Fashion Week: Lagos

When Fashion Week comes to mind, I automatically think of New York, Paris and Los Angeles like many others would. One of the last locations that I’d expect to host a Fashion week is Lagos, Nigeria. However, after viewing photos from this week I agree with fashion reporters that this is looking like a fifth destination alongside New York, London, Paris and Milan.
Sticking with the trend of neutrals as in mainstream fashion, African designers combine natural chic and colored patterns to form this mind-blowing composition of style. “It’s the vibrancy, the colors. We feel it’s Africa’s capital,” said Penny McDonald of Arise Magazine. “Lagos women in particular, they dress like no other. They love haute couture. They look the part, they get fashion.”
Held in tents at the Federal Palace Hotel and after some electrical issues resulting in a two-day delay, the runways exhibited designs from Kenya, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, South Africa, Ghana, Liberia and Somalia. It didn’t end there. Designers also included those from Martinique, Jamaica, Thailand and India. Buzz for this show attracted global designers, media and buyers, proving to be a strong base for a potential fashion destination. For example, Caterina Bortolussi is an Italian designer living in Africa and instead of commissioning professional models, found hers on the streets of Nigeria. I think this in itself proves Nigeria to have style strength whose depth has yet to be discovered.