The first edition of Egypt Fashion Week – a series of fashion shows and events showcasing the work of local designers and craftspeople to a global audience of industry professionals – held its opening event on 12 May at Downtown Cairo’s Egyptian Museum.
Organized by the Egyptian Fashion and Design Council under the auspices of the Ministries of Tourism and Antiquities, Planning and Economic Development, and Agriculture and Land Reclamation, the event aimed to showcase the country’s growing fashion industry and world-renowned textiles in a colorful celebration of Egyptian history and heritage.
Ahead of its launch, the first edition of Egypt Fashion Week, held under the theme of ‘The Past, Present, and Future’ generated excitement among fashion professionals and enthusiasts. Over the course of its four days, however, the fashion shows held at various locations in Cairo quickly became the object of mixed reviews on social media, for several reasons.
A primary point of contention were the looks on display, with responses ranging from awe and praise for the designers and models, to disappointment in the products, or outright derision.
معقوله الحلاوه اللي ف Egypt fashion week دي؟
— iconic (@babykaro_) May 13, 2023
Translation: Can you believe all the beautiful looks at Egypt Fashion Week?
did we see egypt fashion week???? My jaw dropped everyone is serving
— ًً (@TA3HYUVG) May 14, 2023
عندي comments كتيرة اوي على egypt fashion week لكن هكتفي دلوقتي بإن الديزاينات تحفة بس التنفيذ مش اد كدة ، معقولة معندناش مصنع واحد يطلع التقفيل حلو ؟ رغم ان الfabrics ممتازة يعني
— me. (@MarihanElsawah) May 15, 2023
Translation: I have a lot of comments about fashion week. For now, I’ll just say that the designs were amazing but the execution wasn’t great. How come we don’t have a single factory capable of executing these designs properly? This is despite the fact that the fabrics are of great quality.
There’s a very fine line between couture and camp fashion and straight up ugly mess. Egypt Fashion Week is ugly. Very ugly. It’s hideous.
— Layla 🪩 (@whatislayla) May 15, 2023
i don’t see any fashion at egypt fashion week. more like fashion WEAK
— sarah (@sarahelghazalii) May 14, 2023
Another target for criticism was the choice of locations, with several observers like the below arguing that Cairo’s public gardens and museums were not fit to host fashion shows, or that the setting took away from audience members’ appreciation of the pieces on display.
Ummmm, Egypt’s fashion week couldn’t find a better location for the runway than to make the models walk around a fountain in what looks like El Azhar park? Fashion houses should generally build their own set up and runway based on the mood they want to display.
— Hana Zuhair (@Hana_Zuhair) May 16, 2023
مش عارفة ايه الحكمة من اختيار المتحف الزراعي انهم يعملوا فيه Egypt Fashion Week
المكان ده كنت بروحة كل سنة رحلة ايام المدرسة و ريحته بالنسبالي سندوتشات جبنة رومي😂— Tayyarah (@Stayyaar) May 13, 2023
Translation: I don’t understand the point of hosting Egypt Fashion Week at the Agricultural Museum. This is a place where I used to go on school trips, and in my mind it’s associated with the smell of cheese sandwiches.
Translation: Egypt Fashion Week was really nice and the collections were great but I feel like the venue was too small for people to see them properly. Besides, the first day was amazing but the next day, the designs were a little messy and I felt like different elements didn’t fit well together.
A third point of debate was the event’s audience and guestlist. It was not unsurprising to find TikTok content creators lining the rows of various shows, seeing as the social media platform was Egypt Fashion Week’s official Entertainment Partner.
Several users nonetheless deemed that inviting outsiders to the industry was a misguided choice, or lamented the absence of notable designers and practitioners who they felt would have meaningfully contributed to the event.
where are my fashion girlies and who are these people they invited to egypt fashion week?
— Hannah (@Hannahelfattah) May 14, 2023
مين الناس دي و رايحين Egypt fashion week ليه و عشان عملوا ايه في ال fashion industry
— jojo👻 (@yourfavkoje) May 14, 2023
Translation: Who are these people and why are they going to Egypt Fashion Week? What exactly have they contributed to the fashion industry?
ezay okhtein msh featured f egypt fashion week????
— farida (@faridaaamr1) May 13, 2023
Translation: How come Okhtein [an Egyptian brand of designer bags with global success] is not featured in Egypt Fashion Week????
The overall verdict was equally divisive, with some describing the first edition of Egypt Fashion Week as a success and others as a source of disappointment or even embarrassment.
EGYPT FASHION WEEK WAS A BIG WIN
— hala🌸 (@halamaher_) May 13, 2023
In love with the Egypt fashion week thing
— روز (@roozfr) May 14, 2023
egypt fashion week is A HUGE DISAPPOINTMENT
— tia💋 (@slivingbiatch99) May 19, 2023
Howa fi objective tany le Egypt fashion week gheir eno yehregna wala howa da el objective el wahid?
— Hania (@haniaestiklal) May 14, 2023
Translation: Was there an objective to Egypt Fashion Week other than embarrassing us or was that the only objective?
A few users, like the ones featured below, offered nuanced takes, positing that Egyptians should be proud of this achievement and asking critics to bear in mind that this is only the event’s first edition – an accomplishment in and of itself, but with much room for improvement at the organizational level.
It’s the first fashion week in egypt and i think it’s amazing how far we came, so let’s not judge and be proud and support our accomplishments for once begad https://t.co/2itCmpkWfD
— habibaotaify (@habibaotaify) May 14, 2023
And gotta say, Egypt’s fashion week’s marketing was disappointing. Although there’s so much potential.
— Hana Zuhair (@Hana_Zuhair) May 16, 2023
Egypt Fashion Week is a great metaphor for our current situation in Egypt I think.
Full of young aspiring talent, looking to make their mark, learn, grow and collaborate with each other (for the most part)— Gamroor – جمرور (@Gamroor) May 14, 2023
Hosted in a historic and truly unique venue that bridges both references to art and to the study of the environment around us, very much a tied theme to fashion these days.
— Gamroor – جمرور (@Gamroor) May 14, 2023
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