Trade Fair Report: Première Vision Paris Draws Nearly 20,000 Industry Professionals this September, with Focus on Innovation and Sustainability

Nearly 20,000 fashion and textile professionals gathered in Paris this September for Première Vision, in what organisers described as a milestone edition of the international trade fair. 

Returning to its traditional calendar, the event placed strong emphasis on innovation, technology, and cross-industry collaboration, while also extending its reach into the beauty sector for the first time.

The show - held from September 16 to 18 2025 - comes at a moment of significant change for fashion, as brands and suppliers grapple with climate challenges, geopolitical tensions, and mounting pressure for more sustainable practices.

Première Vision positioned itself not only as a sourcing platform but as a strategic meeting point for debate, foresight, and solutions.

Florence Rousson, Chairwoman of Première Vision and Managing Director of GL Events’ Fashion Division, said the event had moved beyond its original remit:  “Our role today is to help the industry navigate disruption, anticipate change, and provide actionable solutions. Innovation, foresight, and institutional dialogue are key to giving the industry the renewed momentum it needs to build a sustainable, competitive, and desirable model.”

Innovation at the Forefront

A major focus this year was technological advancement, seen both on the show floor and in its programme of talks. Exhibitors highlighted low-impact materials, new sourcing tools, and AI-driven production methods. An immersive CLO 3D showcase drew interest from couture houses said Alexandre Nguyen, Business Development Manager at CLO in France: “Leading couture houses showed genuine interest in our digital showcase space and in the unlimited potential of digital product creation.”

Meanwhile the finalists of the ANDAM Innovation Prize—including 2025 winner Losanje—presented solutions aimed at reshaping the industry.  Nathalie Dufour, Founder of ANDAM, said the collaboration reflected the sector’s transformation: “Innovation and technology play a central role in creating a more efficient, responsible, and competitive industry. Our 10 start-ups had the unique opportunity to showcase their solutions to an international ecosystem and engage directly with key stakeholders.”

Fashion Meets Beauty

For the first time, Première Vision welcomed the beauty industry into its Future Trends Area, with participants including Make Up Forever Academy, Fiabila, Villa Blue by Robertet, and Abondance. The move highlighted growing connections between fashion and cosmetics.

Candice Jagut, Chief Marketing Officer of Fiabila, described the partnership as a “relationship of creative interdependence” between the two industries. “Cosmetics are the colours that fashion brings to life on the skin,” she said.

European Industry Mobilises

Another highlight was the joint appearance of 22 federations from 17 countries, convened by UFIMH, UIT, and Euratex. The groups issued a declaration defending the European industrial model, stressing competitiveness and voicing opposition to the rise of ultra-fast fashion.  The gathering underlined Première Vision’s role as a platform for industry representation and policy dialogue at European level.

Looking Ahead

In addition to its exhibition spaces, Première Vision hosted two dedicated talk stages—one centred on fashion and beauty, the other on technology and market transformation. The sessions brought together experts, designers, and institutional figures to debate the future of the sector.

With nearly 20,000 attendees and an expanded scope that bridges industries, Première Vision Paris 2025 reinforced its position as a global hub for inspiration, advocacy, and innovation at a time when fashion is seeking new direction.

The next  Première Vision Paris  will take place February 3 - 5 2026.

Photos by Lucia Carpio

Fashion exhibition: Paul Poiret: La Mode est une Fête — Paris Retrospective Crowns the "King of Fashion"

“Fashion must be a feast, not a uniform,” Paul Poiret once declared.  More than a century later, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris is serving up that feast in a retrospective that crowns the couturier once hailed as the “King of Fashion”.

Paul Poiret, la mode est une fête (Fashion is a Feast) brings together more than 550 pieces, from lavish gowns and accessories to perfumes, illustrations and furnishings.  It is the most comprehensive reassessment of Poiret’s life and legacy as the early 20th century's most flamboyant designers, casting light on both his triumphs and his contradictions.

