Untouched World to show at trade conference

September 14, 2006

Untouched World to show at world organic trade conference in Holland tomorrow

New Zealand lifestyle fashion brand Untouched World will feature in the World Organic Trade Exchange Conference catwalk show in Utrecht, Holland, later today.

Untouched World head designer Emily Drysdale is in Utrecht today running their part of the show. She will attend the two day conference and also an exhibition in Paris the following week.

Untouched World sponsors the World Organic Exchange and this season has widened the certified organic cotton fibre in its summer collection to cover almost all of the cotton fabrics offered.

Global organic cotton product sales increased an estimated 35 percent annually last year, from $us245 million in 2001 to $us583 million in 2005 and are projected to skyrocket to $us2.6 billion by the end of 2008.

Joining Drysdale in Utrecht will be Burberry's UK production and planning manager Colin Vose who will soon take up a new appointment as production operations general manager at Untouched World’s parent company Snowy Peak Ltd.

``This is a great news for us and the NZ industry. Colin comes here with and excellent reputation and we look forward to working with him’’ Untouched World chief executive Peri Drysdale said today.

Her brand has been increasingly in demand internationally since Vogue’s website Style.com profiled the NZ company after Air New Zealand Fashion Week last year.

``We received invitations and attended a luxury retreat on Hollywood’s Rodeo Drive with 30 A list celebrities and 20 accredited media,’’ Peri Drysdale said.

``We were also invited to have our products in the gift-prize for the Golden Globe winners and from this we have become a firm favourite with Desperate Housewives actors after Felicity Huffman wrote a note to our designer Emily Drysdale.

``Felicity said: ‘I just love my Untouched World sweater jacket. I wear it to the set of Desperate Housewives all the time. I just love your company’. ‘’

Untouched World is now a growing part of the wardrobes of many other Hollywood celebrities including Sharon Stone, Nicole Kidman, Reese Witherspoon, Robert Redford, Denzil Washington and Tom Cruise.

Ms Drysdale said Bono’s ethical brand Eden had helped accelerate the eco fashion category to the new "ubercool" internationally and Untouched World was fielding requests to take part in new catwalk shows in Paris, San Francisco and to new markets such as Singapore.

Untouched World has the backing of acclaimed global style guru Cameron Silver, who is one of the 25 most influential names and faces in fashion in the world according to Time Magazine.

``We met with Cameron during the Golden Globes and he offered to help Untouched World achieve great global success and sees our brand as being `the definitive modern luxury casual brand for the active and fashion conscious globe trotter’. ‘’

September has been one of the busiest months ever for Untouched World and its parent company Snowy Peak Ltd, with all of its sales, marketing and design teams overseas in various countries during the month.

Ms Drysdale said she was especially disappointed not to be doing a catwalk show at Air New Zealand Fashion Week (ANFW) next week. Most years Untouched world has had a presence there either on the catwalk or in the exhibition area.

The company had tried with organisers to find day and time that could work in with their offshore commitments.

``New Zealand fashion week is the focal point for New Zealand fashion" and organiser Pieter Stewart and ANFW are a significant component in the growing respect for New Zealand fashion internationally,’’ Ms Drysdsale said.

ENDS

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