Longhua District will serve as one of the subvenues, alongside Futian and Nanshan during the Shenzhen Milan Bi-City Fashion Week scheduled for March 19 to 22, according to a press conference held by the Information Office of Shenzhen Municipal People Government on March 7.

The fashion week will mark an important step forward for the industrial cooperation and cultural exchanges between Shenzhen and Milan and will serve as a sideline event of the 2024 Shenzhen Design Week.

According to the press conference, Longhua District will organize 15 fashion shows, seven industrial matchmaking sessions, and various sideline events at Dalang Fashion Town and Guanlan Printmaking Village throughout the fashion week.

The Marisfrolg Headquarters Building in Longhua's Dalang Fashion Town. Wang Haolan

The fashion shows will showcase around 22 local and Italian fashion brands, as well as independent designers. They will also delve into integration of fashion and technology through digital exhibitions, and highlight Longhua's cultural specialties including Auratic’s State Banquet ceramics, woodblock painting and rosewood furniture, according to Huang Limin, head of the district’s publicity department.

The district will launch its first fashion showroom at Dalang Fashion Town during the fashion week, which will serve as a multipurpose platform facilitating the exchange between fashion buyers and independent designers.

Huang states that Longhua District will make full use of the matchmaking sessions of the fashion week to build connections between the local high-end women’s wear brands and fabric suppliers from Italy, as well as to establish a comprehensive service platform with full coverage of the fashion industry chain.

In line with the city's efforts to develop an international fashion hub, Longhua District seeks win-win cooperation with Milan's local fashion industry in industrial innovation, business communication, and talent cultivation.

A scene at the press conference. DT News

The district will solidfy the international foothold of Shenzhen fashion brands by introducing more international fashion events, brands and designers, ultizing on the expertise of domestic industrial chain service providers to enhance the market outreach of local fashion events and join hands with other fashion powress cities such as Milan to empower the local industry and foster talents.

Local fashion designer Zhao Huizhou, who has participated in Milan Fashion Week 14 times, highlighted that the fashion week will inaugurate a bi-city dialogue and cooperation between Shenzhen and Milan.

"I hope that more designers will proactively consider interpreting design within the context of daily life and technological innovation through the event," said Zhao. "Regarding the participating Italian brands, I hope they will engage more with their local counterparts and, to some extent, become members of our fashion showroom in Longhua."

According to Zhao, a total of 115 guests from Milan, including government leaders from Lombardy Region, guild leaders, and designers, along with 20 foreign models, will participate in the fashion week.