Label it: The Philadelphia Collection

Flanked by models and dressed in a navy-blue suit and green Nicole Miller tie, Mayor Nutter vogued for the cameras Wednesday afternoon and announced the first city-sponsored foray into fashion: The Philadelphia Collection.

The 10-day fashion party, which starts Sept. 23 and runs through Oct. 2, features more than 40 free runway presentations, cocktail parties, and trunk shows in boutiques throughout Center City, Germantown, and South Philadelphia.

Having already proven his in-the-know status by hosting Sex and the City screenings, Nutter comfortably talked up style, after arriving fashionably late.

"This is an event all about the look," Nutter said to about 50 of Philadelphia fashion insiders who gathered in front of the main stage in Northern Liberties' Piazza at Schmidts, one of the city's trendiest hang-out spots. "But retail is not just about fashion, it's about economics."

The city's announcement launched what promises to be a busy fashion season in the City of Brotherly Love.

And how can it not be? In the last two years, the city has seen new boutiques, designers, and even the Wilhelmina Modeling Agency claim it as home. Philadelphia has gone from a city whose hippest residents relied on New York for fashion entertainment to a city with a fashion calendar so packed that it can be confusing to the casual fashionista who wants to know where she should be seen.

"The city often gets passed over for things that are cool," said Jeff Glass, one of the owners of Boyds. "We're not just a city of cheesesteaks and the Eagles."

Thursday marks the seventh day of Philadelphia stylist Anthony Henderson and producer Tracy Johnson's 17 . . . Days of Fashion, which puts a spotlight on fall fashions sold at local boutiques.

Local businessmen Kevin Parker and Kerry Scott will host their fourth FBH Philadelphia Fashion Week, beginning Monday. Events include in-store parties at Center City's Kenneth Cole and Banana Republic stores, a host of fashion symposiums, and two evenings of runway shows.

It doesn't end there. King of Prussia mall as well as several local boutiques will be holding Fashion's Night Out parties on Sept. 10 as part of Vogue magazine's push to get people interested again in designer fall shopping.

And in October, CMK Entertainment will host yet another version of Philadelphia Fashion Week. The group, headed by local events planner Kristie Bergey and Philadelphians-turned-New Yorkers Charlie Smith and Michael Anderer, will present four days of runway events, showcasing local designers and some from as far away as Russia.

Wednesday afternoon's news conference was the first time those who identify themselves as the city's modern style movers and shakers came together to tout fashion under one umbrella.

Still, while the Philadelphia Collection took center stage, it was clear that members of the fashion community still wanted to maintain their own identities and control of their fashion babies.

Over the last year, the Mayor's Office, the Center City District, and the Philadelphia Retail and Marketing Alliance have been looking for ways to bring hipper businesses to the city.

Fashion has become a major part of the project because, according to Nutter, Center City workers, residents, and overnight visitors spend $150 million on goods bought in the city. So, a robust fashion community signifies trendiness and, most important, money.

The Philadelphia Collection 2010 started out as the city's attempt to capitalize on the burgeoning fashion community. The original idea was to bring the area's three major fashion events - Sharon Phillips Waxman's Phashion Phest, FBH Fashion Week, and CMK Entertainment's Fashion Week - under one aegis. So ideally, there would be one solid block of time in the city devoted to runway presentations and trunk shows.

"We wanted to promote Philadelphia as a place of style and a hub for emerging designers," said City Representative Melanie Johnson, who said she didn't want to have a carbon copy of New York Fashion Week. However, she said she planned to bring in more local designers for the Philadelphia Collection 2011 for more original runway presentations.

Bergey and the members of CMK Fashion Week declined to participate because, Bergey said, they preferred to focus on spring 2011 collections, much like New York Fashion Week, which starts next week.

Other highlights include a kick-off party at Joan Shepp, the annual Rittenhouse Fall Gathering, an Italian fashion event at Boyds, and a Fall Fashion show at Macy's. This year the guest will be fashion photographer Nigel Barker.

"This a wonderful opportunity for us to be involved," said Corie Moskow, who organizes retailers for Rittenhouse Row. "We changed the date of our Fall Gathering so we could participate."

Other fashion notables participating are Paula Hian, Mary K. Dougherty of the Nicole Miller boutiques, and Sarah Van Aken of SA VA. The Gallery mall will showcase designs from students at local universities.

All tallied, the city is spending between $20,000 to $30,000 on promotional brochures and websites, and, while the city won't make any money, Johnson is hopeful the event will have an impact on the economy.

Said Johnson: "Can you ever have too much fashion?"