Over the last few years, Amsterdam has done its damnedest to become the true global capital of denim, and we have to say, with a great degree of success. An indispensable aspect of this success has to be the Amsterdam Denim Days festival.
ADD is a city wide celebration of all things denim. The King Pins fabric trade show, Blue Print Festival, local denim stores and quality aligned local purveyors are all thrown into the mix to create a curated cross section of what denim, at its core truly represents.
What ADD has achieved is actually rather remarkable and, as far as we know, unique in the world of denim. They have created an event that is as relevant to industry professionals as it is to the end-consumer. It serves to educate and illuminate, bringing together two aspects of this industry that, at times, can feel rather removed from one another.
During the Denim Days in April, there was a rumour floating around that this winning concept would be rolled out in some other city. But the exact location was kept a closely guarded secret. Would it be San Francisco, Tokyo, Berlin? All of these cities would certainly have been a good choice, but nothing seems to fit quite as well as the confirmed locale, New York City.
For such an undertaking, the organizers of such an event would have to be pretty well connected. Luckily for us, they are. New York Denim Days is organised by Modefabriek and Kingpins Show in collaboration with House of Denim and HTNK Fashion recruitment & consultancy. A great mixture of passionate people with the clout to pull off such an event.
New York Denim Days will take place from the 30th of September through to October 1st. The two-day main event will be hosted at the Metropolitan Pavilion (125 West 18th Street) and the organizers are working tirelessly to build a collection of brands, retailers, designers, denim artisans, vintage dealers, mills and complementary players such as artists, tailors, denim repair craftsmen, and purveyors of skincare, accessories, housewares, footwear and so on.
Further weaving the New York Denim Days into the fabric of the city, events at retail stores throughout the 5 boroughs will give visitors a chance to truly engage with the denim scene in New York with book signings and workshops, sales, in-store parties and more.
Adriano Goldschmied, the godfather of denim.
Stefano Rosso, CEO of Diesel USA.
Scott Morrison, founder and designer of 3×1, Paper Denim Cloth and Earnest Sewn.
Stefan Siegel of Not Just a Label.
Sanjeev Bahl, President of Saitex, the benchmark garment factory and laundry of the future.
The lectures will take place at Fashion Institute of Technology’s famed Katie Murphy Amphitheatre on the 29th of September.
Two mainstays of the denim scene in New York City have already signed on as New York Denim Days fist exhibitors. Jean Shop will be displaying rare vintage jeans, selling product and a leather bracelet that shoppers can also customize with dye and hand-stamps. They will also be indigo dyeing bandanas to add to this great DIY experience. 3×1’s booth will feature signature items from the brand synonymous with quality and craft.
The notion of transporting the ADD festival concept to New York is certainly an exciting development for the industry. Bringing the consumer and the professional together is a necessary development for the denim industry overall.
It gives a transparency to both sides and the ability to engage and educate on a number of levels. Without events such as Amsterdam Denim Days and New York Denim days, this engagement would be nigh on impossible for both sides. So, to the organizers of the event, we salute you and we are looking forward to seeing events unfold.
All images courtacy of Amsterdam Denim days and Team Peter Stigter.