IACT College has always been industry-driven with all its student projects. This time around, it raised the bar with a fashion public relations project for fashion producer and designer Dodi Mohammad of KL Alta Moda and Mercy Malaysia. Both entities have come together with the support of IACT College as Mohammad’s team of PR executives to organize a high fashion royal gala dinner that was held on the 2nd of December 2017 at the Grand Ballroom of Royale Chulan Kuala Lumpur.
Themed on Heritage, High Fashion and Humanitarian, this gala dinner forms a unique collaboration with Mercy Malaysia to advocate awareness in the area of disaster relief through fashion, and to preserve as well as to highlight local and international designers and artisans with their range of craftsmanship to the world.
This gala was in conjunction with KL Alta Moda 2017 (#KLAM17) which is in partnership with Good News Fashion (GNF), an international company headquartered in Stabio, Switzerland, that deals with high-end clothing and collaborates with big fashion brands such as Vivien Westwood, Martin Maison Margiela, Marni, Dsquared and up and coming Italian labels Bad Spirit and PG Enjoy. Other featured brands and designers include Gidjae Monroe, by mother and daughter team, Tuesday and Kimberley Satterley, an Australian label that was conceived from the Bring Australia to the World campaign, Gina Frias and Illiza Ho, a protégé of Datuk Jimmy Choo.
If handling 5 designers in one show was not intimidating enough, the team which comprise of Diploma in Mass Communications students for the subject PR Campaign Strategies, we also exposed to studying and understanding royal protocols as guest of honors included HRH Tuanku Zara Salim, Sultanah of Perak and Datuk Jimmy Choo himself.
“The whole purpose of the project was to not only expose the students to real industry pressure and demands when dealing with clients, but to have a platform to test their mettle to be recognized by members of the industry as they are working and to be singled out and be offered job placements,” describes Natasha Mohd
Hishamudin, lecturer of PR Strategies.
Client Mohammad was himself pleased with the participation, “I would definitely hire them for my future projects and I was surprised to realize that they were doing their diploma at the maturity they handled the challenges and pressure.” None of the distinguished guests knew the team consisted of students working on their first fashion project. “They were convinced they were professional executives with experience in fashion event management which is a powerful testament in itself,” Mohammad muses.
Team leader, Ee Yeng accounts, “I came into college not knowing what to expect from the industry and emerged with enough experience to be a specialist in media,” Post-event, Yeng has been offered numerous job offers based on her performance leading the 10-member team throughout the project, one with includes with GNF.
Daniel Beltsos, head of GNF had this to say, “It was fantastic work backstage and definitely not an easy task handling the models. Great job to the crew.”
The Student PR Team from IACT College with team leader Lim Ee Yeng on the front row (5th from the left), together with lecturer Natasha Mohd Hishamudin (6th from the left) and Jonathan Yip (5th from the right).
Some of the shots from the prestigious event taken by IACT students:
International designer Datuk Jimmy Choo was one of the distinguished guests of the night.
Another VIP of the event, HRH Tuanku Zara Salim, Sultanah of Perak (Centre)
Our PR students hard at work.
