Fashion in Nigeria has experienced major ups and downs. Although clothing is one of the three basic necessities of life, most people still, till date, doubt the economic importance of the industry. In 2011, what could be regarded as one of the biggest fashion conventions in the country was formed. Lagos Fashion Week, formerly called Lagos Fashion and Design Week, LFDW, is a fashion gathering of like-minded professionals, entrepreneurs and enthusiasts, in the African fashion industry who have gained an impactful level of experience, and are willing to share such with the world.
2019 was the last time since we had the opportunity to be hosted. In 2020, the advent of the global pandemic forced everyone to be in isolation, with survival being the only song on our lips. It also caused us to search for varying ways to re-strategize, making technology more useful than ever in the industry. Hence, digital fashion shows became a thing. However, the organizers of LFW couldn’t go on with the enforcement of this because at the time, Nigeria was going through a tumultuous time – #ENDSARS; although, all wasn’t lost because the organizers of Arise Fashion Week, another veteran fashion show in Nigeria, adopted the digital showcase.
On the 22nd day of July, 2021, Lagos Fashion Week took to its official instagram account to announce its return on October 27th – 30th, 2021. In no time, they had garnered thousands of likes and hundreds of comments, with most of them being “welcome back” and “we’ve missed you,” signaling how the bulk of the country’s creatives have missed the show. The theme for this season focuses on sustainability and ethical living, which has been a pretty important topic in the world of fashion, especially since the corona virus pandemic. According to the platform’s official instagram caption;
For the last 10 years, Heineken Lagos Fashion Week has celebrated the African heritage of craftsmanship that’s creatively expressed by our designers annually in Lagos, one of Africa’s most vibrantly cities.
Afrcan owned fashion businesses are at the forefront of shaping the future of fashion with their natural agility in built approach to traceability and transparency that is required for fashion business(es) to survive in a post Covid world.
As we set the tone for the future of fashion in the continent, we understand the need for scalability, but we are also mindful of the cost that can come with it. The future of fashion for the next decade starts with a commitment from our ecosystem to adopt a functional system that delivers environmental, societal and economic solutions that’s beneficial to all.
