PARAISO MIAMI SWIM WEEK WRAPS UP INAUGURAL YEAR IN JUNE
HOSTING A FUELING SCHEDULE OF OVER 45 RUNWAY SHOWS, EXPERIENCES, POP UPS, AND A SUMMER FASHION SUMMIT
Miami has babes in bikinis all year round. But come summertime, the newest trends are revealed along with a lot of T & A at the annual South Beach swimwear shows. This year, thongs were back in full swing sashaying on all the runways. The ‘boy cut’ covering the butt up is gone and skin is in again! And all the bachelors in the audience seemed to enthusiastically applaud the return of the barely there swimwear.
The model inclusivity message was also relayed loud and clear on the catwalks this year. There were still stunners with gorgeous bodies. But big girls strutted their stuff as well. And a few ‘models’ even had ‘babies on board’ still warming up in their oven. The idea perhaps is to let all gals know they are sexy and should show it, the curvier the better. Diversity was showcased to with an Asian, multiple African American models, some even with “fros” as well as short girls and youngsters, but not a Baby Boomer to be seen. So, the runways seemed slack in respecting and showing off their elders – unlike Sports Illustrated that illustriously included Martha Stewart at the ripe old age of 80+ in its 2023 annual swimsuit edition.
Like Miami’s version of Art Basel, with art and parties popping up everywhere during December’s Art Week, Miami Swim Week has taken the city by bikini storm in the summertime.
PARAISO MIAMI SWIM WEEK
PARAISO Miami Swim Week, the world’s largest event for the swimwear and resort wear industry, hosted its highly anticipated new season welcoming over 10,000 guests through the course of the first week of June from the 8th through the 11th. Celebrating innovative design, inclusivity, diversity and sustainability, PARAISO Miami Swim Week, hosted a fueling schedule of runway shows including 18 new and veteran labels, in addition to exciting experiences, pop ups, activations, parties, and an industry-focused conference, Summer Fashion Summit.
This season PARAISO Miami Swim Week welcomed back brands including: Azulu, thatdebuted a resort wear collection inspired by the vibrant city of Porto, Beach Bunny, theOrange County based, global brand showed signature, sexy suits that celebrated their 20 year anniversary on the runways, Kittenish Swim by Jessie James Decker, Decker and her design team debuted a collection inspired by European Aesthetics and Southern Charm with subtle Mediterranean prints, animal inspired prints, and textured, eco-friendly fabrics, LainSnow, from North Carolina showed ‘Coastal Cowboy’, Luli Fama, Miami -based designer unveiled herPuerto Luli collection, Matte Collection, debuted a collection designed ‘for women, by women,’ beachside with an audience dressed entirely in white and a live choir performance, Neena Swim by Oh Polly, showed all-new pieces curated from the brand’s most recent collection, Printed Swim, and three upcoming collections: Embellished Swim, Signature Swim and Sporty Swim, OneOne, the 100% Colombian brand showed #TBT, Sinesia Karol, the Miami-based designer debuted a collection inspired by Japanese Gardens featuring a floral print and new, velvety textures, and Natasha Tonic, pioneering plant-based organic hemp swimwear brand unveiled “Coral City” with proceeds from the collection benefitting Coral Morphologic and Ocean Gardener.
New to the schedule this season were: SHAN, the Canadian resort wear brand with a boutique in Sunset Harbour that showcased Cruise 2024 and Spring-Summer 2024 collections, Curve Collective, the intimates and apparel trade show organizer hosted a multi-brand show, Sigal, the Miami-based brand showed resort wear with tropical vacation vibes, Axil Swim, showedlooks inspired by themes of Earth Wonder, Flower Power, Retrograde, Up to Par, and Dreamland, and Club L London debuted their latest resort collection, Destination Daze & Tequila Sunset.
The Blonds, New York Fashion Week’s staple, were a show-stopping highlight for this season. Theyclosed out the PARAISO Miami Swim Week tent with bold colors, bejeweled looks, and the Teletubbies to celebrate their signature DNA of self-expression, belonging and kindness.
SWIM WEEK EARLIER JUNE DATE
After bumping up the event dates for the first time in almost two decades, in response to a market shift, PARAISO Miami Swim Week gathered industry professionals, fashion editors, buyers and social media influencers from June 8th to 11th at its re-designed, luxurious tent at Collins Park, right on Miami Beach. PARAISO Miami Swim Week also hosted various pop ups and auxiliary experiences across multiple venues including W South Beach, Soho Beach House, The Plymouth South Beach, Esme Hotel, Queen Miami Beach, Sofia, The Miami Beach EDITION, The Ritz-Carlton, South Beach, Hyde Beach and The Miami Design District.