He was a pioneer in moving away from rigid corsetry and creating looser, freer silhouettes. Poiret claimed to have “freed the bust”.  

He introduced the hobble skirt (a narrow hem that restricts walking) and popularised the Empire line, neoclassical and oriental-inspired drapes and motifs. 

He championed drapery over heavy structure, using vivid colour, bold prints, and unusual forms such as harem pants, kimono coats etc. 

Poiret rose to fame after founding his house in 1903, and was among the first couturiers to build more than just a dressmaking business: he launched perfumes (notably Parfums de Rosine, named for his daughter) and interior decoration, making his work part of a broader aesthetic lifestyle. 

Collaborating with artists such as Paul Iribe and Georges Lepape, Poiret pioneered the use of stylised illustration to market his creations. 

He worked closely with artists, illustrators, and the decorative arts—creating prints, promoting artistic collaboration, and staging flamboyant social events (for example, the famous party “The Thousand and Second Night” in 1911) to capture public imagination. 

At his height, Poiret was extremely influential, seen as one of the leading figures of pre-World War I haute couture. But as styles changing (especially with the rise of designers like Coco Chanel) and financial difficulties increased, the house declined in the 1920s and ceased being a major fashion force.

“Poiret understood that women were seeking a new kind of freedom,” said curator Pamela Golbin. “He gave them clothes that allowed elegance and drama, if not always practicality.”

The exhibition emphasises Poiret’s flair for image-making. Collaborations with illustrators Paul Iribe and Georges Lepape turned fashion plates into striking pochoir prints, establishing couture as a visual brand. Albums of prints, more than mere catalogues, became works of art in their own right and anticipated modern fashion advertising.

Poiret also pioneered the idea of fashion as a lifestyle, launching perfumes under the name Parfums de Rosine and founding Maison Martine, a decorative arts studio.

One gallery evokes his legendary 1911 Thousand and Second Night party, a riot of turbans, lanterns and exotic costume that helped cement his reputation as much as his clothes.

But the retrospective also acknowledges the shadows. His fascination with Orientalism reflected the colonial imagination of the time, while his lavish spending led to financial collapse. By the 1920s, his ornate style was eclipsed by Coco Chanel’s modernism.

Still, La mode est une fête makes the case for Poiret as a visionary who blurred the boundaries between fashion, art and theatre. 

“Poiret taught us that fashion is not just clothing,” said Golbin. “It is performance, it is art, it is a way of life.”

By restaging Poiret as a “costume-historical curiosity,” and a figure who helped shift fashion toward modernity: in form, function, image, lifestyle, the exhibition captures both the glamour, the spectacl and the serious craft: draping, illustration, material, colour.

Visitors leave with a vivid sense of a man who blurred the lines between designer, impresario and showman. 

A century on, the echoes of that philosophy can still be heard in the global empires of Chanel, Dior,  Kenzo, Jean Paul Gaultierand beyond. The King of Fashion, for a season at least, reigns again in Paris.

Footnote:  

Readers can also delve deeper into Paul Poiret’s legacy, his fashion and Art Deco through Mary E. Davis’s recent study, Paul Poiret: Inventing Modern Luxury. The book portrays him as the most audacious couturier of the pre-war era. While his outré designs were briefly embraced by leading celebrities in Europe and America, Davis argues that they were the most transient element of his achievement. His true genius, she suggests, lay in positioning fashion at the crossroads of style, culture and commerce, reshaping the industry into a modern luxury enterprise.

Separately, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London has republished King of Fashion: The Autobiography of Paul Poiret as part of its Fashion Perspectives series. First released in 1931, the memoir recounts the meteoric rise of a draper’s son to the heights of Parisian couture. Poiret describes his modest childhood, his breakthrough as a couturier, and his experiences during the First World War with characteristic candour. He also reflects on the artistry that allowed him to channel the spirit of Art Deco into groundbreaking garments. Beyond his creative flair, Poiret emerges as a shrewd entrepreneur, chronicling the expansion of his house into interior decoration and the launch of one of the earliest designer perfumes. His memoir vividly evokes the extravagance of his legendary parties, where guests showcased his latest creations, capturing both the glamour and excess of the age.

