Pure London spring 18: Everything you need to know
26 July 2017
Brands, buyers and the Drapers team made their way to Kensington’s Olympia London for the spring 18 edition of trade show Pure, which ran on 23-25 July.
More from: Pure London spring 18: Everything you need to know
Buyers arrived at a steady pace on the first day, particularly in Aspire and Allure, the contemporary womenswear halls. The menswear, footwear and athleisure areas felt less crowded – a sense that continued over the show’s subsequent days.
Pure has dialled up its experiential aspect to help keep buyers entertained – this edition included catwalk shows, live music, one-on-one “Meet the Expert” panels and talks, including an interview by Drapers’ Graeme Moran with Lisa Maynard-Atem, social media manager for Harrods.
Legendary designer Pam Hogg gave a speech on the first day and, on the second, Henry Holland spoke to the London Evening Standard’s Laura Weir about building his business and the power of Instagram.
“We describe ourselves as the department store for buyers and, if you consider the high street department stores, they are focusing on experiences or initiatives such as champagne bars,”
said Pure’s portfolio director, Julie Driscoll. “It’s about spending time with people and feeling
something real. We get people together – they see and touch the fabrics, do business face to face and have a real experience.”
Subdued second day at Pure London
25 July 2017 By Emily Sutherland, Leyan Yucel
The mood was more subdued when Drapers headed back to Olympia London for the second day of Pure’s spring 18 edition.
More from: Pure London spring 18: Everything you need to know
Drapers joined the line of visitors heading from the Overground station into the exhibition centre against a backdrop of gloomy cloud. Halls felt less buzzy then they had on the busier first day, Sunday, particularly towards the back of the cavernous space and in the upstairs areas.
The morning of the show got off to a slow start, although footfall later picked up over lunchtime and into the afternoon.
Overall, exhibitors said it had been a quiet day, although a few said they had seen a steady stream of visitors prepared to write orders.
An afternoon talk by Henry Holland did draw crowds, who flocked to Pure’s catwalk area to hear the charismatic House of Holland designer interviewed by Laura Weir, editor of the London Evening Standard’s ES magazine. Holland spoke about the changing impact of social media on his business, particularly the growing power of Instagram.
He also urged fashion businesses to focus on “personality, playfulness and authenticity”, and stressed the importance of not attempting to be all things to all people.
“If you create something you truly believe in, there are going to be people that want to buy into it as well,” he said.
The mood of the show
Jacqueline Hu, consultant, Cherry Paris
The afternoon has been busier than the morning as people work their way across the show towards us. We’ve noticed that it’s changing each year and fewer people are coming. We’ve seen everything from lots of small boutiques to bigger companies.
Blake Chen, general manager’s assistant, Fortune
It’s been a lot less busy today. I feel like because our range is a bit more expensive compared with a lot of the other brands, we haven’t got much attention. Our location isn’t great either – the nearer to the entrance you are, the more attention you will get. It has mainly been
independents coming round, and even then most people are just looking, it doesn’t seem like many people are here to buy.
Faye Yang, designer, LYDC
Today has been very quiet. Yesterday wasn’t as bad but it’s definitely getting quieter each year. I just don’t think people are coming to trade shows as much any more. There have been a lot of independents, but it’s all the same people – we haven’t seen that many new faces.
Some people will come on the first day just to browse, and then will come back towards the end of the show to order.
Joseph Gutman, president of sales and merchandising, Say What New York
It’s not been too busy. We’ve come from New York and wanted to give it one shot to see what the English market is like. We’re all about fast fashion and are big in the US, so we’re not really looking to sell to small boutiques. Those are the people who are coming round but they’re looking to buy small numbers of one item, not hundreds, which is what we want. Lots of people come round just to look, but coming here is a great opportunity to make
connections and meet other people in the industry.
Elly Beckford, designer, PK Berry
Yesterday was a really good day for us and today has also been good, we’ve seen lots of repeat customers and one or two new boutiques. I’d say we have written fewer orders today but we’ve seen some interesting people, including some European agents. We were actually away from Pure for a couple of seasons but decided to come back because you do see the right people here and it helps build up brand awareness.
