Fashion trade fairs draw on many different sources for their resources and research but always ground it real clothing function. No matter how mundane or avant-garde the trade fairs may set out to be, at the heart of the show there needs to be an authenticity of purpose, together with an awareness of the respective fashion market that the trade fair is displaying.
To be a successful show today however, a solid working knowledge of the market is vital, as is a familiarity with the history and the forward progression of the market in question. It is time to talk about the modern swimwear trade fair happening in Miami. To be clear, swimwear is not about extreme silhouettes or superfluous detail; it is much more about color and print than other fashion categories. Today, the contemporary consumer is a more discerning and probable braver than his forebears.
When I think about past trade fairs, I think they were stuck in a very old fashion way of displaying collections, taking inspiration from abstract or ethereal subject matter, whereas swimwear is now far more about the technical, practical, functional with a strong focus on sustainability. Even as brands compete to set the stage for trade fairs, they still must convey the message of change. Today's consumer demands change. Therefore, when a trade fair still has the constraints of practicality, functionality and fantasy, it might be a good time to develop a forward thinking strategy where all three balance in harmony whilst setting new goals for the current marketplace.
Another very important component of a good swimwear trade fair is how the creative fantasy is displayed to buyers and press. You see, swimwear is about pushing forward both from a technical and aesthetic viewpoint. The thorough research from the market would then be coupled with creative experimentation with the latest fabrics and fabric treatments to create a trade fair by creating something that is both authentic in its details yet modern in its presentation and finish.
Another key aspect of a trade fair is drawing upon the history of heritage of the market in question. When showcased correctly, the show can capitalize on its rich heritage, while reinventing it's display for the modern consumer much the same way the luxury brands do. The success of the heritage phenomenon has led to a newly developed brand at Miami Swim Week.
Within the parameters of swimwear, there is so much scope for reinventing and reinterpreting the classic swimwear of yesteryear. This ability to deconstruct and play with classic elements is what makes swimwear so exciting. I believe the source of a trade fair's creative directors inspiration is closely bound to their character. This is the one constant they have to offer and if they can identify and work with this is will most certainly take hold and shape the path forward into a market that is ripe for revolutions.
Launched in July during Miami Swim Week, Nu Wave Swim is an elevated, experiential multi-day platform and hub for young designers to established brands to showcase their newest swim collection and create fresh, fun content. Nu Wave Swim offers designers a variety of presentation packages – from conception to production to backstage help to guest list management and more.
Led by Seth Browarnik, founder of social photo agency World Red Eye and Michele Addison previously with Modern Luxury , Nu Wave Swim is deeply committed to sustainability and ocean preservation by donating a portion of proceeds to Miami Waterkeeper. Partners supporting the Nu Wave Swim’s debut include SwimShow, Miami Heat, Facebook and more. For more information, please visit http://nuwaveswim.com/.
I recently has the privilege of speaking with Seth Browarnik, Partner of Nu Wave Swim about why he thought it was necessary to develop a creative extension to Swimshow, what is the competitive advantage and what creative excitement is Nu Wave Swim bringing forth to the overall Miami Swim Week!
Joseph DeAcetis: Talk to Forbes about the launch date and DNA of Nu Wave Swim and why you thought it was necessary to develop a creative extension to SwimShow?
Seth Browarnik: Being involved with experiences such as Art Basel Miami Beach and Swim Week for over twenty years, and having an extensive background in Miami nightlife, hospitality, and society all while documenting the culture of the city, I’ve seen Swim Week evolve over many years by capturing it through my own lens as a celebrity photographer over the past two decades. Once the evening fashion shows produced by Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week and IMG Fashion were no longer here, the sophistication started to digress. As a result, this now created a golden opportunity to reintroduce them, which is exactly why Nu Wave Swim (nuwaveswim.com) was born. I want to start by saying that, for me, it’s important for the culture not to be lost while helping redefine what it once was. I introduced a four-day experience that incorporates high-end activations, presentations, and runway shows during the world’s most comprehensive swimwear trade event - SwimShow.
JD: In your words, what is the competitive advantage in launching Nu Wave Swim ?
SB:The goal was to debut an intimate, exclusive, boutique feel all located in a central location, the Miami Beach Botanical Garden. Building an experience for all buyers, fashion brands, and guests in our city and being able to recreate the magic that Swim Week once was. My vision was to make it similar to how the prestigious Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week swim shows at The Raleigh Hotel once were in the early days.
