The Collabetive Collabetation

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 Dayton, OH, we love our city, we are the birthplace of  the cash register, the self-starter on top, aviation and #sew many other innovative #Gems that are too numerous to mention.  We're not a fan of the word "but", #sew we're going to transition with "However"...those Gem City innovators weren't the first to try what ultimately made them famous.  Take the Wright Brothers for instance, they weren't the first to ever try to fly; in fact they had competition.  The race, desire, and attempts to fly date back to Greek  Mythology,  there were at least 11 different flying machines made by others before the Wright Brother's Wright B Flyer ever took flight...it was competition that fueled the Wright Brother's innovation.

As much as we love our city, we also must address the unfortunate culture that brands competition a four letter word; we often hear "Collaboration over Competition" as a way of advancement. There's a tendency to revert into tribalism when someone or something new comes along and engages in the same creative and unique work as an established and/or popular entity or person.  You'll hear "what about (insert name or business)"  or  "why can't people do something more creative, why do they have to copy off of  (insert name or business)", this along with other fire extinguishing  tactics that often leave the same people questioning why there's nothing to do in the city. 

When we hear the unjustified tearing down of other entities and people trying to do there part, fulfill their purpose, make their mark, and provide opportunities and new experiences, we question why can't we successfully have collaboration and competition cohabitate here in Dayton?  All are needed for any thriving market or industry...don't believe us?  Look no further than the Fashion Capital of the world New York City. We all know about New York Fashion Week  and the big tent events, HOWEVER, did you know that other cities around the world were already using city names in conjunction with Fashion Week? New York wasn't the first, in fact , (4) major fashion markets emerged because of competition, Paris, Milan, London, and the then underdog New York.

Today the New York Fashion Week umbrella has at least (6) major producers  IMG, The SOCIETY, FTL Moda, Art Hearts Fashion, Style, and ASC.  And there are hundreds of other smaller and lesser known producers that host runway experiences during the exact same time as the the major producers. In fact, the "big tent" events produced by IMG have been known to have multiple runway experiences taking place in different venues at the exact same time.  How's that for competition?  Models, HMUA's, attendees, media, buyers, photographers, and more importantly, investors were all forced to plan and decide what show to cover, participate, attend, and/or  invest.

It's survival of the fittest, the designers had to step their game UP to become and remain relevant in the fashion industry.  That's what competition does. And to top it off,  the top (4) Fashion Weeks in the world New York Fashion Week, Paris Fashion Week, Milan Fashion Week, and London Fashion Week collaborated to form what is known as Fashion Month which takes place twice a year in February and September kicking off in New York and moving on to London, Milan, and Paris.

It's difficult enough to become relevant let alone stay relevant in a major market like New York where all of the resources can be found...hint hint and hence why The House of (DE-FI)ance: A Fashion and Design Co-working Experience is a much needed resource for regional  fashion and design talent. Our parent company, the Dayton Emerging Fashion Incubator (DE-FI) LLC has always been adamant about the need for other fashion organizations to emerge and thrive in Dayton and have put their money where their mouth is by sponsoring, providing  support and feedback, as well as promoting other regional fashion experiences that provide legitimate opportunities for fashion advancement...But don't get it twisted, we do not compromise with or support entities that conflict with our core values and ethics. 

We said all of that, to say this, aside from the co-working, shared space, Build-A-Brand, and other service experiences that are offered at our House, we are excited to introduce The Collabetive Collabetation where fashion and design talent come together to collaborate, compete, and cohabitate under one roof. Don't fall for the okie doke, you need competition;   ask any investor, one of the first questions they ask business owner seeking a financial investment is "who is your competition?" and "what separates you from your competition?"  Believe us when we say, if you come with, "I'm my own competition", "I'm staying in my lane", and "I don't have any competition" they'll close the door right in your face and assume one of three things about you:

1)  You have a horrible business idea

2)  You haven't done your research on the market

3)  You're not coachable

In our House, Collaboration is a valued necessity and COMPETITION is NOT a four letter word, it is a REQUIREMENT needed for any market to thrive...and you'll learn all about this in our #CollabetiveCollabetation Experiences details can be found On Deck.  Become a MEMBER today! #ThisIsOurHouse