to latch onto the so-far elusive realms of fashion export.

And handpicked by the British Council, Wardha Saleem, Zaheer Abbas, The House of Kamiar Rokni and Akif Mahmood were set to be part of the ‘Fashion DNA’ segment in the Fashion Scout platform, dedicated to encouraging emerging markets.

Mentored for months by professionals from the Council, all four designers were guided into creating designs that would make business sense to Western consumers.

It’s true that Fashion Scout wasn’t exactly a part of mainstream LFW but regardless, it was going to be a step in the right direction. In the past, Pakistani designers have been known to blunder their way through international shows and fairs, arriving without catalogues and the pricing required to generate business.

The Fashion DNA contingent, though, was well-prepared with pricing, fashion shoots and catalogs at hand. What they hadn’t considered was that, despite the British Council’s official support, they may not be able to fly off to the show.

Visa and customs issues leave 3 designers behind in Pakistan

“We’ll be in London in a few days,” Nubain Ali, CEO at Wardha Saleem had told me when I met him for an appointment.

Stacked in a corner of Wardha’s studio was an array of gorgeous leather handbags, painted with vivid splashes of flora and fauna by truck-artist Haider Ali. Complementing these bags was a line-up of apparel: pleated and laser-cut mini-skirts, thigh-high short dresses, a quilted sherwani and a pant merged with a dogri shalwar, among others.

“We have mixed contemporary elements with the traditional, merging prints with minimal machine embroideries,” Wardha had described. “Our mentors for Fashion DNA have guided us into creating designs that are cost-effective, trendy and aren’t over-embellished.”

Wardha couldn't make it to Fashion DNA but her clothes spoke for themselves. Three stand-out looks from Wardha Saleem.
Wardha couldn't make it to Fashion DNA but her clothes spoke for themselves. Three stand-out looks from Wardha Saleem.

Similarly, the House of Kamiar Rokni’s line-up had the design house reaching beyond its predilection for customized couture to taming luxe fabrics onto contemporary silhouettes. Embroideries, though hand-crafted, were minimized.

Unfortunately, the designers' visas were refused before the show.

As a result, Wardha Saleem, Kamiar Rokni and Akif Mahmood were unable to fly into London. Zaheer, having procured his visa some time ago, was able to go to the show. The House of Kamiar Rokni and Wardha Saleem had to make do with just sending their clothes while Akif’s consignment wasn’t able to reach London in time.

Three stand-out looks from Kamiar Rokni
Three stand-out looks from Kamiar Rokni

“It could have possibly been very fruitful had we managed to go,” mulls designer Kamiar Rokni. “The visa refusal was very unexpected.”

“The collection has been very well-received, at least,” smiles Wardha – and she has enthusiastic Tweets on social media to prove it. “But we can’t really further business because we aren’t there.”

Had the designers expected to swoop into London and strike business deals? “Realistically, no,” admits Nubain. “But we would have met people and understood what the market wanted. We had also enrolled into a number of workshops. It would have been very helpful. Now, despite the positive feedback, the collection is just going to return to us.”

London lessons a la Zaheer Abbas

Luckily for Zaheer Abbas, he has been able to meet, greet and talk potential business with London’s entrepreneurs.

With his collection at LFW, he continued his penchant for floral prints over off-white backgrounds. “People really liked it,” he enthused, while talking to Dawn from London, “but what has been really beneficial is meeting people here who can help my business.”

Zaheer showed florals and jungle-inspired prints on cuts more suitable for a western market
Zaheer showed florals and jungle-inspired prints on cuts more suitable for a western market

Catherine West, an MP from UK’s Parliament, Tweeted an image of herself with Zaheer yesterday, calling him an ‘inspiring young designer’. The British Council also arranged meetings for Zaheer with sales consultants and buyers. Among these was Angela Quaintrell, who used to be head buyer at luxury department store Liberty and was one of the first few to introduce McQueen to the market during his initial years. Now working with young designers and helping them build their business models, Angela took a particular interest in Zaheer’s work.

Zaheer Abbas with Angela Quaintrell (L) and Catherine West (R)
Zaheer Abbas with Angela Quaintrell (L) and Catherine West (R)

“I met Angela prior to my show via the British Council,” he explains, “and she asked which of the Pakistani designers had a website. I was the only one amongst all four who has an e-store. She didn’t even attend my LFW showcase but looked into my website and liked my earlier collections like Neo-Nude. When she called me in for a second meeting, the Council was actually very excited. Apparently, she’s quite picky about the designers she likes.”

Although nothing is finalized as yet, Zaheer is in talks with Angela to work with her and fine-tune a collection for the Western market.

Zaheer preps for the show -- he also bumped into Toni & Guy's Shammal Qureshi!
Zaheer preps for the show -- he also bumped into Toni & Guy's Shammal Qureshi!

“She says that some of my designs have a very Parisian feel to them,” enthuses the designer. “And even if nothing works out, I have learnt a lot from Angela. For instance, she has told me that in the West, women increasingly want to wear more modest clothing. They prefer to have their arms covered, if not with full or half-sleeves then at least with capped sleeves that shroud the shoulders. This is something I absolutely did not know. Also, if the zipper of a dress is showing then it is less likely to be purchased by a woman although girls may like it.”

