Bench is the quintessential Pinoy brand and it just cemented this reputation when it showed T-shirts bearing symbols and words promoting love for different aspects of Pinoy life. “I love Sampaguita,” says one. “I love Rizal,” puts in another. There’s also “I love Manila,” some of them ingeniously shown off by foreign models and “I love OPM,” this time worn by comic singer Elizabeth Ramsey, who none-too-furtively ogled Jake Cuenca as he walked past her down the catwalk. You know these shirts will fly, as much as the printed shorts with boxer waistband for men, the bowler-style, graphic tees and those ass-loving jeans that Filipinos have — thankfully — learned how to embrace.
A Bench show is not complete without celebrities and there were many of them in attendance for this show, mainly to show support for the Philippine Red Cross, to whom Bench, Human, and Kashieca’s mother corporation, Suyen, donated a cool P1 million. It started off with Dingdong Dantes and then the rest followed: Jake Cuenca, Aljur Abrenica, Kim Chiu, Gerald Anderson and many more up-and-coming stars, interspersed with models.
Human and Kashieca, which also showed in the same event, had their share of celebrity appeal. Kashieca had endorser and designer Lucy Torres-Gomez as well as veteran catwalk queens Wilma Doesnt, Marina Benipayo, and Gem Padilla, all clad in colorful cotton basics dressed up with sheer floor-length skirts. Harem pants and skinny belts were also part of Kashieca’s presentation for next summer.
Human, staying true to its collegiate draw, had Isabelle Daza heading a flock of youthful models in Jap-styled clothes. Layerings of tie-dye shirts, slim-fitting cardigans and printed blazers: the prep-grunge trend at its finest.