Cincinnati Fashion week is back, new Fashion Fund to launch

Cincinnati Fashion Week is gearing up for May, bringing a bit of Midwest Chic to the Queen City.

This year's Cincinnati Fashion Week is set for May 9 - 15. Last year's event, held at several venues across the city, drew more than 2,000 attendees.

Billed as a "celebration of art, fashion and design," Cincinnati Fashion Week was created by Nathan Hurst, a self-taught designer who held several shows on the West Coast before returning to Cincinnati.

A full Fashion Week itinerary will be released soon, but last year's events included a local artist merchant fair, a retailer's event and a fashion show finale. But Cincinnati Fashion Week is about more than just a single, annual event, Hurst said. It's part of a year-round effort to create a fashion forward space for Midwest area designers, models and others in the fashion industry.

"The driving force has always been to improve the quality of life, and create a sustainable space for fashion designers," he said.
Cincinnati isn't necessarily known as a fashion forward community, but fashion is a part of many everyday people's lives," Hurst said.

"There are a lot of people who think that fashion might not pertain to them in the Midwest, but it does. Whenever someone gets dressed, they're picking out what they wear for a reason. They have their own fashion, based on their own influences. It is a smaller part of our culture, but we're taking the approach of making it more accessible," he said.

In addition, the professional network and connections created through the establishment of Fashion Week is also strengthening the high fashion community in Cincinnati.

"Fashion Week started in the 1940s as a way to promote American designers in New York, and we kind of see the same designers every year. With Cincinnati Fashion Week, we have a great opportunity to nurture the next wave of designers in the Midwest," he said.

In effort to further cultivate the region's fashion community, a new Fashion Fund will be launched during the event. On May 13, a designer meet-and-greet is planned at Via Vita, where a three-course meal for $65 per person will be served. Proceeds from the event will go toward the Fashion Fund, which will help encourage the fashion minded to set up shop in Cincinnati. More details on the Fund will be shared soon.

Keep up with Cincinnati Fashion Week on Facebook and Twitter.

Writer: Feoshia Henderson
Source: Nathan Hurst, Founder and CEO Cincinnati Fashion Week

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