THE LEDGE
The National Hall - London
Olympia
The fourth edition of The Ledge; the
UK’s only action sports lifestyle trade show, took place on 25-27th January in
Olympia, London.
Providing an essential platform for both established and up and
coming brands to come together, this years event was met with even
more enthusiasm than the previous shows. The atmosphere was tangibly positive,
encouraging plenty of big business to be conducted live on the show floor.
Bringing together a consortium of key brands within the action
sports and lifestyles sectors The Ledge showcases the strength and
importance of brands within today's market. Since its inception in 2011, the
show has proved just how successfully it can provide a platform for retailers.
2013 was no exception, allowing retailers to view new and exciting brands under
one roof - in a central London location - a show 'for our industry, by our
industry, supporting our industry'. Visitors were pleased to see returning
brands Etnies, Osiris, Santa
Cruz, Lakai and BawBags (to name a few) and first
time Ledgers Nike, Posca, Rip
Curl, Hurley, Protest Brakeburn and more.
The Ledge is
quickly becoming a tradeshow with the potential to rival its larger European
counterparts - 5 of the 6 continents having been represented.
With
roots originally in skate, The Ledge has continually expanded its
offering. This year’s show proved just how much of an evolution has taken place
in four short seasons. Exhibiting brands covered an extensive mix of product
type including childrenswear, bikes, headwear, fashion accessories, ski and
snowboard, surf & swimwear, lifestyle, motorcross, eyewear, MMA,
and underwear. Such a wide range of relevant collections meant that there was
something for all tastes.
Another
exceptionally important sector that The Ledge has expanded into is
streetwear.
The Streetwear Village, launched in September 2012, proved
once again to be an impressive addition giving brands such as King
Apparel, Hype, Deus, Dickies, DGK, The
Berrics, Diamond Supply, Huf, The Hundreds and many
more the opportunity to showcase
their collections within their own unique and busy area of The Ledge. As
with the original September show, this January's Streetwear
Village managed to bring key people within the industry together, allowing
buyers and brands to do business in an inviting professional environment. As a
result of brand and retailer support, the Village has grown significantly, more than doubling the number of
exhibitors in the space of a season. Exhibitors in The Streetwear
Village comprised many exceptional and high quality brands. Upscale British
streetwear brand King Apparel once again showed a collection of
impeccable quality and original design. The Hundreds presented their
usual array of head turning, Californian inspired graphic tees, denims and
outerwear. Hype caught buyer’s eyes with t-shirt patterns as
sophisticated as they were bright and unique. Makia’s Finnish inspired
quilted coats, check shirts and accessories proved particularly popular with
visitors.
As well
as three busy and exciting days on the stalls,
the Osiris and Sidewalk sponsored mini ramp saw plenty of
action! The girl’s skate competition was battled out on the Saturday after an
intense day of practice and qualifiers with the final went ahead in the afternoon
with five competitors including Lucy Adams, Emma Richardson and Becky Jacques,
all of whom impressed in practice, taking 1st, 2nd and 3rd respectively. The skate show was wrapped up on the Sunday with a shop
team final and a gap trick competition. Following hectic
qualifiers and a display of impressive
talent, Freestyle (Newport), Push (Brighton) and the 3
Amigos (London) filled the podium for the shop team final winning a pile of
skate prizes. Sharing the £500 prize and Osiris sponsorship at the gap trick
comp were Sox from team Freestyle and Zeze from 3 Amigo's. These
two hard fought winners impressed the judges with their ability to huck
themselves over the gap.
Overall, the
double mini ramp was a huge attraction: a fantastic point of expression and
entertainment, and an outstanding opportunity to see some of the best competing
British skaters. Click
the following link for highlights from Sunday’s finals Featuring Stevie
Thompson, Ewen Bower, Salar Kooshki, Tom Tanner, Charlie Birch, Reiss Johnson,
Chris Oliver, Nev, Sam Pulley, Bailey, Sox and more.
January 2013
witnessed the biggest, most successful instalment of The
Ledge and Streetwear Village to date. This exuberant, evolving
tradeshow magnetized key members of the action sports and lifestyle industry
along with visitors, buyers and exhibitors in their droves.
Already the excitement builds for September,
next season’s edition of The Ledge. Will you be there?
If you are interested in further reading, you can check out news on the Runway Fashion blog about the September 2012 Ledge Streetwear event.
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