BRICS+ Fashion Summit Schedule Announced

The schedule for the BRICS+ Fashion Summit, which will take place in Moscow from September 28 to 30, has been published. For several years, the largest fashion business forum of fast-growing economies has served as a hub for international professional cooperation. The Business Program will bring together fashion week leaders, manufacturers, retail representatives, and investors. They will discuss how to turn a brand’s creative potential into a sustainable business.

The program covers the application of artificial intelligence in design, new materials, changes in consumer behavior, and attracting investment. For the U.S. fashion industry, the discussion on the economic impact of fashion weeks is of particular interest. The session “Fashion Week as a Modern Economic Platform”, which will take place on September 29, will be moderated by U.S. expert Nichole M. Bess, Founder and CEO of Noir Fashion Week. Fashion event organizers and designers will discuss what types of support help emerging brands generate revenue and enter new markets.

How to Measure the Impact of a Fashion Show

The discussion will focus on growth tools for aspiring entrepreneurs and ways to measure the contribution of fashion events to the economy. The proposed indicators include contracts, investments, and jobs, as well as tourism and media reach. Participants will also explore how digital formats are expanding access to fashion events.

For Nichole M. Bess, the question of a fashion show’s impact is connected to the development goals of her own platform. She explains the vision behind Noir Fashion Week: “Our primary goal is to ensure that visibility leads to something tangible. We want designers to leave our platform with more than photographs from a runway. We are building pathways that can lead to international relationships, retail and wholesale opportunities, press exposure, strategic partnerships, and long-term brand growth.” With this approach, an organizer’s work continues beyond the runway: ongoing connections and access to retail partners are equally important.

The financial side of international promotion will be discussed by another speaker at the upcoming session – Eda Meltem Yılmaz, Founder and President of Antalya Fashion Week (Türkiye). Speaking about the financial barriers faced by Turkish designers, she lists the costs associated with entering international markets: “However, participating in international fashion weeks, exhibiting in showrooms, investing in PR, managing logistics, traveling, and building an international sales network all require significant financial resources.” This is why discussing the economic role of fashion shows is also valuable for brands themselves: they need to understand which business opportunities justify investments in travel and promotion.

Gabriela Tome from Paraguay, Strategic Director of Partnerships and Sponsorships at Asuncion Fashion Week, draws attention to the importance of a brand’s ability to fulfill orders. Answering a question about barriers to international growth, she emphasizes: “Designers need working capital to develop collections, secure materials, meet minimum production quantities, professionalize teams, protect intellectual property, market consistently and deliver international orders on time. Without that foundation, even strong visibility can create demand that a brand is not prepared to fulfil.” The success of a fashion show should be assessed together with production capabilities: interest from retailers becomes a business opportunity when a team is able to deliver the required quantities on time.

BRICS+ Fashion Summit brings together organizers who understand both sides of promotion: building visibility for designers and the commercial work that follows a fashion show. The experience of the U.S., Türkiye, and Paraguay provides a practical perspective on what kind of support independent brands need at each stage. For emerging brands, this discussion makes international promotion more transparent, allowing them to compare their own costs and opportunities with the experience of other markets.

What Brands Need for the Next Step

The BRICS+ Fashion Summit Business Program will take place alongside international fashion shows. Moscow Fashion Week will run from September 26 to October 1, with U.S. brand Amirah Creations among its participants. The brand’s team sees the trip as an opportunity to connect with a new international audience and establish contacts with fashion buyers, as well as stylists and media representatives. For the brand, this experience provides an opportunity to assess interest in its collection beyond its home market – the commercial opportunities that follow such encounters will be one of the topics discussed by forum participants.

In her response about the opportunities offered by Moscow Fashion Week, Gabriela Tome also highlights targeted connections with buyers, showrooms, distributors, and manufacturers. “The greatest impact comes when the runway is connected to a commercial pathway before and after the event,” she emphasizes.

Nichole M. Bess sees BRICS+ Fashion Summit as an opportunity to develop international connections. Speaking about the forum’s approach to business networking, she notes: “It is redefining networking from simply exchanging contacts to creating real cross-border opportunities, collaborations, and market access.” BRICS+ Fashion Summit brings together professionals with experience in helping independent fashion brands access new markets and turns this development into a shared business agenda for the international industry.