Fashion Access Showcases Fashion Directions for Spring-Summer 2013

HONG KONG, Sept. 27, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Fashion Access, the leading international fashion fair for bags, footwear, small leathergoods, fashion accessories, travelware and lifestyle products, unveils the Spring-Summer 2013 collections of 363 exhibitors from 23 countries from 27-29 September at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (HKCEC).

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It also marks the debut in Hong Kong of Cashmere World, a specialised trade fair featuring the best cashmere producers and luxury cashmere brands. Originally held in Beijing, Cashmere World now collocates with Fashion Access, sharing exhibition space in Hall 5F of HKCEC.

The fair is expected to draw in international and Chinese visitors through its many exciting events and offerings.

Not to be missed is the "Shoes from Italy" exhibition with 44 Italian footwear brands taking part. This special pavilion was organised under the auspices of ANCI, the Italian Footwear Manufacturers Association. They are joined by 10 Italian brands of bags and leathergoods who are members of AIMPES, the Italian Leathergoods Manufacturers Association. This impressive show of Italian quality and design is drawing a lot of interest from fair visitors, particularly high-end, luxury buyers of department stores and boutiques from all over China and the rest of Asia.

South Korea also has a strong delegation with 12 companies offering bags and shoes as well as fabrics. These exhibitors embody the spirit of Korean street fashion which has become strongly popular throughout Asia.

Other country (region) pavilions to look out for are those of mainland China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, South Korea, the Philippines and Taiwan. These markets, with their innovative use of light, natural materials, are notably strong in developing collections for the spring-summer seasons.

Starting off Fashion Access' seminar series is the trends presentation on the upcoming Fall-Winter 2013-14 Accessories Trends for Women, Men, Youth and Kids from Peclers Paris, presented by Hong Kong fashion maven Mary Yan Yan Chan of StyleCentral. This will be followed by the seminar on "How to Train Fashion Shop Assistants to Boost Sales" to be conducted by fashion consultant Jayne Esteve-Cure of Jayne FashionAgency, also from Paris. More fashion seminars are on tap for the last 2 days of the show, including one on the Design Directions for Women's Accessories for Fall/Winter 2013-2014 to be headlined by Greer Hughes of trends agency Stylesight. There will also be a seminar on "Buying Accessories for the European Market" to be conducted by Sandrine Williamson, head accessories buyer of Galeries Lafayette Group, France.

Another fun event to make a beeline for is "Fashion With Compassion", a charity fashion sale to be held alongside Fashion Access from 10:00 am to 7:00 pm on 28-29 September. "Fashion With Compassion" takes the pop-up fashion store concept to Room S421 where past season fashion merchandise and pre-owned or vintage items donated by sponsors, including Hong Kong and international celebrities, are to be sold for a cause. All sales proceeds will go to Crossroads Foundation, a Hong Kong-based non-profit, charity organisation. The charity fashion sale will be open to all visitors to Fashion Access and to the general public.

Notes to Editors

ABOUT APLF LTD. (www.aplf.com)

APLF Ltd. is a joint venture between UBM Asia and SIC Group. APLF organises leading trade exhibitions in Hong Kong, mainland China and India. It launched the Hong Kong Leather Fair 26 years ago - which is still the largest and most international sector event for all of Asia, and has expanded into the related fields of fashion and lifestyle products.

ABOUT UBM ASIA (www.ubmasia.com)

Owned by UBM plc listed on the London Stock Exchange, UBM Asia operates in 17 market sectors with headquarters in Hong Kong and subsidiary companies across Asia, including UBM China in Shanghai, Hangzhou, Guangzhou and Beijing. We have over 200 products including trade fairs, conferences, trade publications, B2B/B2C portals and virtual event services. As Asia's leading exhibition organiser and the biggest commercial organiser in the two fastest growing markets in Asia: China and India, we stage the leading events of their kind across Asia. Our 150 events, 34 publications and 14 vertical portals serve a 1,000,000 plus quality exhibitors, visitors, conference delegates, advertisers and subscribers from all over the world with high value face-to-face business-matching events, quality and instant news on market and industry trends and round-the-clock online trading networks and sourcing platforms. We have 1,000 staff in 21 major cities across Asia, stretching from Japan to Turkey.

ABOUT UBM PLC (www.ubm.com)

UBM plc is a leading global company. We inform markets and bring the world's buyers and sellers together at events, online, in print and provide them with the information they need to do business successfully. We focus on serving professional commercial communities, from doctors to game developers, from journalists to jewellery traders, from farmers to pharmacists around the world. Our 6,000 staff in more than 30 countries are organised into specialist teams that serve these communities, helping them to do business and their markets to work effectively and efficiently.

For fair details, please contact:

Ms Perrine Ardouin, Event Director
Email: perrine.ardouin@ubm.com

For media inquiries, please contact:

Ms Gay Amistoso, Marketing Communications Manager
Email: gay.amistoso@ubm.com

Ms Sally Wong, Marketing Communications Executive
Email: sally.wong@ubm.com

APLF Limited
17/F China Resources Building
26 Harbour Road, Wanchai, Hong Kong
Tel: +852-2827-6211
Fax: +852-2827-7831