Business

Brides of Sri Lanka magazine together with Galle Face Hotel hosts ‘Wedding Week 2022’

Published

4 years ago

2022/02/10

The Brides of Sri Lanka magazine together with the Galle Face Hotel presents the most exclusive wedding expo of the year – Wedding Week 2022 – with exciting activities and series of bridal shows on the 19th and 20th of February at the Galle Face Hotel. The Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau, Sri Lanka Convention Bureau and Sri Lankan Airlines have partnered with the event to support in view of promoting Destination Weddings in Sri Lanka to India and other prospective target markets.

Four celebrated designers from India and the Maldives will showcase their collections alongside leading Sri Lankan designers at this event which is planned as a fun and interactive event for the couple to enjoy while planning their wedding.

Umang Hutheesing is the President of Hutheesing Design Company, established 1835. Hutheesing Design Company tied up with Tiffany & Co 1881 and won 9 gold medals at the Paris World Expo 1900 as one of the finest design firms in the world. It executed the East Wing of the White House and Durbar Hall of Osborne House at Queen Victoria’s Palace. Umang is a Managing Trustee of Hutheesing Visual Arts Center and the President of Hutheesing Heritage Foundation. He is the 5th generation to head the firm and has been Creative Consultant at American Vogue, Teen Vogue and many international media. He was instrumental in putting together India’s First Fashion Week.

He has collaborated with Holland & Holland, the official outfitters to Queen Elizabeth and Prince Charles, and has showcased at Buckingham Palace for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations. He has also done panels for the Roosevelt House of the US. He is the only Indian designer to have shown over 300 of his creations at renowned international museums, and has the honour to create regal costumes for several Royal Families in India and across the world. Umang is expected to showcase ten brides and ten grooms on the 20th of February at Wedding Week 2022.

Nivedita is a national award-winning designer and has marked 20 exciting years in the industry. She has showcased her collections at the London Fashion Week, Paris, Hongkong, South Korea, Malaysia, Colombo, Dubai and major cities in India. She is the Founding Curator for the Global Shapers Community of the World Economic Forum and has been conferred with the prestigious Bharat Gaurav Award for her significant contributions towards impacting life through sustainable and adaptive fashion. Warner Bros. has chosen Nivedita to be their official designer for India for their couture and prêt collections. Nivedita is the only Indian designer to have created bespoke outfits for the first family of Lamborghini. She will showcase ten brides and ten grooms on the 19th February as a show stopper for the first day of the Wedding Week 2022.

Aishath Shamla is a creative and popular fashion designer in the Maldives with extensive experience in orchestrating all aspects of women’s clothing. With over four decades of experience in dress making, the self-made seamstress and designer specialises in a full range of womenswear, from wedding gowns to casual dresses. She also owns and runs her namesake fashion boutique in the heart of Male, called Sham’s Boutique. She has showcased locally and internationally, including at Bangladesh Fashion Week. She will be showcasing ten bridals at Wedding Week 2022.

Aishath Shifza of Shif Couture is a talented and customer-oriented designer in the Maldivian fashion industry. She is popular among the youth, with very creative designs. Shifza has showcased her designs at Bride Fair Maldives 2014, Designers Week Maldives 2015, Bride Fair Maldives 2018, and Maldivian Idol Season 3. Shifza’s designs were worn by the Maldivian Idol Season 3 host and winner, as well as multiple other contestants throughout the season. Today, her brand, Shif Couture caters to brides and fashionistas all over the Maldives and is heralded as a designer bringing in a fresh perspective into the industry. She will showcase ten bridals at Wedding Week 2022.

Wedding Week 2022 will also feature ‘Meet & Greet’ Sessions (some with live demonstrations) with industry experts as follows:

Hair and Makeup Artistes – Ramani Fernando, Dhananjaya Bandara, Johann Peiris and Ramzi Rahman

Bridal Designers – Umang Hutheesing, Nivedita Saboo, Aslam Hussein, Charini Suriyage and Purnima Abeyratne

Groomswear Designers – Fouzul Hameed, Asanka de Mel, PVS Jayaratne and Kingsman Studio

Photographers – One Dulani Photography, Danushka Senadeera, Dimitri Crusz, Pamod Nilru Photography, Dhanuka of Dark Room, Imasha of White Episode, Elia David and Chapter Essence

Florists and Cake Designers – Country Bunches, Pramoda Boyas, Jerome of Fab and Amna Mohideen

Wedding Planners & Hoteliers – Janice from Kairos Weddings, Double Tree by Hilton Weerawila and Galle Face Hotels.

Wedding Week 2022 will also feature host ‘Experiences’ such as in Food Tasting, Wine Tasting, Cake Tasting, Cocktail Tastings, Giveaways, Jewellery Shows and Entertainment Shows and of course the much-awaited Bridal Shows with international and local designers presenting five shows per day. Brides of Sri Lanka magazine has organised this event to create a platform to uplift the Sri Lankan wedding industry and strengthen our foreign relationships. Brides of Sri Lanka magazine is also launching its sister magazine in the Maldives, called ‘Brides of Maldives’.

“We hope to support the wedding industry that has greatly suffered in the last two years due to the global pandemic and also promote wedding tourism, which in turn will help our economy and our nation”, says Nelum Haththella, Founder and Managing Director of Brides of Sri Lanka. “The support from the Galle Face Hotel, Sri Lankan Airlines and Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau, the event partners and sponsors has been tremendous in this regard”, she added.

Wedding Week 2022 is free of charge and open to the public from 10.00 am to 8.00 pm on 19th and 20th February at the Galle Face Hotel.

