The festival organizer presented local residents with a total of 42 fashion shows, including such world class brands as Lanvin and Givenchy from France, Vivienne Tam from the United States, Vivienne Westwood from Britain and Ferragamo from Italy.

These top world brands will exhibit their latest collections and classic designs.

Top domestic fashion designers from the mainland, Hong Kong and Taiwan will also stage a show entitled "Classic Legend".

In addition, Donghua University, specializing in the fashion business, will invite scholars from home and abroad with the aim of informing people about the trends of the new year.

For the business focus of the festival, the 9th Shanghai International Fashion Expo will exhibit products from 674 enterprises' covering 14 different countries and regions. The expo, covering 28,000 square metres, is expected to be a highlight of the fair.

The Shanghai International Model Contest, however, will be the great hit of the whole festival. Forty-eight models from 31 countries and regions will compete with each other for the championship.

The festival will last from March 18 to April 6. It is co-organized by the festival commission, the Luwan District Government and the Shanghai International Garment Centre.

As the festival is ongoing, the Shanghai Star recommends two of its fashion shows which are worth a special look.

Zhang Zhaoda is among the small number of Chinese fashion designers who hit the headlines regularly.

The 40-year-old designer is used to travelling between East and West, and this wealth of experience has honed his creative talents.

Zhang's designs are always modern, comfortable, gorgeous and also elegant. Every year, he travels in search of inspiration from different places.

"Grace, chic, simple and exquisite femininity is my dream in the work," said Zhang, who is the chief designer of the First Group, China's famous garment producer.

In addition, to keep the style modern and practical, Zhang's collection is easy to wear.

But in some of his highlight pieces, his design is full of creativity and imagination. You can see an example of this in the fashion show named "Boundless" held at Donghua University.

"Expertise in the field helps in really understanding what I want to express, so I chose this university as the place to show my work," he said.

"Classic Legend," which is held every year, is another highlight of the festival. This time, seven designers from Shanghai, Tianjin, Guangzhou, Taipei and Hong Kong stage their latest lines in the Super Brand Mall, on Sunday.

This show, with the theme: "Beauty of Modern Life," is considered to be the annual show best displaying the power of China's fashion field.

Because it is drawn from different places and different experiences, the co-operative show displays a multitude of styles making it a delight for anyone with an interest in fashion.

(Shanghai Star March 27, 2002)