White's international charm offensive passes through Paris

The Milan trade show is looking to extend its recent editions' positive performance. Notably, that of the new mixed format introduced in June 2015, in line with the second French session, one of the four sessions the show now holds every year. White's staff is seeking to expand the show internationally, targeting several markets, including France.

After hiring Muriel Piaser (former director of the Prêt-à-Porter Paris show) as a consultant, White has travelled to Paris to meet local brands and buyers. The objective was to attract French exhibitors and to convince buyers of the usefulness of White's second show, with its sights set on the major accounts.

In January, the mixed show featuring women's pre-collections and men's collections brought together approximately 7,000 visitors and 230 brands. The new edition is planning to attract 260 labels, more than 60% of them coming from Italy, and only about ten from France. The show has multiplied its activities to unearth new designers and position itself as an innovative event. It introduced the 'China calling' area, an acceleration programme for ten young labels, and a partnership with Danish show Revolver, which will also bring ten brands to White.

White is keen to prove its new format's usefulness, being the first in the season to showcase pre-collections, scheduled for the 18th, 19th and 20th June (one week ahead of its Parisian competitor Tranoï).

Besides Paris, the show's proselytising tour features stops in Dubai, Copenhagen, Tbilisi (Georgia), Beijing and Shanghai. Asia has indeed ranked second for visitor numbers behind Italy in the last June and January editions, but the show also hopes to make inroads with US and Middle Eastern buyers for its next edition in Milan's Via Tortona.

White's international charm offensive passes through Paris

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