Fashion & Design Festival Makes Quartier des Spectacles its Home and Names Nathalie Rykiel, the Muse of Elegance, as its Honorary President

MONTREAL, QUEBEC--(Marketwired - May 13, 2014) - Groupe Sensation Mode is pleased to announce that the next Fashion & Design Festival (FDF), which annually attracts over half a million visitors, will be held at Place des Festivals this year, from August 20 to 23. The event, which will be given greater visibility in this venue, has also named Nathalie Rykiel, an international icon in fashion and elegance, as Honorary President.

"We are particularly proud that Ms. Rykiel has accepted our invitation," says Chantal Durivage, Co-President of Groupe Sensation Mode. "This modern, open woman, who embodies a type of elegance inspired by movement, confidence and singularity, will present her fashion vision, which excludes any form of conformity, to this year's festival goers. Her visit to Montreal will add to the FDF's international reputation as a creatively avant-garde festival associated with the biggest names and showcased by the magnificent space that place des Festivals has to offer!"

For Groupe Sensation Mode, holding the FDF in the Quartier des spectacles is a real sign of recognition for the festival and demonstrates the importance of fashion and design in the city. The public can now experience an exciting and unique fashion and design event in its new venue's renowned setting.

"This decision reaffirms the Fashion & Design Festival's place as a major summer festival," says Jean-François Daviau, Co-President of Groupe Sensation Mode. "Like music and humour, fashion and design are now officially part of today's culture. Over 15 years of dedicated efforts have gone into making fashion more accessible here and offering a leading international showcase for it."

Nathalie Rykiel

Nathalie Rykiel, daughter of legendary creator Sonia Rykiel, began her career in 1976 as a model, a launch pad for staging fashion shows for the family-run fashion house. She is the visionary behind collections and concepts such as RYKIEL ENFANT (1983), SONIA RYKIEL MODERN VINTAGE (2000) and RYKIEL WOMAN (2002), among others. She is also interested in literature and the arts, serving on literary prize juries and participating in many art events. An accomplished writer, she wrote a novel, Tu seras une femme, ma fille, in 2010 and a book on fashion, L'Élégance, in 2013.

As the Honorary President of the 2014 Fashion & Design Festival, Ms. Rykiel will deliver a lecture on the theme of elegance in a "Q&A" format, followed by a book signing for L'Élégance.

"Under Montreal's open skies, fashion breathes and parades freely. Quebec is nourished by all this richness, like art enriches life, and life enriches art." - Nathalie Rykiel

This year's FDF promises to be both inspiring and colourful. More news will be announced soon!

New partner

The Fashion & Design Festival is proud to be associated to the Loews Hotel Vogue, recipient of the TripAdvisor 2013 Certificate of Excellence and ranked as the 8^th best city hotel in Canada by Travel+Leisure magazine in 2012, for the first year as an exclusive hotel partner. "The Vogue's trendy and sophisticated positioning in addition to its valued clientele makes it an excellent partner to welcome the Fashion & Design Festival's artists and festival-goers in 2014," says Marie-Michèle Thibault, Director of Sales at the Loews Hotel Vogue. Plan your visit to the Fashion & Design Festival and reserve today.

About the Fashion & Design Festival

The Fashion & Design Festival (FDF) is a large annual celebration of creativity in downtown Montréal. This unique event offers a diverse program, which includes fashion shows, multidisciplinary shows, live art installations, musical performances and real-time design. Over four days and four nights, close to 50 shows will be presented, featuring renowned Canadian designers and leading names in international fashion. Makeup artists, hairdressers, stylists, models and musicians will all contribute to the FDF's ambience. An authentic platform of fashion, design, music and shopping trends, this event is the biggest of its kind in North America and is produced by Groupe Sensation Mode. For more information, visit http://www.festivalmodedesign.com.

About Groupe Sensation Mode

For 15 years, Groupe Sensation Mode has produced and designed leading fashion events in Quebec, Canada and abroad. Renowned for MFW and the Fashion & Design Festival, GSM has also created unique concepts such as Fashion Theatre (on the stages of Berlin, Tokyo, New York and London) and the Fashion & Opera Runway Show in Los Angeles. These innovative events have served as an international showcase for designer creativity and talent. GSM is also a member of Festimania and the Major International Events Network (MIEN).