All News Advertisement

Business

Sri Lanka’s 2026 economic growth predicted to be around 4-5 percent

Published

7 hours ago

2026/01/10

Thilina Walpola

Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe; ‘Growth prospects okay’

Sri Lanka’s economic growth for 2026 will be around 4-5 percent, Central Bank Governor Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe said.

The Governor indicated the estimated economic growth while announcing the Central Bank’s policy agenda for this year, last Thursday.

‘The Central Bank’s 2026 growth estimation is higher than the growth prediction of the IMF and the World Bank and is achievable, the Governor told the media while announcing the Central Bank’s policy agenda for 2026.

Dr. Weerasinghe added: ‘The Central Bank will introduce a benchmark intra-day reference exchange rate this year to ensure transparency in the foreign exchange market.

‘The absence of a reference exchange rate has held back the expansion of the Sri Lankan forex market and discouraged the trading of rupee-denominated derivatives Governor said.

‘The Central Bank last year carried out the necessary preliminary work to implement the benchmark spot exchange rate.

‘The benchmark intra-day reference exchange rate will be introduced in 2026 to foster a transparent foreign exchange market.

‘This benchmark will guide market participants, help reduce volatility and promote more competitive pricing on a given date, thereby enabling the introduction of more innovative products in the foreign exchange market.

‘Sri Lanka’s foreign exchange market has limited derivatives like currency swaps and options aiming to deepen markets and attract inflows.

‘However, these instruments failed after a lack of reliable reference exchange rate amid concerns over excessive speculation, rupee over-appreciation risks and interventions distorting clean floating rates.’

Meanwhile, currency dealers welcomed the move and said it will help to deepen the market.

“This will expand the market with more products and promote rupee-denominated derivatives, a currency dealer from a local bank said.

“It is something the market wanted to fix in derivative prices. This is a pricing mechanism for the rupee, he added.

By Hiran H Senewiratne ✍️

Business

Sevalanka Foundation and The Coca-Cola Foundation support flood-affected communities in Biyagama, Sri Lanka

Published

7 hours ago

2026/01/10

Thilina Walpola

With funding support from The Coca-Cola Foundation (TCCF), the Sevalanka Foundation has launched a humanitarian relief programme to support flood-affected communities in Biyagama. The initiative focuses on restoring access to safe water, healthcare services, and essential public facilities during the critical recovery period following the Cyclone Ditwah.

Working closely with the Divisional Secretariat, the program prioritizes the cleaning and rehabilitation of contaminated dug and tube wells, helping address the urgent post-flood challenge of access to safe water. This intervention will also support the cleaning and reopening of essential public spaces, including schools, and Grama Niladhari (GN) offices, enabling authorities and communities to resume daily activities safely. The Sevalanka Foundation and TCCF, as part of the initial response, have also donated water pumps to the Divisional Secretariat to support immediate water extraction and clean-up efforts.

In addition, as the second main component of the project, and based on the guidance of the Medical Officer of Health (MOH), support is being provided to MOH-operated healthcare facilities to restore access to emergency and essential medical services. This support includes sanitization, debris removal, hazard stabilization, and the provision of emergency medical supplies such essential medicines and hygiene products. Medical camps staffed by doctors and senior nurses will be conducted through MOH offices to provide prioritized groups of persons with health, nutrition and hygiene related relief items.

Business

Bourse radiates optimism as UK grants tariff-free concession to local apparel exports

Published

7 hours ago

2026/01/10

Thilina Walpola

CSE activities were extremely bullish yesterday mainly due to the UK government’s announcement on tariff free access for local apparel sector exports into the UK coupled with Central Bank Governor Dr Nandalal Weerasinghe’s positive outlook on the economy this year.

Amid those developments the turnover level also improved and the All Share Price Index moved up to the 23500 mark during the trading day.

The All Share Price Index went up by 127.17 points, while the S and P SL20 rose by 56.75 points. Turnover stood at Rs 8.5 billion with 18 crossings.

Top seven crossings were: LOLC Holdings two million shares crossed to the tune of Rs 1.18 billion; its shares traded at Rs 575, Renuka Agri 45 million shares crossed to the tune of Rs 594 million; its share price was Rs 13.20, Sampath Bank 1.4 million shares crossed for Rs 215 million and its shares traded at Rs 154.35, Renuka Holdings 1.5 million shares crossed for Rs 75 million; its shares traded at Rs 50, Hayleys 200,000 shares crossed to the tune of Rs 41.3 million; its shares traded at Rs 207, Tokyo Cement (Non-Voting) 400,000 shares crossed for Rs 37.8 million; its shares sold at Rs 50 and NTB 100,000 shares crossed for Rs 326 million; its shares sold at Rs 326.

In the retail market top seven companies that contributed to the turnover were; LOLC Rs 340 million (591,000 shares traded), Sampath Bank Rs 310 million (two million shares traded), Renuka Agri Foods Rs 275 million (19.4 million shares traded), ACL Cables Rs 238 million (2.3 million shares traded), Overseas Realty Rs 215 million (4.9 million shares traded), CIC Holdings (Non Voting) Rs 180 million (6.3 million shares traded) and Wealth Trust Equity Rs 132 million (8.2 million shares traded). During the day 269.3 million share volumes changed hands in 47852 transactions.

It is said the banking and financial sectors performed well, especially Sampath Bank, while a top diversified company, LOLC Holdings, also performed well.

Yesterday, the rupee opened at Rs 309.15/30 to the US dollar in the spot market relatively flat from Rs 309.10/50 the previous day, having depreciated in recent weeks, dealers said, while bond yields opened higher.

The telegraphic transfer rates for the dollar were 305.8500 buying, 312.8500 selling; the British pound was 409.7568 buying, and 421.1186 selling, and the euro was 354.0809 buying, 365.4441 selling.

By Hiran H Senewiratne ✍️