TDAP hosts ‘The Fashion Show’ as an extension of Texpo 2023 concludes on Day 02.

An extension of its 4^th International Textile and Leather Exhibition, TEXPO, the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) hosted the day-two of fashion show on 27^th May 2023 at the Expo Centre in Karachi.

Chief guests for the evening were Federal Secretary of Commerce Muhammad Sualeh Ahmad Faruqui, Chief Executive TDAP Zubair Motiwala, and Secretary TDAP Fareed Iqbal Qureshi.

An exclusive showcase for the media and foreign buyers, the event featured a treasure trove of designs, putting the spotlight on ready-to-wear, resort wear, and luxury pret items. All collections showcased at the event were exclusively curated with a focus on sustainable fashion, keeping in line with the theme of this year’s TEXPO, ‘Weaving the Way to Sustainability’.

The second day of the event offered collections by designers and design-houses Shamaeel Ansari, MEME, IVS, Almirah, The Pink Tree Company, Sanam Chaudhri, Parishae Adnan, Diners, Textile Institute of Pakistan (TIP), Spartan Athletics and Ali Xeeshan.

Shamaeel Ansari opened the show with her collection ‘Western Elegance: The Fusion of Cultures’, allowing the audience to step into a world of elegance and sophistication. Her showcase was followed by MEME’s ‘Streets of Barcelona’ – a fashion retail concept created in Barcelona that connects the brand with young, independent, cosmopolitan men and women of today. Students of the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture (IVS) presented a collection tapping different areas of sustainability, ranging from zero waste patterns to denim deconstruction, all the way to reviving cultural surface treatments.

Models strutted down the runway for Almirah in its ‘BOHO CHIC’ collection, a harmonious fusion of boho and modern aesthetics. Sanam Chaudhri presented her collection – a love letter to Sanam’s student self; when she was introduced to the techniques of clamp and resist dyeing, a process that has held its charm for its rustic purity ever since. House of Parishae led the charge with ‘Anatomy of Power’, inspired by a 1983 study on the dynamics of social power by John Kenneth Galbraith.

Textile Institute of Pakistan (TIP) sent models draped in ‘Ethnic Subcontinent’ – a western collection based on the history of clothing in the subcontinent that can be traced to the Indus Valley civilization or earlier. Ali Xeeshan closed the show with his collection, ‘Redefining Fashion in Pakistan’ – a sustainable high street collection featuring recycled materials and cotton, an essential part of Pakistan’s heritage.

The day-two of this fashion-gala was directed by Nubain Ali, boasted Dino Ali and Anoushey Ashraf as its red-carpet hosts.

TEXPO 2023 paid tribute to the textile and leather industries for their resilience in the fight against the impact of climate change on Pakistan. It hosted 300 plus exhibitors, international textile sourcing agents, Pakistan’s leading designers and industry specialists from around the world, all while reflecting offerings ranging from leather garments, footwear, cotton, readymade garments, home textiles, denim, knitwear, sportswear, among others.

Buyers from Australia, Bangladesh, Belgium, China, Japan, Columbia, Egypt, France, Germany, Iran, among others, attended the TEXPO this year. While buyers from 48 non-traditional markets and 286 new consumers registered.

Top international brands registered for the event include Smiffys, Royce Too LLC, Pem-America’s INC, Komex and Faro (Poland) – apparel and home textiles, Action (Netherlands), C&A (Germany) – apparel chain, French Connection (UK) – apparel chain, El Corte Ingles (Spain) – departmental stores, Essenza Home (Netherlands) – Tchaikovsky Textile (Russia), among others.

Official media partner for TEXPO 2023 was Hum TV, while the official radio partner was FM91. event management and Public Relations (PR) of TEXPO 2023 was handled by Take II.

TDAP hosts ‘The Fashion Show’ as an extension of Texpo 2023 – Day 01.

An extension of its 4^th International Textile and Leather Exhibition, TEXPO, the Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) hosted ‘The Fashion Show (Day-01)’ on 26^th May 2023 at the Expo Centre in Karachi. Welcoming the who’s who of the fashion world, the event is set to be a two-day fashion extravaganza, closing on 27^th May 2023.

Chief guests for the evening were Federal Secretary of Commerce Muhammad Sualeh Ahmad Faruqui, Chief Executive TDAP Zubair Motiwala, and Secretary TDAP Fareed Iqbal Qureshi.

