15th MEXA Fur Fair Set for May 18-20

MOSCOW: In the May Day parade of 1989 a solitary man marched between contingents carrying a hand lettered sign that read “72 years on the road to nowhere,” and while his identity has long since been forgotten, his message is evergreen, one of the great truths of the 20th century.

The unnatural stifling of most Russian intellect and energy by Communism for more than three generations might well have given birth to a nation of drones unable to function beyond the bounds of their police state, but when the Iron

Curtain collapsed from the onslaught of the Age of Communication, the human spirit triumphed and created an economic and intellectual miracle.

If someone with a crystal ball in 1989 had predicted Russia’s future, few would have believed it. In the short term there was pain, but with greater speed than anyone could imagine, Russia, on both the national and individual levels, has rejoined the community of nations as a full and equal partner.

Its people took to the concept of self determination, relishing the opportunity to fashion their own destinies and enjoy the fruits of their labour, Russia’s historic sights attracted a steady flow of western visitors, an oil economy sprung up, something the Soviets never dreamed of, hard working people had money in their pockets and a taste for better quality products to spend it on. Russia even wound up with a handful of millionaires and a few billionaires – who are not part of the government. A market for luxury goods developed, something that would have been unthinkable in 1988.

Since fur has always played a vital role as a source of warmth in the long Russian winters, the newly rich needed no prompting. They not only want fur apparel and accessories, they want them with a higher fashion quotient, and since they are now free to see how the fashion industry functions in the west, they want to dress as people do in Europe and America.

Russia Is Now the Biggest Fur Market

As a result, the domestic demand has made the Russian fur market the biggest in the world.

That has given rise to the birth of a major fur trade show, MEXA, and the vitality of its 14th edition last October showed westerners just what opportunities exist.

North American Fur Auctions and American Legend were there, but otherwise, there was very little North American presence among the 116 exhibitors from 17 countries presenting their goods in Hall 3 of the central Moscow exhibition facility “Expocentr”.

More than 8,400 visitors were registered over the three days; with 80% from Moscow and the Russian regions, but 10% were from other countries. In addition to showing apparel and accessories, the exhibitors included auction firms, fur traders and commission agents plus providers of chemicals, machinery and equipment. Both exhibitors and visitors were visibly excited at the scope and energy of the fair.

A World Class Runway

There were runway shows daily in the style of NAFFEM, and a fashion gala show on the second day, organised by the Russian Fur Association under the direction of leading Russian director and choreographer Anatoly Kulakov, was world class.

Edition 15 is scheduled for May 18-20, in the same central Moscow venue, and the producers say that reservations for exhibition space are outpacing previous years. For further information, contact Cindy Scheri at OWP Ost-West-Partner GmbH. Her e-mail address is c.scherl@owp-tradefairs.com.

For further information contact: Teresa Platt, Executive Director, Fur Commission USA, PMB 506, 826 Orange Avenue, Coronado, CA 92118-2698 USA, (619) 575-0139, (619) 272-2467/fax, furfarmers@aol.com, www.furcommission.com. See also Teresa's blog and Facebook.

To take a cyber-tour of a fur farm, visit FCUSA's Fur on Film.

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