Photos by Lucia Carpio

Exhibition Review: Grayson Perry’s Delusions of Grandeur: Craft, Play and Provocation - Final Weeks at the Wallace Collection

The Wallace Collection in London, long celebrated for its Rococo treasures and Old Masters, opened its doors earlier this year to a bold new chapter with Grayson Perry: Delusions of Grandeur.  Now still running until 26 October 2025, there are a few weeks left to visit this exhibition which has been billed as the museum’s largest contemporary show to date, and it more than lives up to the claim.

Bringing together more than 40 newly created works, the exhibition demonstrates Perry’s enduring fascination with craft, narrative and social commentary. Visitors will encounter an eclectic mix of ceramics, textiles, tapestries and works on paper, 

Bringing together over 40 newly created works, the exhibition demonstrates Perry’s enduring fascination with craft, narrative and social commentary. Visitors encounter an eclectic mix of ceramics, textiles, tapestries and works on paper, as well as a wallpaper (in collaboration with Liberty) - many of which are threaded through with the artist’s mischievous alter ego, Shirley Smith. These playful yet incisive pieces are displayed in dialogue with the museum’s permanent collection, offering fresh interpretations of the Rococo opulence that has long defined the Wallace.

“It’s about walking into a palace of grandeur and then asking—what is really grand?” Perry explains with a grin. “I love Rococo because it’s decorative, it’s excessive, and people dismiss it as frivolous. That makes it the perfect playground for me.”

These playful yet incisive pieces are displayed in dialogue with the museum’s permanent collection, offering fresh interpretations of the Rococo opulence that has long defined the Wallace.  One notable example is François Boucher’s celebrated Madame de Pompadour (1759), an oil on canvas from the Wallace Collection, to which Perry has responded with his own work, Hospital Queen, created in embroidery and mixed media.  

Dr. Helen Jacobsen, Senior Curator at the Wallace Collection, the collaboration has brought a fresh perspective to the museum’s permanent holdings. “Grayson has a rare ability to tease out the spirit of our collection without reverence,” she says. “He has allowed Boucher, Fragonard and Watteau to sit in conversation with his own work—and in doing so, he makes the Wallace feel alive in new ways.”

At its heart, Delusions of Grandeur interrogates ideas of making and authenticity. Meticulously crafted objects, often requiring hundreds if not thousands of hours to produce, are positioned alongside works created with the click of a mouse. 

The juxtapositions invite questions about value, time and the role of the artist in an age where technology increasingly blurs the line between tradition and innovation. Perry does not offer neat answers, but rather provokes reflection on our collective drive for perfection and the nature of artistic labour.

The show also ventures into the realm of ‘outsider art’. Works by Aloïse Corbaz and Madge Gill—visionary figures who pursued their creative practices outside conventional art circles—find resonance within Perry’s own personal and artistic journey. The inclusion of Gill is particularly poignant: she exhibited at the Wallace Collection in 1942, a discovery that inspired Perry to weave her story into his own exploration of art, childhood and belonging.

Marking his 65th birthday, Perry uses the exhibition to reflect on the wider culture of collecting and the often-overlooked politics of decoration. With characteristic wit and sharpness, he challenges traditional hierarchies, asking viewers to reconsider where value lies—whether in the gilded excess of Rococo or in the irreverent, handcrafted exuberance of his own practice.

For all its intellectual weight, the exhibition is anything but austere. Perry’s signature humour and theatricality animate the galleries, ensuring the experience is as entertaining as it is thought-provoking. Visitors are likely to leave not only with a deeper appreciation of the complexities of craft and authenticity, but also with the sense that they have glimpsed something of Perry’s own playful, restless imagination.