An exclusive showcase for the media and foreign buyers, the event featured a treasure trove of designs, putting the spotlight on ready-to-wear, resort wear, and luxury pret items. All collections showcased at the event were exclusively curated with a focus on sustainable fashion, keeping in line with the theme of this year’s TEXPO, ‘Weaving the Way to Sustainability’.

The first day of the event offered collections by designers and design-houses Rizwan Beyg, Adnan Pardesy, J., Huma Adnan, Sana Safinaz, Wardha Saleem, Salt by Ideas, AIFD, M Jaferjees, House of Aamna Aqeel and Deepak Perwani.

Rizwan Beyg opened the show, followed by Adnan Pardesy, who lit up the runway with his ‘Roshnai’. A modern take on a classic fabric, the collection pushed the boundaries of what denim can be. A standout piece from the collection was a metal corset painstakingly created by the designer himself. Huma Adnan presented ‘Tolerance’ – a collection of beauty born of cross-cultural expression. Standing firm on her belief in cause-based fashion, Huma Adnan’s designs were representative of cultures adopted in a sustainable way.

Sana Safinaz presented ‘Raya’, a curation of 11 unique designs redefining monochrome couture with silhouettes that fuse timeless forms, draped in layers of mystical embroidered textures and glimmer. Salt by Ideas unveiled ‘Sleek-Spectra’, inspired by the allure of structural and boxy silhouettes and the expressive power of neon colors. M Jafferjees’ ‘Resort 2023’, showcased an array of timeless classics that blend traditional values with modern sensibilities. House of Deepak Perwani closed the show with its collection ‘Starry starry night’, a minimal diffusion collection with silhouettes blending eastern and western fashion with subtle embellishment on lux fabrics.

The day-one of this fashion-gala was directed by Nubain Ali, boasted Dino Ali and Anoushey Ashraf as its red-carpet hosts.

TEXPO 2023 paid tribute to the textile and leather industries for their resilience in the fight against the impact of climate change on Pakistan. It hosted 300 plus exhibitors, international textile sourcing agents, Pakistan’s leading designers and industry specialists from around the world, all while reflecting offerings ranging from leather garments, footwear, cotton, readymade garments, home textiles, denim, knitwear, sportswear, among others.

Buyers from Australia, Bangladesh, Belgium, China, Japan, Columbia, Egypt, France, Germany, Iran, among others, attended the TEXPO this year. While buyers from 48 non-traditional markets and 286 new consumers registered.

Top international brands registered for the event include Smiffys, Royce Too LLC, Pem-America’s INC, Komex and Faro (Poland) – apparel and home textiles, Action (Netherlands), C&A (Germany) – apparel chain, French Connection (UK) – apparel chain, El Corte Ingles (Spain) – departmental stores, Essenza Home (Netherlands) – Tchaikovsky Textile (Russia), among others.

Official media partner for TEXPO 2023 was Hum TV, while the official radio partner was FM91. event management and Public Relations (PR) of TEXPO 2023 was handled by Take II.

Policymakers, Industrial Experts discuss ‘Localisation for Growth’ at National Policy Dialogue.

K-Electric Limited, in collaboration with Nutshell Group, jointly hosted a National Policy Dialogue on Localisation for growth at a local hotel in Karachi. The dialogue addressed the urgent need to explore options for indigenisation and sourcing materials from local avenues for Pakistan to build a resilient economy. As the world’s 4th most populous country, Pakistan’s reliance on imported fuels for its energy needs tends to pose a hurdle for consistent economic growth against commodity shocks. Founder & CEO, Nutshell Group, Muhammad Azfar Ahsan, welcomed the guests and reiterated the dire need for Pakistan to prioritize work on the Charter of Business to enable local businesses to enhance impact through local empowerment. The Dialogue was well attended by the public, private stakeholders and government figures including Senator Dr. Musadik Malik, Minister of State, Ministry of Energy, Mr. Khurram Dastagir Federal Minister for Power, Governor Sindh Kamran Tessori, representing the Government and elaborating on public initiatives.

Dr. Malik’s address focused on the need to understand the ground realities as well as the potential and why localization is not a demand but a need. He felt that instead of relying only on one-time solutions, we should strive for a strong indigenous footprint.

