What would it take to bring a fashion trade event, the caliber of Mercedes Benz Fashion Week, to Washington D.C.? This is a challenge that is way too complex to be answered in a single article, yet compelling enough to explore in lieu of its illusiveness. In observing this cool, somewhat fish bowl of a district, one can’t help but notice that the D.C. fashion scene is ripening and preparing to be picked and placed among the elite. At every turn, there are cynics who will bash any potential this city has to hold its own among the ranks of New York or L.A. style status; but the truth is, neither of these cities achieved their position instantaneously. Many names and hours of innovative and progressive philosophies account for the “big city of dreams” perception these metropolis flaunt virtually innately. What we see today is the result of decades of groundwork set forth by the designers, media, and movers and shakers of yesteryear who represent today’s fashion icons and exalted annotators. Forty years from now, who will be among the visionaries responsible for stitching Washington D.C. into the coverlet of the elite fashion world?

The newly established Greater Washington Fashion Chamber of Commerce (GWFCC) ventures to baste the initial thread by pioneering an effort to shoulder the district’s fashion focused businesses, organizations, designers, and boutiques. Bill 17-0173, established by Christine Brooks-Cropper, President of GWFCC, was passed December 2007 and is filled with exhilarating and promising objectives. Among them are:

• Promoting the District as a location for holding major fashion events
• Implementing school programs in the field of fashion design and merchandising
• Offering scholarships and internships to students pursuing careers in the beauty and fashion industries to help them in transitioning into their careers
• Building a Fashion Retail Corridor that will serve as a centralized shopping destination featuring local, national and international fashion designers and boutiques in the District of Columbia;
• Supporting and marketing the District’s unique retailers and fashion designing talent through coordinated citywide events
• Creating partnerships between the fashion and business communities that will stimulate economic activity and reposition the District as a fashion destination.

2008 promises to be a big year for the Greater Washington Fashion Chamber of Commerce. From hosting fabulous soirees to aggressively lobbying on behalf of those who impel the style of the district, the GWFCC is on the move, unabashed of rolling up their sleeves and getting their hands dirty in the name of building D.C.’s fashion empire.

To learn more about the Greater Washington Fashion Chamber of Commerce or to become a member, click here.

Photos: www.gwfcc.org