Delusions of Grandeur stands as a landmark exhibition—one that reframes the dialogue between past and present, tradition and experimentation, seriousness and satire. It is, above all, a testament to Sir Grayson Perry’s place as one of Britain’s most intriquing artistic voices.

Photos by Lucia Carpio

Exhibition Launch: Barbican London Unveils Landmark Fashion Exhibition ‘Dirty Looks’ on 25 September

The Barbican in London is to unveil Dirty Looks: Desire and Decay in Fashion, a major new exhibition exploring fashion’s fascination with dirt, decay and imperfection.  Opening on 25 September 2025, the show brings together more than 60 designers, from global icons to emerging names, in an ambitious survey of how contemporary fashion has turned wear and tear into a source of rebellion, play and reinvention.

Dirty Looks, Installation view, Barbican Art Gallery, 25 Sep 2025 -  25 Jan 2026
Image: © David Parry /  Barbican Art Gallery

Long seen as the antithesis of luxury’s ideals of beauty and glamour, the aesthetics of damage and imperfection have increasingly shaped avant-garde design over the past half-century. Designers have used fraying, staining and decomposition not only as acts of provocation but also as a way to reimagine ornament, materials and sustainability. For some, these practices carry deeper spiritual and cultural significance, drawing on indigenous traditions and alternative understandings of beauty.

Designer Hussein Chalayan, Map Reading (detail) 2001
Photograph by Ellen Sampson

Highlights of Dirty Looks include garments that elevate stains into intricate handcraft, dresses designed to celebrate their own ruination, and pieces created by submerging clothing in peat bogs or transforming fast-fashion waste. Works by Alexander McQueen, Vivienne Westwood and Maison Margiela will sit alongside bespoke installations by Hussein Chalayan, Ma Ke, Yuima Nakazato and Bubu Ogisi of IAMISIGO.   In 1993, Hussein Chalayan’s groundbreaking graduate collection The Tangent Flows featured garments buried with iron filings in a friend’s London backyard. The resulting rusted dresses challenged conventional ideas of clothing, presenting garments as living, organic entities—tied to the earth and subject to cycles of decay and renewal. 

Dirty Looks, Installation view, Barbican Art Gallery, Thu 25 Sep 2025 - Sun 25 Jan 2026
Image: © David Parry /  Barbican Art Gallery

While distressed clothing no longer shocks in the same way, a new generation of designers continues to explore dirt and decay for their symbolic resonance, using them to imagine renewal, resistance, and alternative futures for fashion.  A spotlight is shone on the new wave of designers pushing fashion’s boundaries. London-based talents such as Paolo Carzana, Alice Potts, Michaela Stark, Solitude Studios and Yaz XL are presenting newly commissioned works, joined by international voices including New York’s Elena Velez.

Designer Martin Margiela, Menswear SS2005
Photograph by Ellen Sampson

The Barbican Art Gallery’s spaces will be radically reimagined by Studio Dennis Vanderbroeck, known for its theatrical approach to fashion and stage design. Drawing from fashion’s obsession with the illusion of wear and decay, the design will create a tension between the smooth, white spaces of the gallery and intentionally ‘destroyed’ surface treatments.

A catalogue published by MACK will accompany the exhibition, featuring essays from leading thinkers including Caroline Evans, Fabio Cleto and Sunny Dolat, with original object photography by Ellen Sampson.

Shanay Jhaveri, Head of Visual Arts, Barbican, said: “Dirty Looks signals the Barbican’s bold return to fashion as a vital strand of our visual arts programming – one that recognises fashion not only as a form of artistic expression, but also as a lens through which to examine cultural, environmental and political urgencies. This exhibition brings together a remarkable breadth of global designers who are radically reshaping what fashion can mean and do today. With its focus on decay, renewal and the aesthetics of imperfection, Dirty Looks invites us to reconsider beauty, value and the regenerative power of making in a world in flux.”

