Professional fashion trade shows in Paris bolster Web presence

Prestigious Paris fairs are strengthening their online presences and bolstering digital communication to complement their events. Here is what four of the most distinguished trade shows in the City of Lights offer attendees.

Tranoï: The men's ready-to-wear fashion fair launched its first e-commerce site this past September, featuring a selection of current season products from each designer exhibiting at the show, as well as daily updates from a team of professional bloggers. "Our aim here is to communicate every day of the year, and not just four days, four times a year," Michael Hadida, the organizer of Tranoï, told Women's Wear Daily.
http://www.tranoi.com/

Prêt à Porter Paris: One of the leading international fashion trade shows, Prêt à Porter Paris expects to receive some 1,400 exhibitors for its upcoming edition in January. The fair's website provides an interactive map of the event's layout, which is designed to help visitors plan their schedule in advance, as well as a personal shopping service. "In one glance, one should be able to get what the salon is about. Easy access to information is also important...it's about facilitating services for both exhibitors or visitors, such as enabling them to download badges to save time," Muriel Piaser, the trade fair's director, told Women's Wear Daily.
http://www.pretparis.com/

Who's Next: Dedicated to showing young fashion labels and conceptual brands, Who's Next launched a blog more than two and a half years ago featuring pictures of exhibiting designers' collections. The talent is pre-screened and selected by the Who's Next event team. The blog draws 3,000 visits per month, and nearly 10,000 monthly visits during the timing of a competition run twice yearly by the site, which offers ten designers the chance to win free exhibit stands at the Who's Next and Première Classe trade shows. Who's Next also operates a Facebook page, in conjunction with Première Classe, that boasts more than 4,000 followers.
http://www.whosnext.com/
http://www.whosnextblog.com/

Première Vision: Twice a year, no fewer than 700 weavers from 28 countries attend Première Vision to present their textile collections. The salon organizers said they are bolstering Web services for visitors, such as pre-registration and links to exhibitors' sites, with the project due to be finalized in 2011. As of now, Première Vision already offers an online service allowing visitors to pre-register online, as well as pre-order textiles from any fair exhibitor. There is also an e-book sold online that offers an in-depth look at all the exhibitors and their products.
http://www.premierevision.fr/