IFF TO SHOW OFF ISLAMIC FASHION AT MILAN FASHION WEEK NEXT YEAR

Six years after introducing and promoting
Muslim couture fashion as a modern lifestyle trend in several eastern and
western countries, the Islamic Fashion Festival (IFF) is now preparing its
fashion designers to show off its creations at one of the world's most
prestigious fashion modelling catwalk.

IFF, under the patronage of Malaysia's First Lady, Rosmah Mansor, has been
invited to participate in the Milan Fashion Week in Italy and is giving its
fashion designers ample lead time to be ready to meet the demand of the market
when their works receive orders from the event.

IFF chairman, Raja Rezza Shah said he believed that the time was right
for them to model Islamic fashion for the spring and summer collections at the
Milan Fashion Week at the end of next year.

"Most of the Malaysian and Indonesian designers are at the moment catering
to one-to-one orders and only a few are ready for export.

"If in Milan we have to be ready with factory production, then I anticipate
in a year they should be ready for the event," he said at the IFF fashion show
themed " Moghul Splendour II", here.

For the purpose, he has set up the Association of Muslim Apparel
Entrepreneurs and Designers (AMAED) to get them to be more serious in the
business of Islamic fashion.

It is also to facilitate them obtain assistance from the Ministry of
International Trade and Industry to expand their business into overseas markets.

Raja Rezza said even though IFF as a non-government organisation focused on
promoting the image of Islam by displaying modern Muslim fashion, it had a role
to pave the way and encourage fashion designers involved to expand economically.

The interest of the people in Islamic Muslim fashion was now growing and the
development could be seen through the increasing number of specialised boutiques
in Malaysia and the acceptance of non-Islamic western countries in supporting
IFF shows, he said.

Since the first IFF in 2006 in Kuala Lumpur, it has been succesfully held in
Abu Dhabi, Astana, Dubai, Jakarta, Monte Carlo, New York, Singapore and now
Bandung. Next month, the show will be brought to London.

Raja Rezza said IFF had succeeded in branding Muslim couture as fashionable
attire acceptable by non-Muslims and even more gratifying was that
non-Muslim fashion designers from various countries were also now involved in
producing Islamic fashion.

The "Moghul Splendour II" highlighted a fashion range from AMAED and
League of Muslim Fashion Designers (IPBM) of Bandung as well as several non-
Muslim fashion designers like Milo and Paul Robb from Bali, Calvin Thoo from
Kuala Lumpur and Sabeena Bani Ahuja and Natasha Mirpuri from Singapore.

The IFF fashion show was attended by the Raja Muda of Perlis Tuanku Syed
Faizuddin Putra Jamalullail, the Raja Puan Muda of Perlis Tuanku Lailatul
Shahreen Akashah and Minister of Tourism, Datuk Seri Dr Ng Yen Yen.