HSBC Colombo Fashion Week 2022

This year witnessed the launch and strengthening of a number of programmes to support emerging designers, while raising awareness on the critical need for Responsible Fashion.

The current season of HSBC Colombo Fashion Week will conclude tonight, and this season will feature over thirty collections by local and international designers. The event is being held at the Shangri-La, Colombo; CFW’s official host hotel for the fifth consecutive year. Held under the theme ‘Green Conscious, Earth Sensitive,’ the focus of this season of CFW is squarely on developing a fashion ecosystem that places environmental and social wellbeing at its core. This time around, CFW expands its scope in the new normal environment through the introduction of a series of programmes to support Emerging Designers and to create a system that inspires and encourages designers to put responsibility and sustainability at the core of their design philosophy.

Speaking to Daily Mirror, Ajai Vir Singh, Managing Director of CFW Holdings stated, “stepping into our 19th year, in the ‘new normal,’ we have given ourselves new goals based on our vision, I am pleased with how things are going. The Emerging Designer programme, funding opportunities, new awards, the push towards responsible fashion through the Responsible Meter have been the highlights thus far. These are also stepping stones for the future. Overall, the sustainable fashion ecosystem is getting strengthened. The meaningful collaborations that were formed will assist the designers in their journey. We now look forward to the future and the work throughout the year.”

HSBC was proudly the title partner of Colombo Fashion Week for the 15^th consecutive year, further strengthening this unstoppable partnership, which has seen Sri Lanka’s fashion industry grow into an ecosystem that encourages young, new designers to make their entrance into the industry. In celebration of this milestone, CFW and HSBC announced new collaborations supporting CFW’s Responsible Meter and the creation of the new HSBC Fashion Fund for Emerging Designers; to support new and emerging designers create new, sustainable pathways to success. Using a standardized, 10-point evaluation framework, the Responsible Meter is able to clearly quantify and display the level of responsibility, sustainability and ethicality behind each garment. The resulting ‘responsibility score’ is tagged on to each garment, telling a story to every person considering a purchasing decision.

Mark Surgenor, CEO, HSBC Sri Lanka and the Maldives, commented saying, “HSBC is delighted to have supported this most sought-after showcase of fashion, design and creativity in Sri Lanka, for 15 consecutive years. This year, we are also celebrating our 130^th year in Sri Lanka as the leading international Bank. Thus, we are delighted to have been able to continuously support the opening of new worlds of opportunity for our clients, designers and Sri Lanka’s fashion industry, through our partnership with Colombo Fashion Week.”

This season of CFW marked the first time that the platform joined hands with the WNPS (Wildlife and Nature Protection Society of Sri Lanka) to create awareness about environmental issues around wetland ecosystems, and the second time CFW partnered with the UNFPA to draw attention to sexual and gender-based exploitation of women. Both are important causes for apparel and fashion industries, as both enjoy participation that is mostly female, making women important stakeholders. Wetlands are crucial ecosystems that need protection in Sri Lanka, especially in and around Colombo, as they help to deal with stormwater runoff and contribute towards a mild, more habitable climate.  

Collections by emerging and prominent Sri Lankan designers were showcased at Colombo Fashion Week Day - One and Day Two, including work by Dimuthu Sahabandu, Amilani Perera, Asanka De Mel, Kamil Hewavitharana, Achala Leekoh, Divya Jayawickrama and Ayesh Wickramaratne. A total of twenty-three Sri Lankan designers will showcase their creations at the events. CFW also invited three prominent South Asian designers, after a two-year hiatus, to showcase their collections this season. The famous Pakistani designer, Rizwan Beyg, Woolmark Award winner Suket Dhir, and RimZim Dadu from India. These reputed designers also conducted knowledge sharing sessions with Sri Lankan designers.

Speaking to Daily Mirror, Asanka De Mel, Founder, Lovi Ceylon stated, “We’ve had a wonderful experience presenting for our fifth year at CFW. It’s been an amazing journey. The brand has grown and I have personally worked on each collection, surmounting the challenges, and inspiring the creativity to push new ideas, for us to be a trailblazer.” Designer Dimuthu Sahabandu stated, “Through the responsible meter, we’re looking at a way to reinvent a piece, so it can be worn once, and later be broken down and transformed into something else, giving people a way to wear the same outfit in a number of different, unique configurations. But of course, it takes a while for people to understand the cause and idea behind responsible fashion. People in foreign markets are familiar with things like reusing, repurposing and renting garments, but it’s still a new idea here. So, it will take a while, but the ideas and trends are catching on here now, so we’ll see significant advances in this area in the near future.”

Sonali Dharmawardene who showcased a capsule collection at a private preview held on Thursday the 24^th of February 2022 at the Mayor’s Residence in Colombo, will also be showcasing her full collection tonight at Day Three of Colombo Fashion Week. Speaking to Daily Mirror, she stated that she “encourages all young people interested in a career in fashion to try to get onto this platform (CFW), because it’s like going to university in terms of the potential learning experiences and growth opportunities you get.”

Designer Charini Suriyage stated, “CFW has been very special for me because I started with Colombo Fashion Week. I launched my brand at Colombo Fashion Week. So, it’s very important to me as a designer, and that’s why I keep coming back every year. I look forward to CFW, as this is a space in which we can be freely creative and experiment with our collections, and our clients look forward to what we come up with every season too, which is nice as it helps us showcase unique and interesting creations.”

Day Three of Colombo Fashion Week will be held tonight at the Shangri La in Colombo and will feature collections by Indi Yapa Abeywardene, Sonali Dharmawardene, SuketDhir, Charini Suriyage, Zaheer Abbas, Agara by Nilu, Himashi Wijeweera and FH by Hameedia.