FWG 2016
05 May 2016
The FWG team is pleased to announce that the 2016 edition of FWG will be held from 25th - 26th November 2016. This year marks 5 years of Fashion Weekend Gambia and to celebrate the continued growth of the event the team is ready to launch this year's event.
The team is looking for fashion forward and avant garde collections to create a jaw dropping runway show. Applications for designers registration will be released on our social media sites in July, while model calls will be held in October.
Sponsors
So far we have our ever so supportive partners Web Design Gambia, Hot Ink Media, Banjul Night Live and R&A back on board, which basically ensures the delivery of a huge chunk of our media and advertising coverage. Global Properties have also supported us from the very start and we are happy to have them back on board.
Brussels Airlines partnered with us late last year, but after seeing the huge success and potential of last years show BA decided to join early this year to ensure them greater brand visibility and a more lucrative partnership.
Dakar Fashion Week
Thanks to the partnership with BA three members of the FWG team travelled to Senegal to witness the 14th edition of Dakar fashion week from the 1st to 8th June 2016. The event featured 22 designers from 9 different African countries, France and North America.
The FWG team had the opportunity to help as backstage hands, while designers showcased throughout the week at multiple exotic locations - Radisson Blu, Marina Bay and Little Buddha.
This trip gave the team the chance to network with people of similar interests and pick on certain tips to further strengthen their events all while helping promote and implement an amazing fashion event in Dakar.
While in Senegal, the team also met co-founder of Dakar Fashion week; Adama Paris who also runs Fashion Africa TV, which airs on Canal+. FATV is partnering with Fashion Weekend Gambia and will be covering the 2016 edition.
The Face of FWG 2016 is the beautiful Binta Dibba. Binta is an international model, entrepreneur by nature, and activist by heart. At an early age, she developed a passion for art and upon moving to the U.S and completing university was signed with Seattle Model Guide in 2013 and has been modeling in America and Africa for the past two and half years. She models for a range of clients including Nike, Amazon, Luly Yang, Bezos Family Foundation, and has been the ‘Face of Vancouver Fashion Week’ for the past two seasons. In addition to being the ‘Face of Fashion Weekend Gambia' 2016, she is a Public Relations Ambassador for the NW Seattle Gambian Association and recently accepted the challenge of Co-producer of the Arts Gumbo 2016 Pan Africa Pan Arts Fashion Show Extravaganza in SE Seattle. She has co-hosted with Moe Blac “Word On The Street” Banjul Night Life and conducted ‘live to air’ interviews for TALE TV (The African Love Entertainment).
Binta is a passionate advocate for awareness of mental health issues in our community. Her own personal experience with mental illness began when she was a small girl of just 6 years old when her Mother was diagnosed with a mental illness. Living with a family member with mental illness, especially a parent made a significant impression on Binta’s resilient attitude and compassionate nature. In 2015 she was inspired to apply her global community profile to set up the Nya Mang MA Mental Health, a non profit organization that provides education and support for mental illness, where she focuses her efforts on fundraising for community development opportunities in her home country of Gambia.
Meet the FWG Team
LENA
Lena Grey-Johnson is the co-founder, producer and creative director of FWG. She also works for Hot Ink Media as head of visual communications and is also running Lena Nian Photography. Lena has always had an interest in the creative industry and has studied fine arts, photography, video production and graphic design for advertising.
ADI
Adiatou Conteh is the sponsorship/corporate accounts manager of FWG. Her field is in marketing and sales; Adi is an entrepreneur with her own brand 'Daraja' where she makes hand made leather bags in Gambia. "When Lena approached me with the idea to join FWG it was a no-brainer that it was indeed a welcomed idea. Why not use my field of work combined with this platform to promote young Gambian designers and give them a platform to shine."
SOMA
British-born Fashion-Lover, Gambia-phile and Human Rights activist, Soma Njie was the last of the management team to come on board with Fashion Weekend Gambia. She completed the powerful female trio, taking up the role of FWG's scribe-cum-legal/business development specialist.
Starting off as a volunteer at FWG HQ in 2013 for FWG2, Ms. Njie walked in off the street and offered her services for free. In what seems like something akin to a film script, she clicked with Lena and Adi, and was asked to permanently join the management team for the next edition in 2014, continuing what would prove to be the start of a dynamite business triumvirate and beautiful friendship.She finds herself "amazed and validated daily, at the profound levels of creative genius FWG attracts and encourages" and "...Honoured to be part of the start of something so Valuable, Rare and Wonderous".
JUKA
Fatou Juka Darboe- As the assistant coordinator for Fashion Weekend Gambia Juka is the management team’s extra hand. She ensures that everything for the show runs smoothly by following up on a range of activities, from getting in touch with models, designers and stage managers: to getting promotional and back stage materials. “Fashion Weekend Gambia is an empowering platform that has inspired me to come back every year if given the chance”.
Contact us on Instagram: @fashionweekendgambia
Twitter: @fashionwgambia
FB: fashionweekedngambia
YouTube: fashionweekendgambia
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