Christine Brooks-Cropper, the Executive Director of the DC Fashion Foundation (DCFF), was approached by Vogue magazine to register the city of the District of Columbia as an official participant in their annual Fashion's Night Out (FNO) event which will take place on Thursday, September 6, 2012 from 6 pm to 11 pm.
In 2009, Vogue magazine's Editor-in-Chief Anna Wintour wanted to stimulate the country's slow economy with a night that would specifically focus on getting consumers back into stores. As a result, Fashion’s Night Out is now an unprecedented global initiative to celebrate fashion, restore consumer confidence, boost the industry’s economy during the recession, and put the fun back in shopping! In the United States, the program is a collaboration between American Vogue, the Council of Fashion Designers of America, NYC & Company, and the City of New York.
Earlier this month, DC Deputy Mayor Victor Hoskins sent an official letter of support to Vogue magazine stating that the DC Fashion Foundation and Destination DC will work together to create a citywide FNO plan for the District.
There is a FNO-DC Task Force that is working together to help retailers plan and market FNO events in an effort to stimulate the retail economy throughout the city and celebrate this amazing event in every quadrant
in the District so that the entire city will be represented during FNO.
The idea is also to raise awareness about vacant retail properties through the creation of fashion retail pop-up shops. These pop-up shops will help emerging designers to generate revenue and get exposure while marketing locations to potential retailers and other businesses.
SOOOOO all of this is to say that we want as many Adams Morgan retailers to participate as possible. By
WEDNESDAY AUGUST 1,
we need to know:
1) if you want to participate in FNO on September 6
2) a rough idea about what you will do/what event you will have in your store.
as soon as possible but by COB on Tuesday July 31st.
There needs to be a compelling reason to come into your store. For example, if you sell jewelry you could partner with a local hat designer, or if you sell clothing maybe you have a nail salon some do polish changes, or you just have wine and cheese and call it a "Sip and Shop". Sale priced merchandising is discouraged but incentives for return visits are encouraged. If you are having your Annual Fall Sale or such, that is fine but discounts for the night of the event are discouraged.
ALSO - we want to turn this into an Adams Morgan-wide event. So we will give all the retailers wrist bands that they will give their customers. These wrist bands will enable customers to get discounts in other Adams Morgan businesses.....SOOOOO even if you aren't a retailer you can participate by offering 10% off all purchases or more, or a free drink or appetizer, or whatever incentive you would like to offer. Please let Kristen at
kbarden@adamsmorganonline.org
or Julie at Violet at
julie@violetdc.com
know what you will be offering by August 15th.
As we did for Crafty Bastards, we'll publish this complete list and have it available at all participating businesses. Hope many Adams Morgan businesses can participate in Fashion's Night Out this year!