Nu Wave Swim’s prime location in the Miami Beach Botanical Garden positioned directly across from the newly reimagined Miami Beach Convention Center, made Nu Wave Swim the new epicenter of Swim Week. By having this central location, I was able to bring nightlife, hospitality, art, design, and fashion all under one roof, merging all industries together to celebrate Nu Wave Swim’s immersive four-day experience.
Throughout the course of four days The Garden was transformed as a hub for designers to showcase their latest swim collections. The brands that debuted their latest swim collections include Vitamin A, Tori Praver Swimwear, Parke & Ronen, Gottex, Bleu Rod Beattie, Red Carter, Revival, and Charmosa Swimwear.
JD: Is Nu Wave Swim marketing towards Millennials and Gen Z?
SB: By creating a four-day intimate experience with a smaller venue, combined with high-end brands and designers, Nu Wave Swim is a more of a sophisticated platform where we integrated everyone under one roof. Each brand has their own niche market, but Nu Wave Swim serves as the platform for inclusivity.
JD: In your words, what creative excitement is Nu Wave Swim bringing to the overall Miami Swim Week?
SB: Nu Wave Swim put all the other players that have been in the swim week industry for years on their toes. We didn’t want to make NWS just about us, we wanted NWS to re-engage and reignite the excitement that once was Swim Week by creating a revolutionary experience to Miami Swim Week.
By doing our best to implement a plastic-free initiative, Nu Wave Swim has chosen an enchanting venue to debut its deep commitment to conservation and sustainability by collaborating with Miami WaterKeeper, Facebook, and Instagram. Through Miami WaterKeeper, we’re driving awareness to ensure swimmable, drinkable, fishable water in South Florida for all.
Raymond Jungles, Miami’s highest-profile landscape architect, recently redesigned the Miami Beach Botanical Garden. The gorgeous green space boasts layers of flowering trees and plants, an urban oasis making it the perfect location for guests to experience their daily dose of wellness. Featured programming included the renowned spiritual fitness center The Sacred Space Miami, a sunrise yoga session hosted by Body Glove, a Barry’s Bootcamp Miami workout class, as well as Fashion For Breakfast by Soho Beach House.
In addition to runway shows and activations within The Garden, David Grutman’s Bar Bevy took over the garden’s Banyan Room for its VIP lounge where guests sipped on specialty cocktails while waiting for the next show. All on-site food and beverage was led by Homecookin’ Hospitality, the masterminds behind Drunken Dragon and Rácket.
On opening night, The House of Suntory brought their Tiny House immersive experience to The Garden. The Tiny House is a transportable, elegant Japanese bar where guests both inside and outside experienced the highest form of omotenashi, or Japanese hospitality. Guests also enjoyed Japanese spirits Toki Whisky, Haku Vodka and Roku Gin, the unique culture that inspired the spirits and the refreshment of the highball cocktail.
From early morning to late hours in the night, the Miami Beach Botanical Garden was fully activated all four days. Runway shows, wellness programs, and after parties - there was always something happening. The Garden was alive from day to night.
JD: Talk to Forbes about how you intend for have the Nu Wave Swim strategy come to fruition?
SB: For over two decades as a celebrity photographer, I’ve captured not only Swim Week since 2004 but Miami’s evolution behind the camera lens now it was time to elevate Swim Week in Miami by launching Nu Wave Swim. What started out as a dream and a talk only four months ago, made me work diligently and tirelessly. I used my contacts that I've had over the past 20 years to help build Nu Wave Swim into what it was - from working with celebrities calling all favors to my friends to be a part of something new and exciting - by literally selling a dream and having absolutely no assets to show to sell the top fashion designers and brands what my vision was.
Partnering with Judy Stein and SwimShow, helped gain accessibility to a variety of brands, but at the same time reached out to new brands that were not already a part of SwimShow. When Tori Praver Swimwear signed on within two weeks, I knew we were onto something.
Not only is it the most important week of the summer for the tourism economy, but by being in the hospitality industry for 21 years, and a 4th generation Miami Beach resident, whose great grandparents built some of the first hotels in Miami Beach (most notably The New Yorker, which is the reason that the Art Deco Preservation League was founded in 1982) I knew this week needed a fresh new approach by involving the locals, while staying true to its original Miami roots.