Anthony Hsa, manager, Elli White
It’s been quite a good day for us. The morning started quietly but it later picked up. I’d say for us the footfall on the second day was around the same as on the first, although I definitely think the show is quieter than in previous seasons
Editor's Comment: Pure London combines content with commerce
25 July 2017 Keely Stocker
As the spring 18 trade show season continues, this week the Drapers team headed to cavernous exhibition centre Olympia London for the latest edition of women’s and men’s wear showcase Pure London .
More from: Pure London spring 18: Everything you need to know
Although the show seemed a little quieter than usual, particularly on the second day, brands we spoke to were happy with the turnout and said orders were being written.
The relevance of trade shows and their place in the market is something we have discussed at Drapers for several seasons now. As buyers increasingly place orders at showrooms, trade shows are become marketing and networking opportunities, rather than necessarily places to do business.
pure spring 18
Pure has introduced a series of content initiatives over the past few seasons to give buyers that extra reason to attend. For this edition, there were keynote addresses from designers Pam Hogg and Henry Holland, as well as panel discussions throughout the three days on topics such as social media, sourcing and working with influencers. Buyers I spoke to agreed that these content sessions were appealing, although they pointed out that they didn’t always have time to attend.
As I argued in my comment last week, making a store or event experiential is a great way to attract footfall, but it must not detract from the main point of business: it should only be done if it enhances the overall experience. Pure managed to strike a good balance between using content to create a buzz around the event, while ensuring product was still the main focus.
We also heard this week that Hawes & Curtis is to close seven stores to focus on bigger flagships and online trading. If retailers are to provide experiences rather than the standard shopping offer, the bigger stores make sense. Marks & Spencer, Debenhams and Burberry are among the many fashion businesses that are streamlining their store portfolios.
This is a wise strategy that will allow them to offer better customer experiences within the remaining stores – using technology to integrate the various shopping channels and data to analyse customer journeys across them. The retailers that find the right balance between stores and a digital offering will thrive in a multichannel era.
Pure London's Julie Driscoll on optimism, athleisure and experience
25 July 2017 By Emily Sutherland
Drapers catches up with Pure’s portfolio director Julie Driscoll on the latest edition of the show
Julie Driscoll
How are buyers and brands feeling this season?
The show felt buzzy and vibrant, and I think buyers and brands are feeling good. I met the buyers from Fenwick at the show and they were saying they have had a really great season, so despite all the uncertainty created by Brexit and the political landscape, people are doing well and feeling optimistic. The industry is really leaning into innovation at the moment – it was great to see the level of thought brands had put into their collections and their stands at the show. People are willing to try things and experiment.
Why has Pure expanded its athleisure section this season?
Athleisure is larger this season. More and more independents now have a rail or section dedicated to sportswear and athleisure. It’s about bridging that gap between technical sportswear and athleisure – the kind of clothing you can wear to exercise but also socially.
We’re all living longer now, so people are more interested in taking care of themselves and that’s reflected in the trend for athleisure. Millennials are drinking less, we’re all taking much
better care of ourselves and embracing cleaner living. Pure Man has also grown: we’re investing in both our athleisure and menswear. Next season, Pure Man will have a separate entrance – it’s a real avenue of growth. Men can be equally as interested in fashion.
What else is new for this season at Pure?
We’ve introduced the Meet the Expert sessions, where retailers can book a one-on-one
appointment with an expert to discuss subjects such as visual merchandising, PR, how to run a digital business … That’s something we’ll be expanding next season. These are subjects that we hear independents want guidance on time after time. There’s also been a focus on
international brands.
Why is important for Pure to introduce experiential elements to the show?
We describe ourselves as the department store for buyers, and if you consider the department stores on the high street, they are focusing on experiences – think of Selfridge’s music project – or initiatives such as champagne bars. Experiences such as Glastonbury are becoming so popular because it is about spending time with people and feeling something real. At the show, it’s about getting people together – allowing them to see and touch the fabrics, do business face to face and have a real experience.
The footwear section of the show feels smaller this year – will that change in following seasons?
We’re marrying footwear into athleisure and menswear. Rather than heels, which may have been the focus in previous seasons, we’re now looking at trainers and sneakers.
