CFW presents ‘’Olu Swim Week, with a special focus on luxury resort wear. The event is scheduled from November 12-13, 2021. In accordance with the current restrictions, it will be a hybrid event with the shows being telecast live and a limited number of guests attending. The shows are hosted by the partner hotel - Shangri La.
Olu Swim Week focuses on luxury resort wear with emphasis on the festive season of December and destination weddings. The current ‘new normal’ presents an interesting scenario for fashion designers, where aspects of sustainability play an important role alongside providing the design solution a fashion consumer expects.
Fashion
Over the last past, fashion took a massive hit, as it is an SME industry in the region and the ecosystem it supports also faced negative impact. With this edition of ‘swim week’, the team at CFW also aims to uplift and revive this creative industry and its ecosystem.
“These are interesting and challenging times for any industry, especially so for fashion and apparel when most of the design focus was on occasion wear. Lock downs robbed that focus, hence a lot of adjusting had to be done,” says Ajai Vir Singh, Founder and Managing Director, CFW.
“Designers have to study the new environment to create new design solutions in the ‘new normal’. This season is the second one within this environment and CFW remains committed to mentoring, fine-tuning and uplifting with a key focus on sustainable aspects specially circularity.
The ‘new normal’ has challenges but it also presents new opportunities and this swim week aims to bring a shift in the mindset and responsible positivity into society.”
This is CFW’s 18th year and, since inception, it’s remained single-minded about promoting and expanding the fashion design industry of Sri Lanka while anchoring on sustainable practices which keeps evolving. Close to 85% of designers in Sri Lanka have come through the CFW design system.
This year, CFW presents a uniquely formatted swim week edition, with an interesting setting and presentations.
The week of November 8 will also see the 6th edition of the Responsible Fashion Summit presented by JAAF Sri Lanka Apparel at the Shangri La Hotel.
It’s a single day hybrid thought leadership forum that brings together international and local apparel leaders and experts for discussion. In 2020, the Responsible Fashion Movement worked with CFW to create a garment evaluation tool called Responsible Meter, where every garment presented had a responsible score. Important Sri Lankan designers will showcase at the luxury resort wear edition, including Darshi Keertisena, Charini Suriyage, Fouzul Hameed, Indi Yapa Abeywardena, Aslam Hussain, Dinushi Pamunuwa, and many others.
CFW is proud to have long-standing partners. Olu tropical water with a strong sustainability value system is the title partner; it has been the same since the inception of swim week edition of CFW.
Olu is the first brand that put the environment first and moved to glass bottles and also to sparkling water. “Being a part of the CFW journey for 6 years now, is a testament to how well brands that think alike and have common goals can work together to drive positive change. Over the years, CFW and Olu have grown together while striving towards achieving true circularity in our respective industries.
We’re honoured to have had this platform to stand as a source of inspiration for consumers and brands alike”, said Shalindri Malawana, General Manager, Liquid Island (Pvt) Ltd Shangri-La Hotel Colombo has also been a partner of Swim Week Colombo since its inception, they have stood from strong sustainable principles immersed in design outlook making them connect with design platforms.
“As we partner with Colombo Fashion Week for the 4th consecutive year, we continue to be inspired by how our values grow together.”
Challenges
“Through the many challenges the world has faced in recent months, we have sought to be more imaginative in our offerings as we host our guests to the colourful moments of joy in a sustainable manner”, said Timothy Wright, Vice President Operations – Sri Lanka, Shangri-La Group.
“As Sri Lanka gradually opens up to the world again, we are also enthusiastic that CFW luxury resort wear is using this rich platform to showcase the work of our talented designers for destination weddings”.
CFW, a developmental platform started in 2003, in a systematic manner, created formats that demand transformation across the key pillars that would define a fashion industry. CFW’s mission is to establish, develop and maintain an efficient fashion eco-system that incubates the best of Sri Lankan fashion design.
The various companies of CFW focus on different aspects of fashion, from fashion week platforms, creative events, media, sustainable fashion, education-based programs, and fashion brands.