Additional Sponsors to Include:
Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau, Land Rover North Dade, 2 R Creative, Nobu Hotel/Eden Roc Miami Beach, Evian, Facebook, GBG Travel, Glamsquad, Instagram, Facebook, Miami Design District, Miami HEAT, MIAMI Magazine, The Salon Project, Maker’s Mark, Cruzan Rum, Courvoisier Cognac and The House of Suntory: Suntory Whisky Toki, Haku Vodka and Roku Gin.
Premium bubbles by Provocativo, Chateau D'Esclans Whispering Angel Rose, The Palm by Whispering Angel, and Heineken.
JD: What are your day-to-day responsibilities in the development of Nu Wave Swim ?
SB: To start, I founded Red Eye Productions, Inc. in 1998 – a global multimedia digital agency and then ten years ago I created WorldRedEye.com.Nu Wave Swim’s Co-Founder, Michele Addison, has been the former associate publisher of Ocean Drive Magazine since it’s inception over 27 years ago. Together, we approached Judy Stein, Executive Director for SwimShow and suggested a high-end addition to SwimShow’s auxiliary happenings. Christina Neault and Vanessa Revera Williamson, both of whom had extensive experience with IMG Fashion and were on the executive team that launched Swim Week in Miami in 2004, were also brought on board with Nu Wave Swim. My role was putting all partners together and helping to secure sponsorship, all while being the creative director and head of PR and marketing strategies. Essentially Nu Wave Swim was my brain child.In collaboration with Judy, Michele, and myself - we merged our connections to help build the brands, partners and sponsorships that took place in The Garden. With the help of Christina and Vanessa’s combined expertise of 35 years, they guided us through the fashion and overall event production.
JD: You have the floor: Talk to my viewers in full detail about the first Nu Wave Swim show?
SB:I have always felt most fulfilled when involving myself in passion projects. It was one of the best feelings to see something that I had once envisioned and dreamt of actually become a reality. To see it come to life was incredible. I love bringing people together to create an impact.
The experience went above and beyond all expectations - I never thought that what started out in a conversation would turn into a reality. The chills don’t lie. When our first runway show, Vitamin A, went on without a hitch, I knew the rest of the week would be a massive success!It was important for me to have nightlife and on-site after parties on site to keep everything cohesive. Each party had a different feel. On the first night Parke & Ronen created more of a New York Brooklyn disco vibe. The second night, was Tori Praver Swimwear, the energy in Tori Praver Swimwear was felt all throughout the garden. Seeing all the celebrities and notable people who attended, that’s when I really knew Nu Wave Swim was something special. Watching Gottex, I felt like I was in Paris at a high-end fashion show.Closing out on Sunday with Soho Beach House Fashion for Breakfast with Swimwear Designers Amahlia Stevens, Tori Praver, Parke Lutter, Red Carter, and Rod Beattie - Hosting it at the Miami Beach Botanical Garden was magical in itself. With the rain coming down 5 minutes before starting the breakfast, it only added to the experience. Later that evening, doing our first collective show was amazing and ending our closing party with Red Carter and Bleu Rod Beattie with a full on Bohemian vibe - reminded me of the very early years of Basel, when everyone danced until the very early morning hours. This was in itself the best way to end the week long festivities. All I wanted to do was to create an Art Basel experience during Swim Week.8. What are you future projections and growth strategy for the next few years?
Creating any new business is always a challenge, however, throughout the past twenty years while evolving Red Eye Productions, Inc. and WorldRedEye.com, I’ve built both professional and personal relationships in the Miami community and beyond. With that being said, establishing and maintaining relationships is key, and I’ve used the same relationships to now help me create Nu Wave Swim. For many years to come, I look forward to helping give this community, economy, buyers, fashion brands, and locals an elevated and exclusive experience that makes Swim Week in Miami Beach the premier destination. The plan is for each year, Nu Wave Swim to remain small and exclusive, hand picking brands to fit in our DNA while still growing the experiential Nu Wave Swim platform.
There is no better time than now to revitalize, re-awaken, and reignite Miami's most exciting week of the summer, Swim Week. My goal is to “make a wave.”
