LITTLE ROCK — Standing in the center of a large room, empty but for a long wooden catwalk, Brandon D. Campbell addresses a crowd of beautiful people. His words are a mixed bag of encouragement and admonishment, but his message is crystal clear: Little Rock Fashion Week is here. History is upon us, he tells the assembled group of models, designers and volunteers. There's no time for missed meetings. There's no time for 20 percent effort.
"This is the fun part. I'm excited about it. I love it," says Campbell, executive producer of the event. A homegrown talent, he's back from a decade working in the entertainment industry in New York and Los Angeles to answer what he considers to be the call of destiny. At the time of his speech, his dream was still a week and a half away.
That was a week and a half ago.
Metaphorically, there was probably no better place to be preparing. As he slowly paces around the room, exuding energy in every step, it's easy to see telltale signs that this room used to be a video store. But more recently it was a branch of Pine Bluff-based clothing retailer Dimeone Superboutique. On this day all the inventory has been removed, and only the catwalk remains as, for two hours, models strut their stuff under the guidance of a coach while designers look on. But the building's history fuses fashion and entertainment, a union that almost poetically fits the slogan Campbell coined for his brainchild: "It's fashionment!"
"I'm mixing entertainment and fashion from what I know, and mixing them up with what we have here," said Campbell in an interview following the rehearsal.
And he knows fashion. A TV writer and producer who has worked for E! and the Style Network, he's been on the red carpet and is used to the first question being "Who are you wearing?"
And it's that environment he wants to bring to his home city. Yes, there will be fashion shows and afterparties. Celebrities have come to town to take part, and Little Rock Fashion Week even includes a school supply drive to aid nonprofit partner Watershed. But it's more than all that.
"If you think you know what to expect, think again," Campbell said.
Asked if anything still wows him as he looks back over the months the event has grown and developed, it doesn't take him long to answer.
"It's the people, and their enthusiasm - and knowing my city has been inspired," he said. "People want to be a part of this because they believe in Little Rock, that Little Rock can make this happen."
And those people aren't just local. Designers for the show include some who are flying in from New York or elsewhere on their own dime. Talents closer to home like Nicole McGehee and Linda Rowe Thomas are on board, too.
For designer Natasha Rawls Dixon, whose younger son Jordan is also designing shirts that are being worked into the event, Little Rock Fashion Week is the next step in an evolution.
"I see it as momentum," said Dixon, who started showing in 2006 and has been part of several shows locally and regionally since. "As long as there's something new coming through the pipe, it will keep us out there. People won't forget us."
And she hopes Little Rock won't forget fashion after Fashion Week is over. Self-taught in design, she said her dream is to see local universities embrace the scene and events like Fashion Week and start offering degrees in design, drawing from the resources the city already has on hand. She'll be the first one to sign up, she said.
That hope may sound remote to some, but not to Campbell, who lives in a world where "if" and "can't" have no place. One of five children raised by a single mother, he grew up in Highland Court, and says he never would have been successful if he'd put stock in those words.
That determination, and the support it's garnered, comes to fruition this week as Little Rock Fashion Week kicks off. No matter what, Campbell said he will consider it a success because he's followed through on what he planned to do. But in his mind, he's already planning for it to be the first of many, many more.
"Trust me, it can go far," he said. "It can grow."
SIDEBARS:
Little Rock Fashion Week Events:
Today
Little Rock Fashion Week VIP Launch Party
Where: On the Rocks, 107 E. Markham St.
Time: 8 p.m.
Tickets: $10
Thursday
Little Rock Fashion Week & Watershed "Back II School" Charity Drive
Where: Watershed, 3701 Springer Blvd.
Time: 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Friday
Little Rock Fashion Week Young & Fabulous Show
Where: Mosaic Templars Cultural Center, 501 W. Ninth St.
Time: 7 p.m.
Tickets: $14
After Party
When: Friday
Where: Juanita's Cafe, 1300 Main St.
Time: 10 p.m. - 2 a.m.
Tickets: Free with fashion show ticket before 11:04 p.m.
Saturday
Little Rock Fashion Week Couture Show
Where: Statehouse Convention Center
Time: 6 p.m. doors open
Tickets: $40 (VIP), $30 (general admission) before show
For ticketing outlets or online purchase visit http://littlerockfashionweek.com
Meet the models
More than 100 models turned out for the model call for Little Rock Fashion Week, some very experienced, some only a few months in. Either way, for many models the event has turned into a family affair.
Lakesha and Amber Heidelberg, Little Rock
Lakesha, 21, has been modeling since age 7. Amber, 17, only started a few months ago, her first show being the Second Annual Designers Choice show in March. Both heard about Little Rock Fashion Week through a friend, and both said trying out together was a no-brainer.
"It's more comfortable because I'm working with someone I know, someone I trust is going to be honest with me. My friend, I guess," said Lakesha, whose experience has taken her far. Just after high school she moved to New York, but found the pace, the cost and the competition to be more demanding than she wanted. She's returned to Little Rock to attend school. She's continuing with modeling, but also learning to become a dental assistant.
Lakesha will appear in the Couture Show, modeling for Mike Stallings of Untitled Inc. of New York.
Amber, who will be a senior at Parkview High School this fall, says she loves modeling because "I like to dress up in nice clothes and do the hair and makeup and everything. It's exciting. I like to be glamorous."
She agrees working with her sister is preferable, because she gets the benefit of coaching at home. And sibling rivalry is not an issue.
"I think it makes both of us better," she said. "We compliment each other."
Though she plans to "see where [modeling] goes" on a trip to New York next summer, Amber plans to attend the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville in the fall to study "something science or math. Those are my strong subjects."
She will appear in both shows, modeling for Jeante One of One and Crying Tears.
Latonya and Christopher Rawls
Always interested in fashion, modeling and design, Latonya first took to the runway last year. She heard about Little Rock Fashion Week through another event, and said she couldn't miss it.
"Anything that has to do with fashion, I'm all for it," she said.
Attending classes in business at Pulaski Tech, Latonya said she hopes to pursue a career in modeling and design.
"I really hope this will open a lot of doors for me into that world," she said. "I like design because I like to put people together."
But this time she heard the call would include an opportunity for children to model, so she brought her 4-year-old son Christopher with her.
"People are always saying he's so cute and he should be a model," she said. "He has a big personality and likes to dance and show off anyway."
That may sound like a challenge in a controlled, rehearsal environment, but Latonya said he's having a blast so far - and so is she.
"It's something fun that we can do together," she said. "And he likes it. He's always asking about it, when are we going to do it. And he's told the whole family about it, his grandparents and uncles and aunties."
But the mother says she's refrained from trying to tell her son how to handle the runway. In fact, she's only given him one piece of advice.
"I just tell him to go out there and do whatever, to be yourself," she said.
Latonya will appear in both shows, modeling for Jeante One of One and Moriah's. Christopher will appear in the Couture Show, modeling for Lads and Ladybugs.