Something indefinable yet precious rubs off on a city the fashion industry lends its name and presence to. Lucy Manning explains why hotels and cities crave the association

Few global industries have the glamour and allure of fashion. Think Paris, Milan and New York, and the mind travels to a world of exclusive parties, sensational shows and extravagant fashion, splashed over the pages of glossy magazines, and served up to the public through the chicest boutiques and the plushest department stores. A thriving fashion industry and international reputation as a shopping destination can turn a regular metropolis into a buzzing tourist destination. It’s a relationship that is fast becoming formalised, as the travel and fashion industries recognise the potential of working together in ever more inventive ways.

Twice a year, in the Big Four fashion cities – Paris, Milan, New York and London – designers show their collections to buyers and the media, under the umbrella term of Fashion Week. These shows take place in February to March (autumn/winter collections) and September to October (spring/summer collections). And smaller Fashion Weeks take place at least once a year in some 152 cities around the world, from Amsterdam, Abu Dhabi and Auckland to Dar es Salaam, São Paulo and Tashkent.

Each of these fashion extravaganzas sees fashion buyers, editors, stylists and designers – both local and international – descend on the relevant city, injecting it with a sheen of glamour. Officials from fledgling fashion industries now sometimes pay for editors and buyers from power centres such as New York, Paris, Milan and London to visit their runway shows, in the hope of drumming up international business and publicity. “Fashion has become so global that more countries are using Fashion Weeks as a way to unleash the creativity in their cultures,” says Ann Watson, fashion director of New York boutique Henri Bendel. “It’s a way to be part of the global culture.”

Dedicated followers

As well as bestowing a certain je ne sais quoi, and making a city more appealing to visitors, Fashion Weeks provide tangible benefits to the tourism industry. Hotels, in particular, work closely with organisers and brands, providing accommodation for visiting fashionistas, board rooms for meetings, suites for collection previews and private views, venues for parties, and locations for fashion shoots. Not only does this increase footfall and revenue at the time of the shows, but an association with the fashion industry can help to boost a hotel’s image in the eyes of image-conscious potential clients.

The May Fair Hotel in London cemented its link with London Fashion Week last year by becoming the “official hotel” of the event. During the most recent Fashion Week, in September 2008, the hotel hosted the Model Sanctuary, an initiative organised by model Erin O’Conner to give models a quiet place to relax between shows, eat healthy food, and even see a nutritional therapist, all for free.

The hotel also hosts the British Fashion Council’s (BFC) Fashion Week party, while the spa offers special treatments aimed at fashion-industry professionals. “It is a mutually beneficial partnership that has already established added value for us,” says the May Fair’s general manager, Charles Oak. “The relationship will cover six seasons over a three-year period, and is far more than the hive of activity seen in London Fashion Week itself – we work with the BFC all year round. It has changed perceptions from what people thought we were to what we really are – a young, fashionable and connected London hotel.”

Phil Columbo, meanwhile, is general manager of New York’s Bryant Park Hotel, which is the on the doorstep of the Bryant Park tents. The majority of the New York Fashion Week shows have taken place here since 1994, and Columbo’s hotel has the fortunate position of being in the middle of the action. Some 60 per cent of the hotel’s annual business is with clients from the fashion world, and during Fashion Week, the entire hotel is booked months in advance by buyers, magazine editors and representatives from fashion labels. “It is a natural fit for the Bryant Park Hotel to attract fashion business,” says Columbo. “Fashion Week is across the street, at our front door twice a year. Press events keep the hotel in the limelight and the hotel hosts after-show parties for designers showing in the tents.” The hotel’s Cellar Bar also sees a 30 to 50 per cent increase of business on show nights.

Similarly, for the Hotel Principe di Savoia in Milan – part of the Dorchester Collection – the fashion industry is an important partner. Unlike New York, Milan Fashion Week doesn’t have a dedicated centre. So as well as providing a location for after-show parties during Fashion Week, the hotel also hosts a number of the shows themselves. And during last October’s Fashion Week Domenico Dolce, of Dolce & Gabbana fame, held his 50th birthday party at the hotel, transporting celebrities such as Jennifer Lopez, Claudia Schiffer and Dita Von Teese to its red-carpeted doorstep in gilt horse-drawn carriages.

The hotel’s spokesperson, Annalisa Maestri, says the hotel is a logical home for people from the world of fashion. “It is a fashion city within the city,” she says, “where designers, personalities and models can live and meet.” The hotel also draws on its fashion credentials to entice guests from outside the fashion industry, offering a number of different shopping packages, and even an image-consultancy package. A fee of around US$1,500 buys guests a night at the hotel, an image consultation, body-shape analysis, colour analysis and a personal-shopping session with limousine.