Cool Ice
Mosaic Fashions Plc. Is a retailer operating four distinctive womanswear brands: Oasis, Coast, Karen Millen and Whistles. The brands are positioned in the upper middle market of the UK high street, each with different, strong brand character.
Mosaic Fashions operates around 600 stores and concessions, the majority of which are based in the UK – with more and more stores opening around the world.
With its range of brands, Mosaic is focused on maintaining and allowing each brand to carve out their own distinctive path while benefiting from each other in terms of management and expansion opportunities.
Planning
Mosaic Fashions Plc approached SagaEvents to organise the most high profile fashion event Iceland has ever seen. SagaEvent’s main goal was to create a seamless event where each brand would be presented as a separate entity, while still maintaining continuity. Our keywords were: ‘connected yet separate’. SagaEvents contacted Steinunn Sigurdardottir, one Iceland’s best known designers and creator of world-class fashion shows for various brands. Steinunn, along with a team of creatives, came up with a concept and designed an environment where each brand was allowed its distinctive character.
After presenting the idea through words, visuals, fly-throughs and 3-D models Mosaic gave the go-ahead and production was ready to start.
Reykjavik’s largest in-door ice skating rink was chosen as a location. As the ice melted to make way for ‘Cool Fashion’ a staff of almost 200 was working on various aspects of the event. Dozens of international guests were booked on flights and their hotel arrangements made. The venue was all but gutted to make way for more glamorous additions to the décor. Models were sourced from around the world, 36 in all. Invitations, designed by in-house staff, were made and hand-delivered to invitees. Seating arrangements for 700 people, including a host of national and international celebrities were prepared. VIP treatmens and trips were organised. Order and composition of the clothes was decided on - making sure each brand was given its chance to shine. The stage and backdrop were designed to allow a change of themes and colours for each brand while maintaining continuity on the night. National and international press was contacted for broad coverage. Clothes and accessories travelled over seas and continents and a clear and structured narrative was prepared.
What was a large, barren and cold space had been transformed into an inviting, stylish and awe-inspiring place, fit for a world-class fashion event.
Visitor Experience
Guests arrived to a lavish reception at the ice rink in central Reykjavik. The building itself, a large warehouse like white building, concealed, what must have come as a surprise for local people; a tailored and stylish inside.
With high ceilings and draped walls, customised furniture and carpeted floors the ice rink had been completely transformed. Guests enjoyed themselves mingling over cocktails in a specially prepared lounge area before entering the main space.
Upon entering the main space people were quickly and confidently ushered to their seats where they sat back and enjoyed their surroundings. The impressive cat-walk made from high gloss Perspex with laid-in lighting served as an impressive centre-piece. Massive screens with projections set to the ambient music supplied audio and visual entertainment until the show began.
The show started with a collection from Oasis. As darkness and hush fell over the surroundings, a blue beacon of light down the centre of the catwalk announced the beginning of the show. Set to music appropriate for the brand, the models began strutting their stuff down the catwalk. The stage was lit with a bluish light and simple projections. As the last model exited, the lights faded and within seconds the catwalk flashed an array of multicoloured lights down the middle to announce the arrival of the next collection on stage; Coast. The tone was set with music, lighting and projections and the models strutted their stuff differently than before.
Again the lights faded and a stunning silhouette appeared at the head of the catwalk. The centre of the stage lit up and the models, wearing Oasis Odille Lingerie walked sensuously up and down the simply lit catwalk. Next up was Whistles with their bold designs and colourful attitude. Again, in seconds, the mood transformed and a layer of fabric with light-diodes created a stunning backdrop to the models who now walked around the catwalk rather than on it.
The final brand, Karen Millen opened to more classic surroundings emphasising the long-standing success of the effortlessly elegant brand. After completing the show, all of the 36 models reappeared, wearing a selection of the outfits to rapturous applause.
The guests and hosts, in high spirits after a successful show, gathered in the lounge area for a post-show cocktail before heading off to Club Nasa where they partied long into the night.
Feedback / Visitor take-out
Guests agreed that Cool Fashion was one of the most successfully staged event in Iceland. 80 strong staff, from ushers to executive producers co-ordinated their efforts and managed a seamless production, where things just worked. Technical staff delivered a broadcast of synchronised live-feeds with pre-recorded material on twelve screens while 43 people dressed and stylised the models. The client heaped praise on the organisation and execution and guests agreed that the difficult task of representing each brand in one show had been successful.
