Indonesia Fashion Week 2017 to Spearhead Indonesia's Creative Industry
Jakarta. Fashion, part of Indonesia's creative industries, is undoubtedly an important facet of the country's economy.
"Overall, the creative industries contributed 7 percent to our [2015] GDP, or around Rp 805 trillion [$60 billion]," said Poppy Dharsono, president of the Indonesia Fashion Designers and Fashion Entrepreneurs Association (APPMI), in a press conference in Gran Mahakam Jakarta, on Thursday (10/11).
"And the fashion industry alone contributed 2% of our GDP, or around Rp 241.5 trillion."
The industry is also labor-intensive. According to the data of the Ministry of Cooperatives and Small-to-Medium Enterprises, the industry currently employs around 3.8 million people.
Indonesia's fashion industry is still growing and more events and promotions are needed to boost that growth.
APPMI has been presenting the Indonesia Fashion Week (IFW) annually since 2012. And they plan to hold an even bigger IFW early next year.
The "Celebrations of Culture" event is planned to feature more than 500 local brands at the Jakarta Convention Center Feb. 1 to 5.
"[The theme] represents our continuous efforts to establish local cultures as one of the bastions of national economy," said Poppy.
It will also be the first time that IFW is going to be held for five days. In the previous years, the event was held for three days only.
As in the previous years, the event will mainly consist of fashion shows, fashion and accessories exhibitions, talkshows, seminars and fashion design competitions.
Modest wear is going to be a special highlight of the event.
"Modest wear is universal," said APPMI's president. "It can be worn by Muslims and non-Muslims alike."
In IFW 2017, premium modest wear label Shafira, which is also a main sponsor of the event, is going to launch latest collection "Shafira Carnival" in a solo fashion show.
"The collection will feature beautiful motifs of traditional textiles and embroideries from West Sumatra," said Shelvy Arifin, vice president of Shafira.
This year, the organizer will add a new section to IFW, featuring culinary delights from all over the archipelago.
"With the culinary section, visitors don't have to exit the exhibition area to replenish themselves and they can sample the best that Indonesia has to offer," Poppy said.
The organizer expects around 157,500 visitors during five days of the event.
The event is supported by a number of government ministries, including the Coordinating Ministry of Economy, the Ministry of Cooperatives and Small-to-Medium Enterprises, Ministry of Tourism and Ministry of Industries.
"IFW can be a selling point of Indonesia's economy," said Edy Putra Irawady, deputy to the coordinating minister of economy. "Like Java Jazz, it can attract a lot of people to come to Indonesia and contribute to the local economy."
The ministry of tourism promises to promote the fashion event aggressively to attract local and international visitors.
"[IFW] is a national event that's in line with the government's spirit of [developing] Indonesia Incorporated," said Tazbir, assistant deputy minister of tourism. "We fully support this event and are going to promote it through social media and banners in hotels, airports and shopping malls."
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