DMC to Launch Contemporary Scene
The Dallas Market Center will answer demand for contemporary show space in the Southwestern market by launching a set of juried temporary apparel shows in March at the center’s new apparel venue, Fashion Center Dallas in Dallas’ World Trade Center.
The new show, Scene, will take place each March, August and October, said Peg Canter, the DMC’s vice president of trade events, who will also manage the shows. The first show will take place March 25–28. The shows will run on a Thursday-through-Sunday basis. Product categories will include better and contemporary women’s apparel and accessories from leading manufacturers and emerging talent.
The DMC is staging Scene to get a piece of the growing contemporary market in Dallas. Local developer Brook Partners Inc. recently launched a rival project downtown to house contemporary apparel showrooms. That project, now known as the Fashion Industry Gallery, has drawn a number of tenants away from Fashion Center Dallas, as well as some important West Coast resources, including Terry Sahagen Sales.
Scene will be located on the 13th floor of the World Trade Center, adjacent to the center’s permanent accessories showrooms. The $21 million Fashion Center Dallas project is set to open in March on the upper floors of the World Trade Center. Most of the tenants at the existing International Apparel Mart are relocating to the center.
According to DMC executives, Scene will feature modern exhibition space with raised ceilings and sandblasted concrete floors, reflecting progressive architectural trends as well as harmonizing with the contemporary designs of the products represented.
“Integrating temporary exhibition space with permanent showroom space was one of the principal objectives of Fashion Center Dallas,” said Bill Winsor, president and chief executive officer of the DMC. “The resulting synergy of contiguous resources will create an exciting new merchandising format that is unmatched in any marketplace.”
In addition to Scene, DMC hosts permanent and temporary apparel markets segmented into women’s and children’s apparel; accessories; bridal, special occasion and prom; men’s; and Western categories. —Robert McAllister
