by Temitope Onitiju

L’Espace held its first annual Style Summit at their Victoria Island flagship on Thursday March 26, 2015 inviting startups owners, entrepreneurs and individuals from the worlds of fashion retail and technology to share their thoughts on such things as how fashion houses and retail chains are utilizing nascent technologies,

Attendees also explored the relationships between online and offline and how brands can exploit different mediums to grow their brands, as well as highlighting the way brands are using media and technology in the social media era.

The #SMWLESPACESTYLESUMMIT had a series of panel discussions on topical issues in fashion; it connected decision-makers in Fashion, Beauty and Retail with fashion students, enthusiasts and emerging brands.

Co-Founder of L’espace, Wonu Okoye stated that “the mission behind the series was to expose the fashion community to fresh ideas, demystify and highlight social media use in fashion and to also foster creative partnerships between startups, designers, retailers and media professionals in an interactive format.”

On the success and future of the Summit, Co-Founder Isoken Ogiemwonyi stated: “Whilst the challenges facing our industry seem insurmountable, discussions like this show us there is hope and we believe that fostering discussion, raising awareness and sharing knowledge will inevitably lead to mutual growth opportunities, an improved resource pool and innovative solutions for the fashion industry and eventually, our economy. We aim to do this at least once a year going forward.”

The speakers at the Summit included, LE Retail’s Lola Emeruwa (her retail experience includes Kering, LVMH and Richmond Group), Hugo Boss’s brand manager, Oyinda Oshinbolu; Google.com analytical lead; Tolu Akinyele; This Day Style’s assistant editor Funke Babs Kufeji; and Liz Awoliyi, the Online Manager for Genevieve Magazine. And for them, social media is a burgeoning opportunity not yet fully leveraged by brands and the media.

Also emphasising on the point that Celebrity certainly sells, especially with the near anonymity of the online space. Liz Awoliyi, the Online Manager for Genevieve Magazine says “there’s an insatiable thirst for celebrity news and people want to read and see what celebrities are wearing or doing. Articles with celebrity names tagged usually gets more hits than the regular articles, with people tilting towards the more sensational headings such as “who wore it better, worst dressed list and so on.”

See photos from the event below!