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Sandstorm throws out fashion fair

THE freak sandstorm in Johannesburg last Thursday saw SA Fashion Week end a day late.

The fashion extravaganza wrapped up on Sunday at Crowne Plaza Hotel in Rosebank with shows that should have taken place on Thursday.

The storm was too strong for the marquee at the hotel and everything ground to a halt, throwing scheduling into disarray.

"It was quite unfortunate. The venue was unstable," said Craig Jacobs, one of the designers who was meant to show on the fateful day.

Fashion Week director Lucilla Booyzen agreed that moving the show was pitiful, but said clients and audience understood that it was "an act of God's hand".

"The decision to move the event was taken with all the designers and partners present," she said.

Jacobs said he had international guests who came to view his work, but had to fly back because they had scheduled returning flights for Saturday.

But for others such as out of town media, Booyzen had plan B.

"We had a private viewing inside the hotel for some of our guests who couldn't attend Sunday's show," she said.

Even on Sunday, things didn't go without a hitch.

Jacobs was scheduled to show at 10pm but asked to showcase four hours earlier.

"The most important thing about Fashion Week is sales, and it didn't make sense for me to showcase late on Sunday evening," said Jacobs.

The move paid off because by yesterday he already had three major orders for his collection.

According to Booyzen, no financial loss was experienced by the organisers and besides the sandstorm, everything else went according to plan at the fashion extravaganza.

 

For more stories like this one, be sure to buy the Sowetan newspaper from Mondays to Fridays

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