London based fashion designer Michiko Koshino working in the UK, respnsbile for the extremely popular in Japan Koshino London brand, who designs clothes created out of pesticide free cotton knitted by the Wakayama Prefecture Knit Association, held an exhibition and business advisory sessions in London on the 14th and 15th of February
The Wakayama Knit Association was established in the prefecture in 1950. In 2011 Wakayama Prefecture Government was appointed as intermediary for SMEs which had received certification of the “JAPAN Brand”, and have been developing new products and branding the region. Together they are continuing to promote goods and develop markets overseas.
The JAPAN Brand scheme was launched by the Small and Medium Enterprise Agency, an external bureau of Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI). The programme provides funding and assistance for the regions of Japan to market and develop their products for international customers and marketplaces, as part of an overall Japanese government strategy to use traditional goods and produce as a tool of soft power and diplomacy, as well as assisthelping local economies take advantages of international markets.
At the business exhibition around a hundred designers and buyers attended, mainly from the UK. Plum wine, which is a speciality of Wakayama Prefecture, was also served at the event.
After the business exhibition, three out of eight of the companies from the Wakayama Knit Association then went on to exhibit goods at the Premier Vision event held in Paris from the 18th to the 20th of February.
http://www.knit-net.com/en/ （Wakayama Knit Association）