“We can only become competitive on a global scale when we achieve a local edge. When we talk about localization, we must develop clusters, where several economic activities are taking place in one geographic area. Amalgamations are also required where we involve academia, so that we can upgrade our education system as well. Soon, we aim to bring down the UFGs (unaccounted for gas) and the circular debt to zero, but that doesn’t mean all the problems would vanish, rather we still have a long way to go. Above all, we need to build a level playing field where competition is on productivity and innovation alone” Senator Dr. Musadik Malik, Minister of State, Ministry of Energy.

“Electric vehicles initiatives will cut emissions in half and imported fuel consumption by half; it will save us dollars and provide expanded opportunities for employment and infrastructural development in Pakistan”. Khurram Dastagir, Federal Minister for Power.

“Pakistan is 75 years old, and we have had so many talks but no solutions. In order to achieve progress, we have to identify the problems, and then work together to fix them instead of working to fix each other. Localization begins with everyone coming together under one common identity as well. I agree that the State is responsible for the direction, but so is the nation”. Kamran Tessori, Governor Sindh.

Syed Moonis Abdullah Alvi, CEO K-Electric, shared some impressive numbers of investments being made by the company to increase the number of customers, reduce the percentage of power outages, and, most importantly, increase the contribution of renewable resources to generate power. K-Electric has invested Rs. 474 billion across the value chain, and soon (by 2030) the company will be generating 2172 MW of indigenous energy.

“Our conviction is to base our generation on indigenous fuels and lower our reliance on imported fuels. Our ambition is to invest PKR 484 billion in the value chain over the next 7 years. When we have this predictability and a projected demand of equipment, we believe it is best to buy local and encourage domestic growth. Predictability of policies will support this vision, and collectively reduce the pressure on the national exchequer. I request we collaborate and produce avenues for local resources; everybody needs to work on all fronts, the government needs to focus on policy formulation, and investors need to invest and make things better for Pakistan”. Syed Moonis Abdullah Alvi, CEO, K-Electric.

The discussion was carried forward by Tauseef H. Farooqui, Chairman NEPRA. He said; “Localisation is the only way forward; the world is progressing with zero asset policy. Assets should be zero to minimize liability, and for Pakistan, I feel localisation will be a game-changer for the coming generations”.

Mr. Tauseef also emphasized the different initiatives he has been implementing to provide electricity to 55 Million people of Pakistan. He said; “education is important for Pakistanis to emerge as a strong and resilient nation, and electricity is vital to ensure education reaches everyone. Imported fuel is a liability and a hindrance and needs to be replaced with indigenous resources”.

The panel discussion had a good representation from stakeholders; Maheen Rehman, Chief Executive Officer, InfraZamin; Fahd K. Chinoy, CEO, Pakistan Cables; Mahmoud ul Haq, Chairman, IMS Engineering – Schneider Electric; Abdul Rahman Allana, Chairman, Alsons Group; Zeid Saigol, Director Operations (Power Division), Pak Electron Limited and Fawad Saeed, CEO, Transfopower Industries (Pvt.) Limited. They summarized the challenges and the best way forward. The need for a consistent policy framework was highlighted. They felt that success stories like Dawlance and Pakistan Cables need to be replicated for prosperity at large.

“Our imports are not going down and exports are not coming up; this is extremely worrisome for Pakistan. We need creativity and collaboration for solutions”. Zubair Motiwala, Chief Executive, Trade Development Authority of Pakistan.

K-Electric signed five MOUs at the event to promote localisation. K-Electric is focusing on reducing reliance on imported materials, be it equipment, machinery, fuels, or any other resource required for power production. Pakistan can save foreign exchange by promoting locally made products. The initiative by K-Electric and its partners to promote local industry is a step in the right direction. Details of the MOUs signed today are as follows:

1) Mr. Abdul Rehman Allana from Alsons Group and Mr. Sheraz Kashif from K-Electric

2) Mr. Saad Ul laah Khan from NEW2 and Mr. Sheraz Kashif from K-Electric

3) Mr. Diwan Mustafa from Nova Mobility (G&T Group) and Mr. Aamir Ghaziani from K-Electric

4) Mr. Sultan Mehmood from Creative Group of Companies and Mr. Amer Zia from K-Electric

5) Mr. Muhammad Tufail from NED University and Abbas Hussain from K-Electric

Aamir Ghaziani, CFO K-Electric, presented the vote of thanks. He recapped the discussions and promised that in line with the vision, K-Electric will continue to activate this platform and ensure the participation of stakeholders for the continuous benefit of the populace.