Japan Plans Expanded Fashion Week to Boost Designers' World Clout

Japan plans a Fashion Week to compete with the world's glitziest events in a bid to promote Tokyo as a fashion capital and draw back Japanese designers more used to unveiling their collections abroad.

Japan, a huge consumer market for fashion, already holds the Tokyo Collection each spring and autumn but the shows pale compared with other fashion events in Milan, New York or Paris.

The expanded event is to be held over two weeks, despite being called Japan Fashion Week in Tokyo, from late October to November this year.

It is hoped to attract more foreign participants, including designers, buyers and journalists, as well as promising Japanese designers, said an official at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry which will support the Week.

"The background of starting this is to increase the presence overseas of Japanese fashion brands and apparel and textile makers which used to hold exhibitions individually," the official said late Tuesday.

The last Tokyo Collection was held this spring and featured renowned Japanese designers Hiroko Koshino and Yuki Torii.

But stars such as Yohji Yamamoto, who is perhaps Japan's most famous designer, more often unveil their new collections overseas even though they work from Tokyo.

more: news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20050601/lf_ (458)

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