Big Changes for the Big Trunk Show

by Erin Thursby
The Big Trunk Show in St. Augustine has become a place where local designers can show off their wares and residents can buy some original outfits. This year, the venue has changed, from the smaller Cafe 11 to the new 200 Lounge. The Trunk Show had definitely outgrown the old space, as designer and sponsor Greg Dettra of Paper Root acknowledges.
“We looked at a couple [of venues], but ultimately settled on the 200 Lounge. It is a relatively new venue and has ample space to accommodate what we are trying to do, so it was a perfect fit,” says Dettra.
He’s partnered up with the producer at Classic Blends, Hugh Ward, to organize the event. “Hugh Ward from Classic Blends had been asking to be involved with this year’s trunk show, and as I’ve been busy opening my new print shop and running Paper Root, it was a great relief to have someone to share the reins of this event with,” says Dettra.
Since the Trunk Show has expanded in its new venue, it also includes some new flash. First, there’s a runway showcase. This, Hugh Ward says, gives the local clothing vendors “the opportunity to put their clothing on models” in a runway showcase of the trunk show’s work.
There will also be more entertainment at the event- Ward will be just one of the DJs present. Ward says that there will be “four DJs that are going to spin throughout the night a variety of Indie, Electro, dance music…[and] we’re all real DJs on turntables, none of this robo-DJ, laptop button pushers. We’re all real-deal DJs.”
The 200 Lounge has allowed the Trunk Show to become more like a fashion party. It’s no longer just a Trunk Show. As Ward says: “It’s a fashion event.”