Culture

In Business/ Culture/ Fashion

Inclusion in the fashion industry is no longer black and white

While bigger fashion brands and the industry as a whole has been under increasing pressure in the last decade to provide more visibility into their supply and sustainability processes, there are still many facets of the industry that remain somewhat opaque, and in definite need of further scrutiny.

Consumers are becoming increasingly aware and therefore critical of, the fashion industry’s ethical and moral obligations, as they relate to labour and working conditions, exploitation, the impacts on the environment, and the consequences of fast fashion. Brands have had to provide more visibility to satisfy this need, with some even changing processes and their strategies, given the need for more transparency. Consumers’ evolution of consciousness has unequivocally had a transformative impact, however, fashion’s commitment to diversity and inclusion remains considerably lacking.

A truly fair and sustainable industry would be one representative of all people; of varied backgrounds, ethnicities, and particularly one which is respectful of, hires and gives credit to the very cultures and minority groups from which it often takes inspiration.

The momentum of the Black Lives Matter movement has increased attention around the necessity for more legislation, equality, and recognition for those who in the past have been overlooked or discriminated against. The fashion industry is guilty of this just as much as any other and has still a long way to go to tip the scales of equality.

The fashion industry, and many major luxury brands, have long been complicit in a culture of cultural appropriation, racial insensitivity, discrimination, underrepresentation, and promoting racist ideologies in plain sight. They have long defined the standards of beauty; typically, through the almost exclusive use of extremely thin models with fair skin, thin smooth hair, and light eyes. Women of colour are scarcely represented in campaigns or on runways, and then forced to work in an industry that mistreats or silences them. One such type of normalised discrimination is by hiring makeup artists and hairstylists who are untrained to work with darker complexions and natural hair at the global fashion weeks.

Models have spoken out about this marginalisation, but little has been done. Some are even asked to arrive to shoots camera-ready or pay for their own hairstylist given that the team hired will not or can not work with their hair. Simply casting black or minority models is not enough; creative backstage teams should also be skilled enough to work with all races. This disparity should also, therefore, be addressed both in cosmetology schools and by makeup brands, to set the expectation that to work in fashion, you must know how to work with all models. These prolific discriminatory practices and industry-wide means of exclusion need to end.

There have also been numerous instances of whitewashing occurring within fashion media, a practice that has finally been receiving criticism, despite it happening for years. The practice of artificially lightening someone’s skin tone of their hair to appear fairer underpins this cultural creation that lighter is more beautiful. Several major fashion magazines, advertisers, and cosmetic companies have faced controversies in recent years due to the apparent lightening of complexions in their media, and while these claims are disputed, the images themselves feed into a very damaging culture and perpetuate negative sentiments for women of colour and how they should fit into a ‘white’ industry.

As a consequence, many large fashion houses and magazine publishing firms have pledged to do better, to openly promote diversity and inclusion, feature a greater variety of individuals on their runways, pages and in their advertising, and revise their hiring strategies to ensure their own creative teams and talent reflect this, all the way to the top. But who exactly can hold them accountable for this? And will this bring lasting change?

Statistics have shown that the more culturally diverse their executive teams are, the more profitable they are. McKinsey and Company’s 2018 research has attributed this to better access to talent, improved decision making, deeper employee engagement, and greater insight into their consumers.

While there are financial incentives to make changes, one might also ask why their moral obligations and commitment to creating opportunities for those who have been historically disenfranchised might not be enough. The greatest incentive perhaps, which has brought about these changes in the last year, has in fact been consumer pressure.

The industry has always largely been controlled by white men in executive and board member positions, meaning unless those at the top embrace the changes, and become allies committed to reversing years of systemic racism, a future of fair representation and diversity in their positions of power, might still be a long way off. Open communication and discussions about both overt and unconscious bias will inevitably need to be addressed if brands want to evolve and meet their consumer’s demands.

They also will have a lot of work to do within their supply chains and distribution chains. It is no secret that the communities most negatively impacted by the poor labour practices and terrible environmental effects of the fashion industry are disproportionately people of colour. Likewise, large retailers, need to support and promote black-owned businesses and carry more labels from minorities to more fairly reflect our populations. With less than 1% of the stock in the market today being from black-owned businesses, no more evidence is needed to reflect the discrimination in the industry.

Companies will need to monitor their own progress, and then be judged against others in the industry. Data, transparency, and accountability are prerequisites for measuring significant change, and aggressive goals need to be set. Consumers will ultimately then need to decide if brands are taking sufficient action and it is in the power of consumers to ensure the momentum for change is sustained; brands and consumers alike will need to commit to this for years to come. There is no easy road to progress, but the events of 2020 showed us that we don’t have any more time to wait.

