Kelly Rowland, Isaac Mizrahi and Fern Mallis
Kelly Rowland, Isaac Mizrahi and Fern Mallis

DALLAS, Apr 6, 2009 / FW/ — France has ANDAM, Italy has ITS and Spain has El Boton – Mango; and now, the U.S. has Bravo TV’s “The Fashion Show,” a design competition that gives fashion design hopefuls a chance to have their designs sold in the retail market and win a $125,000 prize to help them start their business.

With purses like 300,000 euros (approximately US$403,000) from Spain’s El Boton – Mango Fashion Award and 160,000 euros (approximately US$215,000), the prize money of $125,000 does not seem much. But, The Fashion Show offers the contestants “instant name recognition,” something that only a multi-million dollar ad campaign can get a designer, as Madison Avenue will attest.

Premiering on Bravo on Thursday, May 7, 2009 at 10 p.m. ET/PT, The Fashion Show uses the now familiar concept of reality TV fashion competition. Fifteen design professionals will try to win in this fashion creative competition series every week, wherein one of them will be eliminated until there is only one last person “standing”, who will be named the winner.

Internationally acclaimed designer Isaac Mizrahi shares hosting duties with four-time Grammy Award-winning performer and actress Kelly Rowland. Mizrahi and Rowland will also serve as judges alongside fashion luminary and Senior Vice President of IMG Fashion, Fern Mallis.

Each week the designers will be put to the test and will have to face off in two challenges – the Harper’s Bazaar Mini Challenge, judged by the magazine’s Special Projects Director Laura Brown, and the elimination challenge.

There is a twist in this competition though, in the end, America will choose which contestant will have a clothing line available for retail and win the $125,000 prize. After all, it will be America who will be supporting the new label…

[MARI DAVIS]
Photo courtesy of Bravo TV

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