East Carolinian

Issue date: 3/5/09 Section: Features

Media Credit: staff photo

On Saturday, March 21, the ECU Apparel and Interiors Merchandising Organization will be hosting its fifth annual fashion show. The "G-Vegas Fashion Show" will be held at the Greenville Convention Center. The event begins at 7 p.m. with a Vegas-themed cocktail hour, which includes a cash bar, auction, poker table and a red carpet to take pictures, followed by the fashion show at 8 p.m.

The AIMO fashion show has two functions. It serves as hands-on experience for apparel and merchandising majors, as well as a fundraiser for the organization.

"We put on the fashion show every year as a learning experience for our members so that we can get involved into the fashion industry on a smaller level," said Jillian D'Elia, AIMO vice president. "[We get] experience in merchandising, putting on a fashion show … how to delegate and how to work as team to put on a big production."

Planning for the fashion show begins during the fall semester and the responsibilities are delegated through committees. The committees are wardrobe, hair and make-up, music, advertising, lighting and photography, décor and a model tryout committee.

The fashion show will feature clothing donated by local boutiques and modeled by ECU students. Two to three students are assigned to work with each boutique directly, coordinating the wardrobe for each model. Tryouts for models were held in mid-February, and approximately 70 models will be participating in the show.

The Boutiques participating are Pink, Che Belle, Fusion, Monkees, Reebok and Dowdy Student Store.

AIMO provides opportunities for students to learn about careers and network with professionals in the fields of apparel and interior merchandising. According to the ECU Web site, apparel and interior merchandising majors explore principles of merchandising, theories and concepts in retailing, buying, management and operations at the wholesale and retail level and global economic issues.

D'Elia said the field offers a large range of job opportunities and that many students are looking at moving to larger areas such as Atlanta and New York to find jobs.

"A lot of girls in the major are looking for buying jobs, which basically means that they are going to buy the clothes that are going to be put in the stores nationwide or regionally depending on the store you work for," she said. "There [are] a lot of people who want to do interior design -- there's an interior design major -- but merchandising majors can do it as well. Merchandising [includes] visual, buying, styling, marketing … it's kind of like a business and you're under like a whole umbrella."

Proceeds from the show are used to fund trips and other learning experiences for AIMO members. This fall, they will be attending a trade show in Las Vegas to network and learn more about the industry. Last year's show sold out and raised about $1,300 for AIMO.

According to D'Elia, attending these types of events help students "to understand what's going on and take it from a book level to reality."

Tickets for the fashion show are $10 for students with ID, $15 for adults and $5 for children 12 and under. Tickets can be purchased at the participating boutiques or on campus at the Wright Plaza until March 20.



This writer can be contacted at features@theeastcarolinian.com.

Page 1 of 1

Article Tools