Big Festival in Dar es Salaam Underway to Promote Fashion As Business Sector

Tanzania Daily News (Dar es Salaam)

9 June 2011

AT least 40 women entrepreneurs have confirmed participation in a week-long fashion festival scheduled to be held in Dar es Salaam starting June 19, this year.

The event, aimed at empowering Tanzanian woman entrepreneurs in the fashion industry, is dubbed “The Dar Fashion Festival 2011,” according to one of the event co-founders, Lucy Kimei. Kimei told the ‘Daily News’ on Thursday that some 45 business women have confirmed to participate and that many more were calling in with a view to doing the same.

She said that the festival had all the thrills to being a unique opportunity for women in the fashion business to network, learn, sell and reach new heights.

“The event will involve a series of activities starting with the Women Empowered in Business Summit (WEBS) on June 19th, followed by a networking evening entitled Women’s Worth on June 23rd and culminating with the city’s first ever shopping event “Dar es Salaam Fashion Shopping” on June 25th to 26th,”Kimei said.

According to Kimei, DFF Shopping, to be held at ‘The Green’ on Kenyatta Drive, Oysterbay, is expected to attract over 1,000 people from all over the city. We chose “The Green” to make the best use of Dar es Salaam’s beautiful open spaces that need to be promoted and well utilized,” she said.

She explained that the event aims at providing Tanzanian women entrepreneurs a platform to promote their businesses and sell their products to a large number of people in a short time span.

Tina Lasway, another co-founder and organiser of the event, believed that there had never been an opportune time for the fashion business in Tanzania to grow and mature like now.

“Our peak event will go a long way to ensure the sector becomes increasingly recognised as a mainstream business activity,” she said. Lasway said that a considerable number of Tanzanian women entrepreneurs engaged in the fashion retail business but many operate at a loss, do not grow or cease operation after a short period of time.

“Multiple factors hamper their performance including limited business acumen, lack of innovation, as well as easy access to support services, including tailored credit facilities and affordable marketing and advertising services,” she added.

“As an established woman business owner, I have so much to share with my peers, but I didn’t have a good platform to do so. DFF is going to provide just that,” said Cassandra Mlaki of Cassandra Lingerie.

The event organized by the Dar Fashion Festival Company, will also offer buyers the opportunity to view and purchase from a wide selection from a variety of local fashion retailers under one roof.

Upcoming local fashion designers will have the opportunity to connect with consumers and potential agents/sellers of their products and for some of them, this will be their first time showcasing their products, she said.

Evelyne Rugemalira, founder of an upcoming design house, Eve Collections, said “DFF gives me the first chance to formally launch my designs in Tanzania. This is a good start for me.”

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