The required precursor to participate in our Designer Incubator.
A sneak peek at Dayton Fashion Week's Runway Collections and an opportunity to meet the applicants for the 2025 Class of Dayton and Cincinnati's Fashion Incubator.
The Cincinnati Fashion Incubator and the Dayton Fashion Week Designer Incubator are well-tailored opportunities for those seeking careers as a fashion designer and is open to individuals ages 18 & Better and is broken down into (2) Designer Talk Modules Peer Groups:
The Dayton Fashion Week Designer Incubator 2023 Class Class officially kicked off on March 4, 2023. Both the Dayton Fashion Week Designer Incubator and The Cincinnati Fashion Incubator is broken down into 7 Stages; as of May 2024, the designers in the Dayton Fashion Week Designer Incubator are in Stage 2.
The 7 stages include:
Stage 1: Foundation Building, March 4th 2023 - March 7th, 2024
Stage 2: Team Building, March 8th - June 5th, 2024
Stage 3: Strategic Planning, June 6th - September 3rd, 2024
Stage 4: Behind The Seams, September 4th - December 3rd, 2024
Stage 5: The Blitz, December 4th,2024 - March 3rd, 2025
Stage 6: The Collections, March 21st-23rd, 2025
Stage 7: Continued Professional Development and Career Support System March 5th, 2025 - Until
(Please Note: The Cincinnatir Fashion Incubator will launch during (DE-FI) Fashion Week in September.)
After completing the first 4 stages, the designers will pitch their brands for an opportunity to headline the Dayton Fashion Week: The Collections showcase. Applicants who attended (DE-FI) Fashion Week will also Shoot Their Shot to join the 2025 class for both the Dayton Fashion Week Designer Incubator and The Cincinnati's Fashion Incubator.
No experience in fashion is required. If you're planning to Request and Invitation to participate in The Cincinnati Fashion Incubator or the Dayton Fashion Week Designer Incubator's Designer Talk Modules, then attending and participating in (DE-FI) Fashion Week September 27th-29th, 2024 is a REQUIRED precursor. Confirmed participants of (DE-FI) Fashion Week will be invited to Shoot Their Shot during A Weekend of (DE-FI)ance, December 6th-8th, 2024.
Participants in our fashion incubators will:
The Designer Talk Module is the monthly class room portion of both the Cincinnati Fashion Incubator and the Dayton Fashion Week Designer Incubator. Meeting on the second Saturday of each month from 2p-4p.
Open to individuals ages 18 & better, and our incubator consists of two Peer Groups:
Designer Talk I ages 18-26
Designer Talk II, ages 27 & better
The need for the two different Designer Talk peer groups is simple. The vast majority of the designers that come to us are in their mid-30's and better, it's their second chance at pursuing their dreams. With that comes a lot of doubt and uncertainty because now they have full time careers/jobs, families to support, mortgages, etc. which makes it really hard for most to give up the security of a guaranteed check from your regular 9-5/career resulting in designers in the Designer Talk II age ranges to move differently and at a different pace in the incubator than those in Designer Talk I.
What sets our fashion incubator a part from others is that our program has proven results that supports and nurtures aspiring, emerging, and established fashion designers and their brands from the start, through rapid growth, and eventual exit of the incubator by providing resources, work space, mentoring, and workshops to help grow your careers in fashion.
Aspiring, emerging, and established designers you have the unique opportunity to strengthen your business skills in a real time curriculum taught by industry professionals! With a focus on business skills that range from business planning, marketing plans, cut & sew, retail math and social media. Our Designer Talk Series also has real time fashion challenges wrapped throughout the curriculum. Our team is dedicated to providing resources, education and professional development to the fashion community that will enhance and support a thriving and sustainable apparel and sewn products industry in the Midwest via Dayton Threads and Dayton Fashion Week: The Collections and Fashion Week of Cincinnati.
The Designer Talk Modules are a monthly hybrid experience that includes:
Are you an aspiring or emerging fashion designer ready to launch your career in fashion or take your career to the next level? We’re (DE-FI)ng Fashion Week and for the first time since March 2017, the (DE-FI) Fashion Week Experience is set to take flight again.
With a different Fashion Show popping up every week that garners applause as models sashay up and down the runway, it’s easy to get caught up in the hype of lights, cameras, and action BUT the fashion show is just the tip of the iceberg and only makes up 5% of the Fashion Industry; what happens next? (DE-FI) Fashion Week is here to fill in the gap and bring you the other 95% with immersive, educational, hands-on opportunities to explore and launch your career in Fashion.
A required precursor for those interested in joining The Cincinnati Fashion Incubator or the Dayton Fashion Week Designer Incubator; (DE-FI) Fashion Week is designed to help prepare you for your time in our incubators and ultimately your success in the fashion industry.
It's imperative that applicants to our incubators have a clear understanding of the skills, knowledge, and people that is needed to succeed in the fashion industry; (DE-FI) Fashion Week is the cornerstone of the foundation that will be laid throughout both incubator experiences. At the conclusion of (DE-FI) Fashion Week, confirmed attendees will be sent the password to complete the application to join our incubators.
Come tour the fashion industry and explore the various aspects and disciplines that designers need to be successful. Taking place September 27th-29th, 2024, (DE-FI) Fashion Week is an invite only experience. No experience is required, we meet you where you are and build you up where needed. Request Your Invitation today! During (DE-FI) Fashion Week, we ensure that you are equipped with the tools, skills, resources, knowledge, access, and opportunities needed to achieve your dreams and goals in the fashion industry.
(DE-FI) Fashion Week kicks off on Friday, September 27th with Fashion Night Out and Modelpalooza Sand Volleyball Tournament
On Saturday, September 28th, spend Day 2 touring the Fashion Industry with our hands on and immersive workshops designed to help prepare you for your time in The Cincinnati Fashion Incubator and Dayton Fashion Week Designer Incubator. Saturday's Tour Stops include:
Destination #1 The Business of Fashion.
Destination #2 The Idea.
Destination #3 The Writers Workshop.
On Sunday, September 29th, the tours will focus on the production end of the fashion industry, tour stops include:
Destination #4 The Designs.
Destination # 5 Hair and Makeup
Destination #6 Runway and Event Production.
Destination #7 Editorials, Look Books, and Photography.
Destination #8 The Devil's in the Details.
Destination #9 Marketing.
A Weekend of (DE-FI)ance gives attendees a sneak peek at Dayton Fashion Week's Runway Collections and an opportunity to meet the applicants for the 2025 Class of Dayton and Cincinnati's Fashion Incubator.
Tentatively scheduled for December 6th-8th, 2024, A Weekend of (DE-FI)ance festivities will kickoff on Friday, December 6th with a curated evening of business crawls, shopping, Happy Hour, Networking, giving, and of course fashion during Fashion Night Out!
On Saturday, December 7th, The 937 Street Style Festival is back! This is your day to indulge in fun and fashionable moments a galore, including:
On Sunday, December 8th, we'll close out A Weekend of (DE-FI)ance with an exclusive Business Club Edible Edification Brunch.
Request Your Invitation today!
Due to financial hardships, we have several participants in our incubators who are unable to afford the cost of the services that we offer. We never turn anyone away due to their inability to pay. Your support and contributions to The Art of (DE-FI)ance Fashion Fund allows us to keep our services affordable and provide hardship grants to participants in need.
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