A programme of events will run alongside the exhibition, including a “Dirty Weekend” festival across the Barbican and a poetic performance, with further details to follow.

Next time when someone tells you that you look scruffy, point them to Dirty Looks.  It would certainly open their eyes.

Designers featured in Dirty Looks include ACNE Studios, Comme des Garçons, Rick Owens, Zandra Rhodes, Issey Miyake, Moschino, Paco Rabanne, Viktor & Rolf and Junya Watanabe, among many others.

Dirty Looks at the Barbican from 25 September 2025 to 25 January 2026.

Photos courtesy of Barbican Art Gallery

Exhibition Review: Rick Owens Builds His Temple in Paris, Then Heads to Frieze London

Rick Owens, the avant-garde American designer who has lived and worked in Paris since 2003, has reimagined the Palais Galliera as a sanctum of his uncompromising creativity.   

His retrospective in Paris: Temple of Love, open until January 4, 2026, is more than a fashion exhibition: it is a total environment, where clothing, sculpture, installation and memory converge in a ritualistic display of aesthetic conviction. A short walk from the Palais de Tokyo, which recently hosted his SS26 collection, Owens’s works are clearly at home within the galleries of the Palais Galliera.

Visual: Michèle Lamy
(C) Rick Owen

Rick Owens serves as artistic director in Temple of Love, alongside curator Alexandre Samson and honorary director Miren Arzalluz, ensuring every element carries his aesthetic imprint. 

This marks only the third time the Palais Galliera has devoted a retrospective to a living designer—following Azzedine Alaïa in 2013 and Martin Margiela in 2018. Under Owens’s direction, the museum has been dramatically reconfigured, with its interior, façade and forecourt linked together for the first time since the institution’s founding.

As a follow-up to this exhibition, Rick Owens will extend his creative vision beyond Paris with a special presentation at Frieze London in October, hosted by Carpenters Workshop Gallery. There, Owens will unveil a new series of collectible design pieces exploring the conceptual and aesthetic poetics of rust—a material condition he sees as a symbol of both decay and endurance. Among the centerpiece works is a dramatic reinterpretation of his signature Double Bubble chair, now upholstered in vivid blood-red leather. The exhibition will also feature selections of Owens’s vintage fashion and archival pieces. Complementing his display, Owens’s longtime partner and creative collaborator Michèle Lamy will debut a new sculptural installation, continuing the duo’s shared exploration of prehistoric and natural forms—notably antlers and horns, which they see as primal symbols of brutality and self-protection. 

Together, the London showcase and Temple of Love form a powerful dual reflection on impermanence, intimacy, and radical aesthetics.

Meanwhile, in Temple of Love, the retrospective currently at the Palais Galliera, Rick Owens is presented not merely as a designer but as a myth-maker and philosopher of form. The museum itself becomes less a gallery than a devotional space, bridging fashion, architecture, sculpture and performance.

Visitors are immersed in a world that is sculptural and spiritual, yet persistently provocative—an exhibition that unsettles as much as it captivates. Interwoven are examples of Owens’s furniture alongside quotations from the designer, grounding the experience in both physical form and philosophical reflection.

The journey begins with Owens’s Los Angeles years (1992–2003), illuminated through the cultural references that have shaped him since childhood. His Catholic upbringing instilled discipline, while the shadows of 1930s Hollywood, the drama of Wagnerian opera and the decadent symbolism of À rebours informed his rejection of conventional notions of beauty.

Entering the marble halls, visitors are confronted by a stark, austere mood. Severe, spectral figures loom in Owens’s signature silhouettes—draped in asymmetric cuts, elongated tunics and cocoon-like layers of distressed fabrics. Studded leathers, sweeping capes and monastic hoods intensify the atmosphere, their rigid geometry made all the more haunting against the grandeur of the architecture.

