The City of Philadelphia and the Center City District announced today that, for the first time, Philadelphia will participate in Fashion’s Night Out on Sept. 6. The event began in New York City three years ago as a collaboration between Vogue Magazine and the Council of Fashion Designers of America and has since expanded to include 250 cities in over 18 countries.

“It was designed to restore confidence in the
creative economy and stimulate the growth of the retail industry in the midst of a great economic crisis,” Mayor Michael Nutter said at a press conference this afternoon. “Philadelphia is now able to show the world
we are a city that’s ready to assume its rightful place among the
fashion capitals of the world. Whether it’s New York or Paris or London
or Milan, we are a city of creative ingenuity and
entrepreneurship.”

Participating stores, including Anthropologie, Macy’s, BCBG, Joan Shepp and Nicole Miller, will be open from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. for late-night shopping and festivities featuring designer appearances, celebrity guests, fashion shows and musical performances.

Philadelphia’s Fashion Night Out will serve as the official preview event to The Philadelphia Collection, a weeklong series that kicks off Sept. 13 and encompasses nearly 75 fashion events, from large-scale runway presentations to trunk shows and panel discussions.

Random Acts of Fashion, a social media-driven collection of interactive style events, will also make a return with events like “Ambush Makeovers” and “Remote Red Carpet,” in which citizens will have the opportunity to pose in front of a Philadelphia Collection step and repeat backdrop, which will make surprise appearances throughout the city.

“The community building impact of The Philadelphia Collection on our fashion industry led to growing consumer awareness of our creative fashion community and an increased consumer awareness brought new shoppers into the store,” City Representative Melanie Johnson said while reviewing the progress the event has made since it was founded in 2010. “And that’s what it’s about, highlighting what we have here in Philadelphia.”

Macy’s Fashion Incubator

Macy’s fashion incubator, which opened March 1, has been a “smashing success,” according to Michelle Shannon of the Philadelphia Retail Marketing Alliance.

“As we had hoped, the Philadelphia fashion incubator has indeed become a galvanizing force for this community,” she said. “The once-divided fashion community has rallied around this program and, as a result, new partnerships, alliances and friendships have been forged.”

She said that the five designers-in-residence have received $500,000 in free publicity, including an article in Women’s Wear Daily that led to the first wholesale order being placed for one of the labels.

Shannon said that meetings with Joan Shepp, Nicole Miller, the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the founder of New York fashion week have also resulted in direct sales.

Timeline

– September 2010. The Philadelphia Collection first launched as a partnership between the Office of the City Representative, the Center City District and the Philadelphia Retail and Marketing Alliance.

– December 2010. Forbes.com named Philadelphia one of the 10 best shopping cities in America.

– October 2011. Travel + Leisure, in its annual online “America’s Favorite Cities” reader survey, ranked Philadelphia as number one for culture, up from number 30 in 2010.

– Fall 2011. British fashion retailers Jack Wills, Dr. Marten and Barbour opened locations on Walnut Street, along with Free People and Athleta. Brooks Brothers and Club Monaco renovated their Philadelphia stores and Swarovski debuted a second Center City location. Intermix is slated to open this upcoming fall.

– June 2011. Shermans Travel Magazine placed Philadelphia on an international list of the top 10 shopping cities on the rise.

– March 2012. Women’s Wear Daily profiled Philadelphia’s Macy’s fashion incubator, resulting in the first wholesale order for one of the designers.

– February 2012. Lucky Magazine named Philadelphia one of the 25 best cities for shopping in the U.S.

– May 2012. CNBC asked editors at trend forecasting firm Tobe Report to pick the 10 best cities for shopping in the world. Philly made the list, ranking with London, Milan, New York and Paris.