How many big celebrities did you spot at the GTCO Fashion Weekend 2024?
On November 9 and 10, the 7th edition of GTCO Fashion Weekend was held in Lagos Nigeria and unlike the Lagos Fashion week we didn’t see many big names…
First of all, it is officially fashion season!
For weeks, we have seen lots of big cities organize their fashion weeks including the likes of Paris, London, New York and Lagos.
The Lagos Fashion Week, which is a 4-day event is dedicated to promoting the Nigerian and African fashion industry held in October and it had Nigerians talking about it for days on end.
The Lagos Fashion Week had the who-is-who in African fashion in attendance.
This included showcases from top designers such as the likes of Orange Culture, Imad Eduso, Wani Fuga, Ugo Monye etc.
Then there was the celebrity-filled runway that featured top names like Davido, Tacha, Dorathy, Anita Ukah and other reality TV stars.
The street styles were also top-notch and had the media in a frenzy as almost everyone could not help but gush at how creative Africans are when they want to be.
Days after the event, people still had lots to say about Lagos Fashion Week and we can gladly say the organizers did their homework!
And then came the GTCO Fashion Weekend 2024.
At first, this event was met with controversies weeks before it was held.
This was over the plus-sized model who decided to audition for the runway, even though the organizers had specific instructions for the kind of models they wanted.
Safe to say this indeed gave the event the much needed publicity and a lot of people were anxious to attend, especially since attendance was going to be FREE!
On Saturday, lots of Nigerians stormed Oniru for the 7th edition of the fashion event.
The streets was filled with top creative and colourful styles…but this time, not from the known names like we had during the Lagos Fashion Week.
We did not have the likes of Denola Grey, Larry Hector etc walking down the streets in high-end fashion pieces.
Instead, we had the everyday Nigerians showcasing their creativity in the best way they could.
There were the ones who wore pieces from lesser known fashion brands, those who just put together pieces from their closet and it all came out 10/10!
Away from the street styles, the GTCO Fashion Weekend also featured different brands selling their businesses on several stands.
From bags, to shoes, clothes and even food, there was literally very few fashion pieces that was not on sale at the event.
There was also the Masterclasses that featured the likes of Sheika Daley – one of the most sought-after makeup artists in the entertainment industry and iconic hairdresser, Ted Gibson who shared valuable tips on their different niches.
Then there was the runway.
The GTCO Fashion Weekend featured creative designers such as Tolu Coker, Eric Raisna, Ituen Basi etc, who gave us different collections that showcased African Fashion at its finest.
While, the GTCO Fashion Weekend was doing all of these, there was not much buzz online.
Scrolling through social media, apart from the official pages of the GTCO, and the few Nigerians looking for who to attend GTCO Fashion Weekend with them, you would barely know such an event was going on.
This was quite different from the Lagos Fashion Week which as mentioned earlier not only had the big names in attendance, they were also all talking about it online.
With this in mind, it might be tempting to say that the GTCO Fashion Week wasn’t all that…but to be honest this is actually not the case.
Agreed, the Lagos Fashion Week was very high end and it had the right media coverage.
But let’s not forget that the event also had tickets that cost more than a lot of people could afford…which means it had limited number of people who could attend. And those who did, went with the goal of being able to ‘announce’ that they did afterwards…this came in different forms of media coverage.
But with GTCO Fashion Week, everyone could attend, either to buy items, showcase their outfits, feed their eyes, make connections or just to sell their market.
There is also the fact that GTCO Fashion Weekend held on the weekend AFRIFF was held and this was where most celebrities were at.
All in all, the GTCO Fashion Weekend 2024 was actually more than an event for Fashion.
In the words of Segun Agbaje, the Group Chief Executive Officer of Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc “It is a deliberate and collective effort to uplift, empower, and celebrate the incredible talents of our continent.”
He had also said that the GTCO Fashion Weekend is meant to make space for more voices and drive an industry that reflects the diversity and richness of African talent.
“Whether you are attending a masterclass, shopping the latest collections, or watching the runway come alive, this weekend is all about embracing the diversity, creativity, and brilliance that African fashion represents,” Agbaje said.
This they did by making attendance free for all, stands were also reportedly free for business owners and everyone who aspired to be a model was allowed to audition to be on the runway.
So yes, it was not a star-studded event and did not get enough online buzz like it should… But that doesn’t mean it wasn’t all that and more and we loved it!
