United Colours of Benetton (UCB) will unveil its 2005/2006 Fall/Winter collection in a typically unconventional fashion Thursday night at its flagship Deira City Centre outlet.
Benetton will convert the store’s window display area into a stage, and actors will play out the history of the brand in a novel mime performance complete with colourful placards and fun speech bubbles.
The whirlwind history will trace Benetton’s heady growth from a humble family business in the northern Italian town of Treviso into one of the world’s most familiar high-street fashion labels.
After the play, written and choreographed by Dubai-based creative artist Divya Dayal, the stage will become a catwalk with models presenting different ensembles from the new Benetton range, which harks back to the 1960s and 70s.
The mime performance takes place at 7:00pm, and the fashion show runs until after 9:00pm. Then it’s the turn of 104.8FM’s DJ Moe to broadcast his regular music show live from the City Centre Benetton store.
“The Benetton tale is an inspiring one, and we hope it encourages youngsters to follow their own dreams. You never know, there might be a new Luciano Benetton out there somewhere in Deira City Centre!” said Ajai Dayal, General Manager, Retail and Marketing, Easa Saleh Al Gurg Group.
Benetton began in 1955 in Treviso, northeast Italy, as a family enterprise inspired by the teenage Luciano Benetton and his sister, Giuliana. Guiliana knitted colourful sweaters that Luciano sold door to door, and as the business grew the younger Benetton brothers, Gilberto and Carlo, joined the family team.
Today, Benetton is Europe's largest clothing manufacturer, and the world's largest consumer of wool in the garment sector.
The new Fall/Winter collection will be available at all Benetton outlets in the UAE: Deira City Centre, Jumeirah Centre, and Abu Dhabi Mall in Abu Dhabi.
Notes to the Editor
The Benetton Group is present in 120 countries around the world. Its core business is clothing with a strong Italian character. The Group produces over 110 million garments every year, 90 per cent of which are manufactured in Europe. The group’s retail network of 5,000 stores around the world - offering high quality customer services - generates an annual turnover of 1.9 billion euros.
United Colors of Benetton in the UAE has been part of the Easa Saleh Al Gurg Group since 1989. The network spans two shops in Dubai (Deira City Centre, Jumeirah Centre); one in Abu Dhabi in Abu Dhabi Mall, and a factory outlet on Zabeel Road in Dubai.
The Easa Saleh Al Gurg Group was founded in 1960 by Chairman HE Easa Saleh Al Gurg. Today, the Group is associated with leading names such as Unilever, Siemens, Dunlop, Benetton, Osram, British American Tobacco, and ICI.
© 2005 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
