You may have heard of womenswear designer Peter Nygård, but do you know the story behind how the multimillion dollar, Winnipeg-based brand came to exist? Today, NYGÅRD is one of Canada’s largest clothing manufacturers and has been designing quality womenswear for half a century, which is no small feat in today’s ruthless economic climate. Where others have failed, the company has flourished in the face of an ever changing retail landscape, adapting to digital technology way ahead of its time. Today, we get an insight into what it takes to build a clothing empire and a preview of NYGÅRD’s Fall Fashion Show, happening right here in Winnipeg this month.

The Nygård Story

After graduating from North Dakota University in 1964 with a degree in business, Finnish-Canadian designer Peter Nygård decided to pursue his ambition, purchasing 20% of a struggling women’s clothing brand. Just 3 years later he bought out the company entirely and transformed it into the vibrant fashion house it is today. Since then Nygård has received numerous accolades: some of his most notable include being the founder of the Manitoba Fashion Institute, becoming an appointed member of the Canadian Apparel Manufacturer’s Institute and even playing an influential role in establishing the North American Free Trade Agreement. Fast forward to 2017 and NYGÅRD is proud to be celebrating 50 years in the fashion industry.

The NYGÅRD brands

Over the years, several sub-brands have been created under the NYGÅRD umbrella. You may be familiar with Alia & TanJay, designed with a 50+ target market in mind, or his eponymous brand Peter Nygård which is popular with younger, style-savvy women. However it’s the company’s latest line, Nygård Luxe Denim Slims, which is causing a stir in the fashion world. Nygård recognized from an early stage the growing demand for comfortable jeans. He listened to what women liked and disliked and revolutionized the company’s denim philosophy. These are jeans that have abandoned the traditional button and zipper fastening in favour of a super-stretch, pull-on design that features a hidden slimming panel stitched into the inner waistband. Its exclusive Denim 360 4 way stretch fabric is made using a stretch cotton-blend that smooths, sculpts and tones your lower body thanks to its trademarked SlimCurve Technology. Nygård Luxe Denim Slims has become the brand’s best selling line and has gone from strength to strength, releasing trend-driven styles and more and more washes every season. What has kept NYGÅRD successful after all of these years? Great customer segmentation and unique selling points that have enabled them to differentiate themselves in a competitive market.

Fashion show: Fall 2017 collection

The NYGÅRD team is inviting you to attend its highly anticipated Fall Fashion Show which is taking place in Winnipeg on September 15th  at NYGÅRD Fashion Park, 1626 Kenaston Boulevard. What can you expect from the Canadian designer this season? Premium fabrics, stellar designs and a guest appearance from Peter Nygård himself. Guests will get a sneak preview of the brand’s fall and winter collections, prominently featuring his unseen Peter Nygard Jeans collection, and will be able to see this year’s Breast Cancer Survivors walk the runway styled in NYGÅRD. The fashion house is famous for closing the show with a stunning haute-couture inspired look making its way through the crowd. Read about the highlights of last season’s show here on the NYGÅRD blog.

 

Watch the live show on Friday 15th September at 1626 Kenaston Boulevard, Winnipeg.

Doors open at 6pm, show starts at 7pm. Tickets cost $25 and all proceeds will be donated to CancerCare Manitoba.

 

See what’s new at NYGÅRD and visit https://slims.nygard.com/

Save the date | September 16, 2017

Shopology Project is hosting its first ever Shopology Project Conference on September 16th, 2017 for the creatives, designers, makers and retailers in Winnipeg. It aims to enlighten, educate, connect , support and inspire our fashion industry community. One day of keynotes, panels and workshops for designers, creatives and retailers from the be in the business will provide information on how to be competitive in an online world, streamline their business, build sales, and create a brand experience that will put their business on the map. Attendees of our event will include members of businesses associated with Winnipeg’s fashion industry, designers, creatives, buyers, makers, retailers, students, bloggers, influencers and supporters, along with fashion- minded consumers joining the event for the evening fashion show and networking.

Our line up of local fashion, marketing and digital experts will share their knowledge on business development and fashion development topics targeted at entrepreneurs and creators in fashion design and retailing. The conference is designed to provide insight on how to achieve business growth, build strategic partnerships, and establish smart marketing and business management.

Registration now open! Click here to get your tickets.

 

This past Thursday, February 2nd at The Fort Garry Hotel hundreds of people came out to show their support for Winnipeg’s Main Street Project at the first Runway to Change for arguably one of the most moving fashion shows. A school project by two incredible young women who not only raised money and awareness about homelessness in Winnipeg, but also raised the spirits of men who have been affected by homelessness with dressing them in Eph Apparel suits and walking the runway.

Here’s what you missed if you weren’t lucky enough to get your hands on tickets to this sold out show:

About the Show

The Runway to Change was a fundraising project created by two (very talented, sweet, genuine and inspiring) creative communications students from RRCC – Ashley Tokaruk, 23, Madelaine Lapointe, 20, to help end the stigma of Winnipeg’s homeless and collect clothing to donate to Main Street Project. Main Street Project is a 24 hour drop-in centre that works with individuals who are experiencing homelessness and substance abuse problems. They rely on donations to continue helping these people overcome their addictions and hardships. A big reason why Ashley and Madeline chose Main Street Project was because they do not turn anyone away and are both have someone they know living on the streets.

The fashion show lineup which included established local designers and local boutiques included short videos of actual clients from Main Street Project sharing their stories.

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