Over 200 top designs accepted for Iran’s Fajr fashion festival
More than 200 fashion designs have been accepted in the first round of Iran’s 13th Fajr International Fashion and Clothing Festival, set to begin June 7 in Tehran, festival secretary Mohsen Gorji told ILNA on Saturday.
From a pool of over 3,200 submissions by more than 1,300 designers, “about 200 entries made the cut,” Gorji said during a press briefing at the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance. The final round of judging will take place next week with a panel of academic and industry experts.
This year’s festival was postponed to June to avoid overlap with other cultural events and religious holidays, he explained.
“We didn’t want it buried under bigger festivals,” Gorji said, noting that the new schedule allows for greater exposure.
The festival, which runs June 7–14 at Tehran’s Aseman Cultural Center, will showcase selected works and aims to connect promising designers with commercial opportunities. The event is the only nationwide platform for fashion in the Islamic Republic.
Efforts are underway to expand so-called “mentoring hubs” in several provinces, helping young talent transition from sketches to ready-to-wear.
Gorji called this a “mid-term” goal that depends heavily on private sector support.
Turning designs into mass-market products is “a complex process,” he said, and will only succeed if major domestic brands step in.
The festival has shifted its research division to an external team led by Al-Zahra University and no longer calls for public submissions. “We outsourced it completely,” he said.
Also speaking at the press event, Zahra Golpayegani, head of the National Fashion and Clothing Committee, said the festival is focused on “discovery and support” for regional talent, especially from rural and underserved areas.
“This year, we gave the same chance to a designer from the south as we did to someone from a top label in Tehran,” she said.
The committee also worked to simplify festival logistics. “We wanted to cut through the red tape and make it easier to take designs from the runway to the street,” Golpayegani noted.
This year’s motto, “Discover Iran,” reflects a push to uncover hidden creative voices across the country. Organizers say the festival marks a turning point toward decentralization and private sector involvement.
“It’s not just about the designs,” Gorji stressed. “It’s the designers who matter most.”