The future of fashion B2B trade shows is hybrid, according to Informa Markets, which has joined forces with B2B e-commerce platform NuORDER to launch the fashion industry’s largest digital trade event. Making its debut alongside Informa Fashion Portfolio’s physical trade shows – MAGIC, COTERIE, PROJECT and MICAM AMERICAS – in Las Vegas and New York City, the new e-commerce experience will virtually connect retailers with brands that are unable to attend the events in person. 

Originally scheduled for Aug. 17-19, MAGIC, PROJECT Las Vegas and MICAM Americas will take place Sept. 30-Oct. 2 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The July 19-21 COTERIE and PROJECT New York events have been moved to Sept. 22-24 at Jacob K. Javits Center. All were postponed due to health and safety concerns.

Marrying NuORDER’s network of thousands of premium fashion brands and 500,000 retailers with Informa’s global fashion network will not only create the largest digital fashion platform but also bring an established and highly curated marketplace to a virtual environment, according to Informa Markets officials. 

Designed to complement Informa’s key face-to-face events, the digital platform comes as Informa continues its investment in the development of digital solutions to support brands and retailers as they plan for spring and summer fashion markets, according to Nancy Walsh, president of Informa Fashion Markets.

“The live event experience is irreplaceable, [and] fashion in particular is a tactile business — buyers want to feel fabrics in their own hands and see colors with their own eyes,” Walsh explained. “But we also believe that the future of fashion wholesale is a synergy of physical and digital.”

She continued, “Our first step in this direction is our partnership with NuORDER and the digital trade show we will debut this year, which we believe will help translate the experience of discovery and connection that is at the heart of our physical events to a new and exciting virtual environment.”

To virtually present new collections, brands will be able to tap into NuORDER’s digital capabilities, which include custom digital catalogs, line sheets, in-platform ordering and interactive 360-degree virtual showroom technology. This will help retail buyers be able to discover, connect and do business with new brand partners through category and price point search functionalities, as well as gain access to curated content and relevant product recommendations, and place in-platform orders. 

Through this partnership, Informa Markets Fashion and NuORDER also hope to champion the fashion industry’s continued evolution toward digitalization. Their new platform will soon expand to include new shows, categories and regions, presenting opportunities for forward-thinking fashion brands and retailers willing to embrace a hybrid future of B2B fashion commerce, according to Heath Wells, co-founder and co-CEO of NuORDER. 

“Both NuORDER and Informa are market leaders, and we are excited to power the largest global platform for fashion brands and buyers,” Wells said. “Our partnership marks a defining moment in the industry solving real customer needs at a critical time. This is the beginning of a new era for fashion markets and the standard for discovery and commerce moving forward.”

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