The Tribune

The Bahamas Technical and Vocational Institute (BTVI) recently signed an agreement with the Miss Bahamas Universe organisation for its students to create outfits for the 2019 pageant.

with the Miss Bahamas Universe (MBU) organisation to have BTVI's fashion students design and create outfits for contestants of the 2019 pageant.

The students themselves first pitched Miss Bahamas Universe with the idea. Under the terms of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), the students will construct the Avant Garde attire as well as the A-line island handprint cocktail dresses for the contestants' motorcade.

Miss Bahamas Universe's national director, Anthony Smith, said: "Miss Bahamas Universe decided to partner with BTVI because many of the past students are proof that great talent exists in this country, especially when the talent is trained and harnessed by institutions who are prepared to ensure that the students receive on-the-job training and exposure in order to present them to potential employers or a network of clients.

"(This partnership) provides the student designers with a stage, press platforms and networking opportunities, and prospective clients who might not have known them or their brand."

BTVI's chair of fashion, Kathy Pinder, added: "Our students will gain a lot of exposure from designing for the pageant. This will definitely help them develop their portfolios for their future endeavours, whether it be furthering their education or securing jobs. It is my hope that it will inspire others who are interested to sign up for BTVI's fashion programme."

Ms Pinder added that Miss Bahamas Universe's decision to trust BTVI's fashion students to create two designs per contestant shows how confident they are in the product.

One of the student designers, Denzel Mckay, said: "This experience has helped with developing what we designers call our esthetics, which is our unique design style and is very important in the world of fashion. It has also helped us discover our strengths and weaknesses when it comes to designing and working with different clients."

The grand finale is scheduled for August 11 at the Meliá Nassau Beach Resort, Cable Beach, under the theme, "Alter Ego".

Pictured is BTVI fashion student, Fayren Knowes, left, taking the measurements fo her assigned model, Miss Bahamas Universe contestant, Katherine Weech. Photo: Shantique Longley.