The second act of the exhibition charts Owens’s Paris years, from 2003 to the present day, where fashion shows became both spectacle and social commentary. Here, his uninhibited taste for provocation is given full weight. Over time, raw black-leather drapery evolved into complex architectural forms. His familiar palette of “dust” greys and monastic tones expands into mauve and sudden shocks of colour, garments transforming into wearable sculptures.

The exhibition expands beyond the museum’s interior. Classical statues are veiled in sequins; the gardens are punctuated by brutalist cement sculptures, softened by Californian wildflowers recalling Owens’s early years. Inside, multimedia installations nod to artistic references including Gustave Moreau, Joseph Beuys and Steven Parrino, extending the dialogue between fashion and art.

A reconstructed Hollywood bedroom once shared by Owens and his partner and muse Michèle Lamy offers intimate insight into their creative symbiosis. Books, perfumes and a Ziggy Stardust record become relics within a living installation. In another space, provocative video works—most notoriously Horse (depicting simulated copulation with a stallion)—are presented with disclaimers, underscoring Owens’s refusal to shy from controversy.

Temple of Love marks the first time the Palais Galliera has devoted a retrospective to a living designer in Paris, a gesture that underscores Owens’s influence. More than 100 silhouettes are displayed alongside archival objects, personal artefacts and architectural interventions—a testament to an interdisciplinary practice and an uncompromising vision.

Ultimately, the show reframes fashion as a spiritual, political and philosophical pursuit, a continuation of Owens’s three-decade interrogation of beauty, identity and power. Temple of Love is not simply an exhibition but a reckoning: every garment an altar, every installation a provocation. For the fashion-curious, the conceptually driven and all who believe in beauty that unsettles, this is essential viewing.

Photos by Lucia Carpio at the  Palais Galliera, Paris

Upcoming Events - Paris: Galerie Dior and Azzedine Alaïa Foundation Announce Joint Exhibition

Galerie Dior and the Azzedine Alaïa Foundation are set to stage a rare dual exhibition in Paris, spotlighting the late couturier’s role as a collector and admirer of Christian Dior.

According to recent press reports, more than 100 pieces from Alaïa’s extensive archive — which numbers around 600 garments — will go on display at La Galerie Dior, many for the first time. These works are intended to highlight Alaïa’s deep appreciation for Dior and his successors.

In parallel, the Alaïa Foundation will present around 30 Dior creations collected by Alaïa alongside a comparable number of Alaïa’s own designs, creating a dialogue between the two fashion houses.

The exhibitions will be curated by Olivier Saillard with Gaël Mamine.

La Galerie Dior will host its show from 20 November 2025 to 3 May 2026, while the Alaïa Foundation will present its counterpart from 1 December 2025 to 3 May 2026.

The collaboration represents an unprecedented opportunity to explore Alaïa’s vision as both a designer and collector. The information is based on recent press reports from fashion media outlets.

Alaïa’s fashion archive comprises around 600 pieces, primarily by Christian Dior himself, but also by his successors – Yves Saint Laurent, Marc Bohan, Gianfranco Ferré, and John Galliano. 

Design News: Pantone Unveils Spring/Summer 2026 Colour Trends at New York Fashion Week

As New York Fashion Week reaches its stride, Pantone LLC—the global authority on colour and provider of professional standards for the design industries—has unveiled its Fashion Color Trend Report for Spring/Summer 2026 for New York Fashion Week (NYFW).

Published by the Pantone Color Institute, the trend forecasting and consultancy arm of the company, the report highlights the top ten standout shades for the upcoming season - a blend of divergent colours designed to surprise.

PANTONE® 13-0640 TCX Acacia

PANTONE® 17-4041 TCX Marina

PANTONE® 15-1242 TCX Muskmelon

PANTONE® 18-4835 TCX Alexandrite

PANTONE® 18-1552 TCX Lava Falls

PANTONE® 17-1718 TCX Dusty Rose

PANTONE® 16-1620 TCX Tea Rose

PANTONE® 19-2410 TCX Amaranth

PANTONE® 17-1544 TCX Burnt Sienna

PANTONE® 15-1905 TCX Burnished Lilac

These are listed along six versatile, seasonless tones - - a range of trans-seasonal neutrals underpin the foundation.

