For the next edition of Paris Fashion Week in June, the resortwear tradeshow Splash Paris, has a new location: Le Pavillon Gabriel. Completely renovated in 2018, the new Pavillon Gabriel is part of a threefold architectural vision : glass and transparency in the spirit of greenhouses, vegetation integrating into the green spaces of the Champs-Elysées gardens, historical heritage elements enhanced.

This choice was motivated by the fact that this year, in the month of June, the place that usually served as the stage for the Fair will be used for promotional activities linked to the Olympic Games. An exception since the city and the fashion system in the month of June 2024 will not suffer conditioning or impediments due to the event of the scale of the Olympics, which will begin on 26 July and last until 11 August, 2024. Starting from the urban organization of the city, up to the availability of the locations, brands and showrooms have expertly managed their activities in relation to the situation.

In this occasion, we have interviewed Alex Lyles, the co-founder/director of Claret Showroom and Splash Paris to have her point of view and to understand the changes and strategies of the Resortwear Tradeshow in this situation.

- Splash has a new location. What motivated this sudden change?

A L: The venue that we usually use for our June event, Le Carreau Du Temple, has an obligation to host a certain number of community events throughout the year. With Paris hosting the Olympics this year, the space is being used for promotional activity around the games. We believe there will be jogging festival taking place there at the time of our show. We were given plenty of warning about this and were aware that other venue options would be limited for similar reasons, so we were delighted to secure Le Pavillon Gabriel as an alternative location this time. The central location, beauty of the building and its surroundings are ideal for us.

- How have the Olympics games affected your business activities and your exhibitors so far?

A L: We have needed to keep up to date on changes to road access and public transport around our venue. Fortunately the closures will have minimal impact on us as taxis can still reach us from both directions and we have the Champs Elysées metro station at close proximity where we will have branded pedicabs for anyone who would prefer a 1 min ride rather than the 5 minute walk. We have encouraged our exhibitors and visitors to book their travel and hotel as soon as possible to avoid any price hikes but it seems rates aren't higher than usual, perhaps because our show is a whole one month prior to the Olympics starting.

- Do you believe that this upcoming resort wear season could be somehow different from any previous ones?

A L: We are in regular contact with our usual visitors and although some have asked for opinion on how things might be different in Paris this season, we aren't aware that anyone has decided not to visited due to concerns around this. Paris is a busy city where events regularly happen, often with no notice at all! So with the bonus of having a detailed plan of road/station closures in advance, we have been able to prepare and forewarn our exhibitors and visitors on how to arrive at the show without encountering any difficulties.

Splash Paris

Claret Showroom