SAN FRANCISCO, Oct 23, 2005/ FW/ --- The highly publicized San Francisco International Fashion Week slated for three days was reduced to ONE DAY, as designers scrambled to put a show together after the original plans fell through.

Originally scheduled to be held at the prestigious Fort Mason Center, the venue was moved to Terra, a gallery and events space in downtown San Francisco. Thanks to Dusty Derouen, a majority owner of Terra, the venue was free of charge to the seven designers who decided to show from the original 15 in the line up.

As early as Wednesday, things started unraveling as designers started pulling out of the show. Headliner Lloyd Klein, together with Paris-based designers Gaspard Yurkievich Isabelle Ballu, Moritz Rogosky, Sebastien Meunier, Pierre Henri Mattout and Afshin Feiz, together with Philippines designer Rajo Laurel, Indian designers Shantanu & Nikhil and Manish Arora decided not to present their collections.

Reasons cited as reported by the San Francisco Chronicle were mismanagement and non-delivery of contracted obligations such as plane tickets and hotel rooms.

Rallying to save the SFIFW, the local community made last minute arrangements to hold a catwalk show. Fighting against odds as not enough time for preparation and publicity, San Francisco-based designer Joseph Domingo took the lead and asked help from businesses located in the Bay Area.

Models, out of the kindness from their hearts did not charge professional fees while local hotels provided lodging for the stranded designers who were left to fend for themselves.

‘Friday night, I was sending faxes to everyone I know in the Bay Area for support,’ Joseph Domingo told FW. ‘It was very heartwarming when I received positive responses from a lot of people.’

Domingo, who wanted to give credit where credit is due, said that without the fashion angels who helped them, there would be no catwalk show at all.

Dusty Derouen of Terra, found lights, chairs and curtains last minute and models showed up during the casting call held early today.

‘We (the designers) were styling our collections, steamed our own clothes and basically dressed the models ourselves,’ related Domingo who also by default became show director for the seven designers who showed.

‘It was not easy doing everything last minute, but for those who traveled halfway around the world like Paul Munroe, Black Coffee and the Indian designers, it was only right that we hold a show, albeit an abbreviated one,’ Domingo ended.