design: Anna Cohen
There will be a day in the not too distant future when the news of another Portland design company exporting its brilliance east of Mt. Hood will be commonplace. After all, smart designers working in the big three corporate shops (adidas, Nike, and Columbia), will continue to take their experience into the entrepreneurial realm and when they do, we hope they will find the kind of welcoming business atmosphere that makes them want to stay in Portland. And at the same time, nothing breeds success like success and the more independent designers whose ambitions take them beyond our snappy boutiques, the more inspiration it provides to others contemplating entrance into the field and the more Portland looks like a good move for designers in other parts of the country. Rising tide lifting all boats and all that.
design: Entermodal
But today, it’s still of interest that three Portland companies are heading east this February. Anna Cohen has been invited to the pręt-a-porter trade show in Paris as an example of cutting-edge design meeting a cutting-edge sustainability model of business. Cohen does a high-end sustainable line of well cut streetwear in fabrics like organic cotton, fine wool, bamboo jersey, and a hemp/silk blend. Entermodal—with its sleek, modern line of Italian leather bags that just so happen to be vegetable-dyed and made to be recycled—is heading to London Fashion Week. And Pinkham Millinery is doing a trunk show in New York to coincide with New York Fashion Week. The world is ready for Pinkham’s smart, modern hats and this trunk show ought to give the right people an up-close view of her amazing work.
In each case, these shows are huge for these companies with their sites set high and the goods to back up the vision.
WHAT TO DO NOW?