SUMMER FASHION SUMMIT
This year for the first time, PARAISO Miami Swim Week, partnered with Summer Fashion Summit, the inaugural two-day conference celebrated innovative ideas and brought together top national industry players from the field of swimwear, resort wear fashion, and driving forces in sustainability solutions. This intimate summit, held on June 8-9 at W South Beach, consisted of three sessions of panel discussion and masterclasses on each day, exploring current trends across summer fashion, sustainability, marketing and communications, with a lineup of visionary leaders spanning the fields of design, business, publishing, technology, media, and PR.
EXCITING OFF-SITE EXPERIENCES
PARAISO Miami Swim Week party in collaboration with SELECT Models at Sopra Club in Forte dei Marmi kicked off swim week events on Wednesday, June 8th, followed by four days of thrilling events.
The Blonds hosted their pre-show cocktail at QUEEN Miami Beach with House of Suntory, Saturday June 10th.
Planet Fashion runway shows at the SLS South Beach presented multiple brands throughout a two-day program including Chloe Rose, Keva J, Tinye Swim, Beau Swim, Origins Of Oceans, Veve Swim, and a group of sustainable swimwear brands.
Miami Design District and their retailers hosted several exciting activations throughout the week, including: A Stitch Lab pop up, featuring a curated list of top Latin American designers, A kick off brunch, and an in-store activation at the luxury multi-brand boutique Elle’s, which housed a trunk show in partnership with sustainable swimwear label Hunza G, Bossa Concept offered exclusive designs by Latin American designers in a Summer House pop-up at W South Beach, Ganni hosted an in-store cocktail event, A.L.C. Fashion hosted a private brunch at Sofia, and alo “The Next Step” launched a unisex sneaker, the Alo x 01 Classic at Reserve Padel.
To further the fun, Sun Bum hosted aprivate VIP brunch. Nike led a Nike Run Club originating at Nike Lincoln Road followed by a Nike Swim fashion presented at Esme Rooftop, Strangers Only threw a pool party at Soho Beach House Miami, Beach Bunny x NEXT Models hostedparty at Baoli Miami, Rielli threw a pop up and pool party at The Plymouth South Beach, Seafolly held a poolside brunch and fashion presentation, Goretta Medina x Stitch Lab brunched, Wilhelmina x Smile Train toasted to Swim Week at The Ritz-Carlton, South Beach, Poolside by Frederic Pinet exhibited at Soho Beach House, Luli Fama x Front Models threw an afterparty, The Blonds cocktailed at QUEEN Miami Beach. The official closing party of PARAISO Miami Swim Week was hosted in partnership with The Blonds at The Miami Beach EDITION, where the Teletubbies were also in attendance.
SUPPORTING NEW TALENT
For the fourth year in a row, PARAISO launched its Upcycle Challenge in collaboration with Istituto Marangoni Miami, a design competition where a selected group of students were paired with design mentors. The winning designer will be chosen based on ability to create two swimwear looks using only upcycled materials, overall wearability, creativity, and construction.
The Miami International University of Art & Design (MIUAD) also presented their annual swim show on Thursday, June 8th to empower the creativity of the fashion industry leaders of the future.
GAME-CHANGER PARTNERS
Along with the support of the Miami Beach Visitor and Convention Authority, this season PARAISO Miami Beach official partners included: Alto, Evian, Kevin Murphy, Sun Bum, Sally Hansen, alo, NY Makeup Academy, La Croix, Frederic Pinet, Gente Beauty, Motives, and Dibs.
SI Tickets by Sports Illustrated served as the Official Ticketing Partner for all PARAISO Miami Swim Week experiences. And people seemed to have no problem ponying up the big bucks to see the shows. After all, what’s not to like about a pre-show VIP lounge to get liquored up before watching beautiful babes in all shapes, sizes, and colors show the latest swimwear styles to hit the beach with next season?
Until next Swim Week, we bid adieu or more appropriately in Miami, Adios.
Caviate: Have no fear – restless souls won’t have to wait an entire year for another Miami Swim Week.
Alternate swimwear show producers, decided to keep the old dates. So come July 5, just after the fireworks in the Miami sky, South Beach will once again light up the runways with an assortment of hot bikini clad women. And maybe even a few men for good measure. Stay tuned for the highly anticipated Ema Savahl Couture Swimwear Show with super sexy hand painted suits like none others! Little Lighthouse Foundation, a local Miami charitable organization will be the host and beneficiary of the kick-off event for the July Swimwear Week.