Fashion Designers Invade Paris For Ready-To-Wear Week

Fashion designers from around the world unveil their winter ready-to-wear collections in Paris started Wednesday, offering a bit of care-free cheer amid economic gloom and the threat of war in Iraq.

``There have never been so many people coming, despite everything that is going on,'' said Didier Grumbach, president of the French fashion federation.

``The atmosphere is different this time around from the post-September 11 shows, when there were few American buyers who made the trip. They'll be here this time, like they were in 1991 during the Gulf war,'' he said.

The buyers, wary of making big orders amid the economic uncertainty, will jockey for position with more than 1,500 journalists at the dozen or so shows being held every day through March 13, in addition to showroom presentations.

The official runway show calendar starts on Thursday, with the usual cast of heavy-hitters prepared to display their vision for autumn-winter 2003-04.

John Galliano for Christian Dior, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Chanel, Emanuel Ungaro, US designer Tom Ford for Yves Saint Laurent Rive Gauche and his compatriot Marc Jacobs for Louis Vuitton will no doubt thrill fashionistas with their latest creations.

Despite icy cross-Channel relations over the Iraq crisis, the British fashion invasion of the French capital is as strong as ever, with Galliano, Alexander McQueen, Stella McCartney, Phoebe Philo for Chloe, Vivienne Westwood and Welshman Julien Macdonald for Givenchy all on the schedule.

Belgium's 26-year-old prodigy Olivier Theyskens, who rose to fame with his romantic outfits for pop mega-star Madonna, will make his long-awaited return to the Paris catwalk with his debut collection for Rochas on Thursday.

And Chloe will celebrate 50 years in the business with a party on Thursday at Cafe de Flore, the Left Bank Paris hangout made famous by Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir and Ernest Hemingway. Philo's new collection for the house will be unveiled on March 9.

Notably absent from the jam-packed week of shows will be Kenzo, as the company undergoes a massive restructuring under new management, and Torrente, following the sudden retirement last week of 70-year-old designer Rose Met.

Besides the big names in the industry, a host of lesser-known talents will try to seduce notoriously finicky buyers and critics, including Korea's Lie Sang Bong and Japan's Ohya - widely seen as Issey Miyake's heir apparent.

The week would not be complete without a string of parties, exhibitions, store openings and other fashion-related events to keep the runway crowd out until dawn.

Celine is throwing a ``boogie night party'' named for one of its best-selling bags, the Boogie; ultra-hip fashion and design store Colette is hosting a party with Maxim's restaurant; and Yamamoto will launch his exclusive line for shoemaker Adidas.