PANTONE® 19-0915 TCX Coffee Bean

PANTONE® 12-4300 TCX White Onyx

PANTONE® 19-3838 TCX Rhodonite

PANTONE® 12-0605 TCX Angora

PANTONE® 19-5917 TCX Sycamore

PANTONE® 15-0318 TCX Sage Green

To see the Pantone colours click HERE.

These colours, according to Pantone’s experts, reflect designers’ growing commitment to personal expression—positioning creativity as a bold counterpoint to artificial intelligence and increasing homogenisation in design.

“Celebrating self-expression and individualism, NYFW Spring/Summer 2026 gives us a very new way of putting colours together,” said Leatrice Eiseman, Executive Director of the Pantone Color Institute.

This season’s palette juxtaposes warm, familiar tones with vibrant, energising hues and foundational neutrals. Pantone describes the selection as emblematic of honesty, authenticity and a desire to put a unique stamp on personal style. The balance of joyful brights with calming minimalist shades is set to inspire fashion that is both liberating and innovative.

Among the highlights are the luxurious depth of Alexandrite teal, the dramatic punch of Lava Falls red, the ethereal softness of White Onyx, and the grounding calm of Sage Green. Together, these shades suggest fresh silhouettes, unexpected pairings and a celebration of individuality—offering what Pantone calls “a showcase of humanity in all its guises.”

Textile & Garment Trade Fair: Texworld Apparel Sourcing Paris Return to Le Bourget 15 - 17 September 2025

Texworld Paris and Apparel Sourcing Paris will return to the Paris-Le-Bourget Exhibition Centre from 15 to 17 September 2025, organisers have confirmed. The upcoming edition will take place across Halls 2, 3 and 4, bringing together the key segments of Texworld Paris, Apparel Sourcing Paris, and their specialised zones, Avantex and Leatherworld. 

Together, the shows will form a comprehensive sourcing platform for the global fashion industry, spanning the full spectrum from ready-to-wear to high-end luxury.

Organisers will be hosting 1,300 exhibitors at this 57th edition, which has returned to its traditional September slot to better align with buyers' schedules. The event layout will mirror that of the February 2025 edition, which was positively received by both manufacturers and fashion professionals.

With nearly 600 manufacturers expected, Texworld Paris will feature some 600 manufacturers and  suppliers from major textile-producing countries, with China, Türkiye, India, South Korea, and Taiwan being the top five represented nations. The Elite area of the show will be dedicated to high-value-added companies selected by the committee for their excellence in quality, competitiveness, responsiveness, and logistics, as well as new exhibitors, such as Alok Industries from India, known for its premium cotton fabrics for men’s ready-to-wear. 

The Denim sector, which continues to grow, will bring together in Hall 4 (situated between Texworld and Apparel Sourcing Paris) some thirty fabric and finished product companies. 

In the Apparel Sourcing Paris sector there will be 600 exhibitors, compared to 465 exhibitors in the February 2025 edition. This growth is fueled not only by strong participation from China, India, and Bangladesh, but also by a surge in companies from Hong Kong (with over 20 grouped under one shared pavilion) and Pakistan, which will showcase a “Sustainable Pakistan” pavilion with ten socially responsible businesses.

“In today’s tense economic climate, this edition reflects the ongoing reshaping of global supply chains,” comments Julien Schmoll, Marketing & Communication Director at Messe Frankfurt France. “Through regular dialogue with industry players in key fashion cities – Barcelona, London, Milan – we’ve confirmed these sourcing trends. We’re seeing a resurgence of finished apparel offers from countries like China and India, a shift toward near sourcing, a growing demand for product innovation, and diversification of supply. Our role is to connect buyers with the most relevant sourcing solutions.”

