Valmont Puts a Ring on Biggest, Boldest Bridal Show Yet
Take a breath, there’s a lot going on in Spain this spring. Barcelona, known as the global capital of bridal fashion, is set to hold its “biggest event” yet, with participation from 429 brands, increasing 13 percent from the previous year’s brand participation, and akin to a new bride, the event takes a new name: “The Valmont Barcelona Bridal Fashion Week.”
As of this year, Valmont Barcelona Bridal Fashion Week will be hosted in partnership with Valmont, the Swiss high-end cosmetic company and Barcelona Bridal Fashion Week. Spain is the “only Western country with production higher than internal demand” in regards to bridal wear, assuming position as the “second-largest exporter of bridal fashion behind China,” according to a report on Millennial and Gen Z brides conducted on behalf of Valmont Barcelona Bridal Fashion Week.
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“Today VBBFW is fashion, design, business, vitality, a mixture of cultures and international transactions. It’s a catalyst of trends and a merger between tradition and innovation,” said Estermaria Laruccia, the event’s director, in a statement.
The event, organized by Fira de Barcelona, Barcelona’s trade fair institution, will take place April 23 to 28 in the Montjuïc venue, centrally located in the city. The first four days are dedicated to showing the 2020 collections of some 30 brands, while the remainder of the trade show will be focused on fashion designs and accessories for not just bride and groom, but occasion wear be it evening, cocktail or communion.
Valmont Group will feature a large care and relaxation area in support of the week’s festivities, available to models in the shows. The alliance represents a “milestone,” reflecting the concept of well-being, which goes “hand in hand with design and talent,” values that the event showcases on an international level, according to Julien Michoud, chief executive officer of Valmont South Middle Europe.
Drawing international attention, with 74 percent of the total brand participants representing international firms, from mainly 34 countries, including the U.K., U.S., Italy, Holland, Germany, Turkey, France, Portugal, among others, there will be a “record number of brands.”
New this year, Zac Posen will debut his brand ZAC Zac Posen at the Barcelona event exhibit, unveiling his latest bridal, cocktail and evening wear. Joining Posen, American fashion design firms such as Badgley Mischka, Marchesa, Justin Alexander and more will be present.
Returning this year, are Italian designers Peter Langner, Carlo Pignatelli and Nicole Milano, and many others, as well as strong representation from the U.K. Catherine Deane, a U.K.-based designer “whose dresses have been sported by the likes of Beyoncé, Selena Gomez and Kim Kardashian,” as previously reported in WWD, is also returning.
It’s a breadth of storied lace and new talent. Showing again is one of Spain’s oldest “bridal experts,” Pronovias; Rosa Clará, known for detailed finishing and collaborations with those such as Karl Lagerfeld, YolanCris and Jesús Peiró, among many others. Fresh talent includes six new designers hailing from Italy, with one newcomer from Spain. Australian brands: Rachel Gilbert and Leah Da Gloria are also showing for the first time this year.
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