Pakistan Fashion Design Council (PFDC) joined forces with internationally renowned Austrian firm Swarovski, world leader in cut crystal and fashion jewellery, to present a unique high-fashion event in Lahore on Saturday. The event featured eight Pakistani designers, new to working with crystals, who were commissioned to produce an exclusive couture collection.
The designers included Fahad Hussayn, Elan by Khadijah Shah, HSY by Hassan Sheheryar, Karma by Maheen Kardar, Libas by Sehyr Saigol, Nomi Ansari, Saira Shakira, and Sara Shahid.
Despite the recent growth of the fashion industry, crystal cutting, especially of the kind mastered by Swarovski, is new to Pakistan. And Andrew Mojica, Managing Director, Swarovski Middle East thinks that the country’s “rich pool of young talent”, not to mention a vibrant and fashion conscious upper middle class, makes it just the right time to invest here. He spoke exclusively to Pakistan Today ahead of the function.
”Pakistan has limited exposure to precision cut crystals, and our company is collaborating with PFDC to educate designers about crystals,” he said. “Hopefully we will have enough of a footprint to start an outlet in Lahore by the end of this year.”
Mojica played down security concerns and a stagnant economy which usually discourage foreign investment. According to the company’s due diligence, a burgeoning fashion industry and a thriving upper class outweigh the negative side.
“A big bulk of your population is under thirty years of age,” he said. “That means so many people are entering the job market, earning money, and becoming fashion conscious. That is the ideal environment for a company like Swarovski.”
The plan is to tap into the “energy” that is “so apparent” in Pakistan’s fashion industry. Designers, learning from the “best in the world”, will be able to add market leading crystal designs to their collections. This will lead to multiple spill overs “since fashion complements fashion”.
The company, 120 years old, boasts an impressive list of world-class eighty thousand products. It plans to adopt a “teaching through production” method, where designers get hands on training which is designed to be more hands on than academic.
“If Pakistan is able to tap into the international crystal market, it could improve its economy as well”, he said. With the apparel industry already doing well, and crystals complementing what designers already create, the export mix can also be improved.But for now they plan to take the project as a cottage industry. Along with bringing their products to the Pakistani market, they will identify and nurture indigenous talent, until a degree of self-sufficiency is reached in precision cut crystals.
The company did not choose to divulge the amount of investment it is bringing to Pakistan.