Visitors will also discover – or reconnect with – manufacturers from Cambodia, Myanmar (with an official pavilion), Rwanda, Vietnam, and Egypt. The return of these countries to the European market reflects the ongoing shift in sourcing strategies, where quality and flexibility are becoming decisive criteria, according to the organisers.

Near sourcing is set to be a prominent theme at this edition of Texworld Paris, with a notable increase in participation from suppliers based in Central and Eastern Europe. National pavilions from Armenia and Kyrgyzstan will be positioned near the entrance of Hall 3, featuring 11 Armenian and 14 Kyrgyz companies. These exhibitors will present a range of creative products, with a particular focus on the casual and sportswear sectors.

In addition, around 30 manufacturers from countries including Serbia, Romania, the Czech Republic, Portugal, Greece, and Italy will showcase their offerings in the Near Sourcing Hub, also located at the entrance to Hall 3. Each sample in this area will be accompanied by a QR code linked to the FourSource B2B digital platform—an official partner of Messe Frankfurt France—providing visitors with detailed product data and direct access to supplier contacts.

Avantex, the space dedicated to sustainable fashion services, solutions, and forward-thinking businesses, continues to grow in response to strong industry demand. The September edition will bring together 30 companies in the area connecting Hall 2 (home to the trends forum, service zones, and the Agora) and Hall 3. Innovative startups include NIL Textile, focused on recycled and recyclable materials, that will present the first T-shirt made from 100% biobased polylactic acid (PLA) derived from corn, T-Fashion, an AI-powered platform for generative design and trend forecasting, and Materra, winner of the 2024 Avantex Fashion Pitch, which offers a “Cotton-As-A-Service” model supporting sustainable cotton farming and direct brand sourcing.

Avantex will also host three days of talks, round-tables and keynotes to explore the transformation of the fashion industry – covering topics such as circularity, natural materials, generative AI, technical skills, evolving consumer behaviors, and European regulatory changes. New this year, the Agora will host the European event Bio Fashion Innovation Day on Wednesday 17th September, organized by TCBL (an Avantex partner for 3 sessions). This day programme will include keynotes, round tables, workshops, and networking sessions focused on local production, organic materials, eco-design, and more. 

The 8th edition of the Avantex Fashion Pitch will also take place during the show, with finalists presenting to a jury comprising notable industry figures such as Carol Hilsum, Yoobin Jung, Jayne Simone Estève Curé, and Élodie Lemaire Nowinski. The event is held in partnership with IFA Paris and Messe Frankfurt’s Texpertise Network. 

The jury for this edition will include Carol Hilsum (Venture Capital Advisor & LP – Fashion Tech Consultant & Mentor), Yoobin Jung (Ventures Associate – Plug and Play Tech Center), Jayne Simone Estève Curé (Fashion & Luxury Expert & Mentor), Élodie Lemaire Nowinski (Associate Professor & Researcher – France/US/UK) and Claudia Franz (Director Brand management Apparel Fashion & Fabrics and Interior & Contract Textiles, Messe Frankfurt). The deadline to submit applications is 15 July 2025. For more information, click HERE.

Launched in February 2025, the Initiatives zone at the entrance of Hall 4, will showcase innovative and inspiring approaches developed by selected exhibitors. Highlights include live demonstrations by fashion students, from LISAA Mode, who create knit and crochet pieces on-site, emphasizing both design and craftsmanship. Pasari Textiles (India) will exhibit its exceptional handmade embroideries, while the Istanbul Chamber of Commerce will present Turkish textile know-how through contemporary artistic approaches focused on patterns and dyeing. The China Textile Innovation Center (CTIC) will host a space dedicated to highlighting Chinese innovation through a curated selection of designers and brands.

Organisers say this September’s edition reaffirms Paris’s position as a vital hub in the global sourcing calendar, blending international craftsmanship with forward-looking innovation and sustainability.

All images from Messe Frankfurt Paris.