“It’s important to know all this because your first chance at a major store in the West is literally your last chance. The store or you, yourself, have invested in the designs and you have to make sure that they sell well. The British Council’s mentors guided us on the marketing aspects of our collection but they didn’t instruct us regarding the actual clothes we were designing. I wish we had known more about the designing aspect back then. Still, I have learnt so much.”

The upside in all this?

And while the House of Kamiar Rokni and Wardha Saleem may bemoan the loss of an ideal opportunity, it’s good to see Pakistani fashion put its best foot forward on an international runway. Next time should they get the chance, our designers will be ready for the international market.

Next time, though, perhaps the British Council should also be better prepared. The Fashion DNA project is a promising one and involves the investment of considerable effort. Experts like Toby Meadows (author of How to Set Up and Run a Fashion Label), Rebekah Roy (stylist) and Ruby Hoette (MA Fashion, Goldsmiths College) guided the designers through umpteen face-to-face and Skype sessions. While one hopes that the project continues, perhaps the Council should focus on pulling enough clout to ensure visas for the participating designers.

In the meantime, Wardha plans to tweak her collection and showcase it at the Spring/Summer edition of Fashion Pakistan Week and the House of Kamiar Rokni is going to be doing the same in the upcoming PFDC Sunsilk Fashion Week.

Judging by how gorgeous both collections look on the LFW runway, Pakistan will certainly buy them, if not London!

Comments

salman Feb 23, 2016 03:16pm
It doesn't make sense to me the visa declined! If these guys were hand picked and trained by BC, then what is the point of not granting the visa?? and if they were not eligible for visa, why they were selected??
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Shoaib Wahab Feb 23, 2016 03:21pm
There are good and bad people everywhere in the world. Why is it that only Pakistanis are discriminated in the most humiliating fashion. This is not just letting any wrong person enter the country, this is a little more than that. What they don't realise is that discriminating us is doing more good than bad to our country, and in return they only get to keep Altaf Husain...
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ahmad Feb 23, 2016 03:26pm
Well done
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oregata Feb 23, 2016 03:44pm
Well, it depends on who you are. If you are an ordinary Pakistani, it doesn't matter. If not, it may.
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M Waheed Feb 23, 2016 04:06pm
Visa refusal rate has become very high since the visa office has moved to UAE. I have heard this from many people in UK. The irony is that there is no right of appeal.
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Shahid Feb 23, 2016 04:48pm
It does not make any sense to turn down an application without interview. British should rethink to bring back visa services to Pakistan, especially, when they have capacity, full time officers, and embassy. The US embassy next door to British, processes 200-400 visas daily, they have created SOPs that helps not only them but also to applicants. I strongly believe that it is being discriminated/racism, it has nothing to do with the security, even if its security, the circumstances have been far better than before.
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Haris Feb 23, 2016 05:37pm
It was like living in old era clothes. Not good
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Faisal Feb 23, 2016 06:12pm
@M Waheed Agreed, all of them are indian.
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Mahmood Feb 23, 2016 10:41pm
"She says that some of my designs have a very Parisian feel to them," Watch out Dior, Chanel and YSL, here come Pakistani designers to take on Paris! Right!
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Zeeshan Feb 23, 2016 10:52pm
Looks Great! Nice work by these designers and Good luck for the future.
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Mahmood Feb 23, 2016 11:38pm
Karachi and Lahore becoming Fashion Capitols of the World? Who needs, NY, London, Paris or Milan..... I just see plane loads of foreign fashion buyers landing in Pakistan soon... Ok, it's time to wake up!
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Amy Feb 24, 2016 03:50am
They had a solid reason to enter the country. Visa's do not get rejected so easily - must have been something to do with their travel history - overstaying or suspicious crossing borders which would have had the British Immigration s hackles up. These designs are mere clones of what the west already has. They could have done SO much better. - Meh. Glorified jamavars and thats it.
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LS Feb 24, 2016 06:59am
@Faisal They work according to UK policy, not their personal Whims.
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Chris Roberts Feb 24, 2016 10:10am
Hats off to these amazingly talented designers! The first time around there are often glitches, so chin up. You WILL make it to London for the next show. International exposure is a must. Show the world that Pakistani fashion designers have what it takes!
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John Feb 24, 2016 11:47am
The reality of the external image of Pakistan is finally hitting the ordinary Pakistanis.
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sherie Feb 24, 2016 12:45pm
@salman UKVI is independent of British Council, no connection whatsoever. It was not like these guys had sponsorship from UK, and even in those cases visas can get refused based on funny things such as not sending your bank statement on the bank's letterhead in original, or stating one range of dates for stay while your bookings on hotel show a day less, etc etc.
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shokolokobangoshay Feb 25, 2016 02:35am
How many who are issued temporary visa have not returned. There always good reason for refusal of visa.
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Pak Patriot Feb 25, 2016 04:12am
The next time the British High Commissioner or any visiting British Minister gives their Song and Dance about supporting or caring about Pakistan's development, we must remind them of their unjust high handedness in denying business visas to designers vetted and mentored by their own British Council. In fact our media should attempt to interview the British High Commissioner in Islamabad on this contentious issue and put him / her on the spot.
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