CARTAGENA

1. The city

Cartagena de Indias, host city. Located in Colombia, in northern South America, by the Caribbean Sea, the strategic location of Cartagena de Indias is ideal for the development of tourism, industry and commerce. It was founded on June 1rst, 1533 by Don Pedro de Heredia and has an area of 609.1 Km2. It has a population of approximately 860.000 inhabitants with an interesting convergence of indigenous, Spanish, African and Arabic cultures.

Its official currency is the Colombian peso and its temperature varies between 25 and 29 degrees centigrade.

Its beautiful natural scenery blends in with its impressive architecture making it a masterfully cosmopolitan, modern and contemporary city with the charm of an old city that still has the essence of colonial times, its narrow streets, squares and wooden balconies, framed by enormous walls on the seafront.

http://visitandoelmundo.org/cartagena-de-indias-colombia/cartagena-colombia/

http://www.zonanovias.com/2010/03/03/islas-de-ensueno-cartagena-de-indias/

2. Cartagena, fashion destination

CARTAGENA, FASHION DESTINATION is an Ixel Moda program that develops itself parallel to the Latin American Congress for the Wardrobe Macro-Sector in alliance with Cartagena de Indias City Hall, the Cartagena Chamber of Commerce, The Corporation of Tourism and the National Tourism Fund.

This program is created under the idea of the construction of a new platform of progress and development for the city, parting from the fashion industry as one of the main edges of the modern evolution and growth of the world today.
Particularly in Latin American markets, the clothing and textile universe occupy today one of the main portions of the economy: its ability to generate jobs in its different competences, and the potential growth it has makes it a priority in the internal productivity and competitiveness agenda of the countries of the region.
It is no secret for many that the roots of our Latin nations: the history, culture and idiosyncrasy have been a motor of creative unusual talent, admired and highly appreciated in developed countries around the world, that, seen under the fashion scope and concepts of design, become a differentiator element and a competitive advantage in order to compete in the global market. 
 Fashion, in its basic sense, has evolved from being a privilege of just a few to an ideal that everyone ambitions, and, from that optic, it’s a multi ethnic and cultural sector; from it the deep and massive interest that awakes and the great media impact that generates.
This peculiar characteristic has converted the fashion sector in a strategic ally for the touristic activity of many cities that live and breathe of it; also an effective tool for those who, in contrast, nourish from tourism.
CARTAGENA, FASHION DESTINATION is an integral program with a double feature: on one hand, attends the strengthening of the organizational and corporate development of the sector of the city, and on the other, using fashion as the strategy, provides a great excuse in order to promote tourism in the city. 

Description of our productive bet:

1. To route and unite the efforts of the government and the different organizations that work to position Cartagena as a touristic destination by excellence; in the creation, promotion and institutionalization of proper events, that offers the guarantee of a continuous development as city.
2. To build, over competitive advantages that the city counts with (sun, beach, culture), competitive advantages bases in the versatility and specialization of the touristic offer in order to enter to participate with success in the international markets.
3. Incentive tourism during low seasons

Principal Necessities:

1. To convert Cartagena into one of the main epicenters of Fashion in Latin America starting from the condition of being the Host City of the only Wardrobe Congress that exists in the region.
2. To find renowned designers, brands and multinational franchises, set their fashion stores inside the city as a focal point in the Caribbean, making of Cartagena a shopping destination for tourists, or another excuse just to visit de city.
3. To sell the natural sceneries and proper architecture of the city as the ideal context for brand projection: runways, catalogues, photo shoots and fashion editorials; and with it, all the tourism that this attracts due the media power this type of events have.