TAYO Fashion Week 2024 focuses on the rich heritage and contemporary craftsmanship of Filipino designers in the vibrant and competitive fashion scene of Osaka, Japan.

The week-long pop-up was held at the historical Hankyu Umeda, the largest luxury retail store in the country’s capital of the south. Established in 1929, it is known as the world’s oldest and first “Terminal Department Store” and is strategically located minutes from the train stations – a perfect venue for diverse creatives to showcase their works to both discerning locals and tourists.

TAYO Fashion Week 2024 featured a young full Filipino line-up, which comprised of independent luxury labels Feanne, Ken Samudio, and J Mäkitalo, the up-and-coming social enterprise REPAMANA, and rework brand SABOTTEN.

Osaka-based Filipino visual artist, designer, and educator Pamela Madlangbayan, the co-founder of TAYO Fashion Week, stated the event aims to not only introduce Filipino flair to the Japanese market, but also promote and boost trade of the Philippines’ wealth of natural resources and crafts.

Motivated to build an avenue for emerging talents from the country to go global, she reiterated TAYO Fashion Week enabled participating artists to earn a deeper understanding of the industry, create connections, grow their client base, and push their businesses to be more sustainable.

“Consequently, they could consistently produce more and make their fashion more accessible to a broader range of customers. In turn, they can hire more people,” she added. “We can democratize Filipino fashion and integrate it into everyday life rather than reserving it for admiration in glossy magazines and billboards.”

Madlangbayan likewise announced REPAMANA as the featured brand of the inaugural TAYO Young Designer Showcase Program, an initiative that provides next-gen Filipino designers with the platform they need to succeed.

Co-founded by Dars Juson and Allesandra Gutierrez, De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB) Fashion Design and Merchandising (FDM) graduates, REPAMANA treats textile waste as a primary source of material and provides second chances to female Persons Deprived of Liberty by training them in dress and accessory-making.

“While sustainability and ethical fashion are often buzzwords, REPAMANA authentically embodies these values,” Madlangbayan explained. “Their work uplifting women from vulnerable communities is truly inspiring.”

For the show, REPAMANA displayed a capsule collection of their iconic ensembles. They collaborated with Laguna-based crochet designer Monique Salibio and Marikina-based footwear brand Risque Design by Tal de Guzman, who is also a faculty member of FDM.

“This collection celebrated and honored the cultures of both the Philippines and Japan, bridging our differences through fashion and craft,” Juson shared. “By sharing our brand internationally, we brought contemporary designs as our gift to the Japanese audience.”

The young creatives likewise took this opportunity to launch their newly developed bark-like wrinkled textile design technique dubbed kum-ot. It is a play on the Bisaya word meaning “crumpled” and Tagalog word meaning “blanket” – which they mentored to the women-in-jail community.

“TAYO Fashion Week held great significance for us as it provided a platform to demonstrate the global competitiveness of young Filipino brands,” Gutierrez stated. “It was our opportunity to proudly showcase our interpretation of circular design from a youthful and distinctly Filipino perspective.”

Madlangbayan, a Benilde alum and an educator at the prestigious Osaka Bunka Institute of Fashion, personally guided the team throughout their stay and provided them with valuable insights on sustainable branding.