It was Public Relations coup of sorts at the couture week FDCI boss Mr Sunil Sethi appointed a new PR agency, W Five Communications, in the middle of the couture week to take over charge from Weber Shandwick, the official PR agency of the Council and its fashion weeks so far. By Karan Bhardwaj
Wardrobe malfunction, models crumbling, socialites’ faux pas or catty wars among designers, the fashion weeks are always abuzz with weird gossips. However, the FDCI India Couture Week 2016 triggered gossip machinery rather for an unusual reason. On Day 3, there was an urgent PR crisis that hassled media, Fashion Design Council of India and the PR agencies working backstage.
In a bizarre development, FDCI appointed a new PR agency, W Five Communications, to take over charge from Weber Shandwick, the official PR agency of the Council and its fashion weeks so far. Sources said the reason behind the move was an alleged spat between FDCI chief Mr Sunil Sethi and the representatives of Weber Shandwick at the fashion week. As a result, Mr Sethi held an emergency meeting with W Five Communications, the officials of which were already present at the venue, and asked them to take over PR duties for the fashion week.
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BAFFLED MEDIA
Journalists and bloggers were intrigued by the conspicuous absence of the PR professionals during Rahul Mishra’s show. “It was a confused sight. I was calling PR guys regarding passes for Anamika Khanna’s show, which took place at an offsite venue but none of them responded to my calls. In fact, when I approached FDCI’s in-house communication managers, even they were also clueless about PR’s whereabouts. Surprisingly, they too failed to communicate with the PR agency at that time,” a journalist of a leading daily said on the condition of anonymity.
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DAMAGE CONTROL
After a brief hiccup, the Weber Shandwick resumed its operations at the fashion week. However, it all looked customary as the other PR agency grabbed the opportunity in full force. Sources close to W Five Communications told us that even though they were surprised by the development, they were happy to assist FDCI in crisis. It is yet to be known that W Five, co-owned by Rashi Rohatgi, will now be the official PR agency of the FDCI.