February 22, 2021 By Helen Katharine

In Business/ Culture/ Fashion

Fashion in Focus: Industry Predictions for 2021

Even before the events of the global pandemic crisis, fashion executives were not looking forward to 2020. It was predicted already that 2020 would be a challenging year for many brands, particularly in the luxury sector, however no one could have predicted the roadblocks that have occurred. Trends in 2019 had shown that 2020 was likely to suffer slow industry growth, but brands also knew there would be significant pressure to expand their digital footprints, invest more in omnichannel and leverage new technology.

We knew there would be volatility, and many were taking steps to become more resilient through tough times, but what actually occurred, threw many unexpected barriers, which caused longer term transformation strategies to be fully tested. For those that didn’t respond or adapt quickly enough, 2020 will have unfolded as a year that many are unable to bounce back from.

Digital retailers and those brands with a strong e-commerce presence, were given an opportunity to flourish in the last 6-9 months, and those that had already a model in place to support the creation of attention grabbing content via the right platforms, for all their global markets, and seamless checkout options, were a lot more resilient than those with more traditional engagement models reminiscent of the previous decade.

The reality is it is becoming increasingly more difficult to engage consumers. Digital audiences are overwhelmed with content and ads, and social media platforms oversaturated with product imagery. The importance of storytelling and grander media productions, via celebrity endorsement or influencers, is greater than ever.

Combined with the impact of COVID-19, creating inspiring content and a memorable consumer experience was all the more challenging. None of the normal components that make in-store shopping enjoyable or even enable it, can happen the way they did before coronavirus. Consumers and brands have to adhere to health and safety guidance, including maintaining the recommended social distance, avoiding touching items or surfaces that others come in contact with, and trying on items. Some consumers, especially those who are particularly vulnerable, will never feel safe in retail environments again.

Bricks and mortar stores were already having to reinvent themselves and deploy technology to modernise the consumer experience, but with current limitations, eCommerce and point of sale integration became even more crucial. COVID-19 brought about sudden demand for an increase in mobile technology and for self service kiosks, appointment scheduling software, or instore pickup functionalities. Such technologies require robust infrastructures and scalable security networks. As such, retailers are having to make tough decisions regarding how to implement these technologies in tight timeframes to meet demand, without making themselves vulnerable.

Driving growth in such a volatile environment is somewhat forcing many brands to be more agile and accelerate their move to cloud technologies, to reinforce their e-commerce applications and deliver safe, and consistent consumer experiences. As such, the movement towards omnichannel consumer engagement was significant in 2020. The surge in online shopping, combined with the demand for swift delivery, meant supply chains were also optimised rapidly. The automation of orders, inventory checks, tracking, and delivery, while maintaining great customer service and experiences, was critical. Those that failed to adopt mobile first technologies and scale up their e-commerce strategies, were inevitably very badly hit.

This technological revolution, largely due to the explosion of e-commerce growth in 2020, can offer many opportunities for brands beyond 2021 if they expand their business models and invest heavily in online platforms. But brand loyalty is not to be overlooked, as with so many options now available online, personalisation and well thought out communication plans, will be really important for maintaining a solid consumer base. Innovation at all levels of the retail model will be required in 2021, and an exciting e-commerce evolution while inevitably be seen in the coming months, as fashion brands emerge from 2020 with more sophisticated shopping options for consumers that ever before.

Trends also predict an increased need for buy now, pay later technology, especially now given the economic downturn. Paying in installments offers a much more manageable way for consumers to purchase, particularly for early adopters within the luxury industry, opening up the sector to almost everyone. Younger consumers are avoiding credit cards, preferring instead to opt in to installment methods of payment, thus expanding the audience of those brands who introduce services such as Klarna.

In Europe, consumers have spent less money on clothes this year in general, but when they have, they have prioritised quality, and displayed a marked shift towards classic items and casual wear, shunning what now seems unnecessary party wear and formal clothing. The fashion sector in 2021 will face and conquer new frontiers and as always it will be dynamic, adapting to what consumers need. Most major retail brands have already delivered on this very quickly, offering more comfortable fabrics, casual ‘work from home outfits, mix and match lounge wear separates and luxury tracksuits in their recent collections.

The road to recovery in the next year will be uncertain for a lot of fashion and luxury brands. What is clear though, is that recovery will be largely driven by online sales. Offline sales will inevitably recover in the longer term, but it is expected that retail will only start to bounce back once a vaccine is widely available. What happens in the meantime is anyone’s guess.

January 14, 2021 By Helen Katharine

In Business/ Culture/ Fashion

Fashion Shows of the Future: Did 2020 bring about a new age of the fashion runway?

The fashion industry is changing at every level. These seismic shifts in most areas of the industry have needed to happen for a while but were accelerated considerably by events that took place in 2020.

One such change, which is especially visible, is the reformation of the fashion show. Global lockdown allowed many in the industry to reflect on the way in which collections were presented, but also, and to a higher degree, fashion houses were forced to reconsider how to produce shows when the majority couldn’t take place physically, as had been the tradition since the early couture shows of the 1940’s.

For decades fashion designer shows have been synonymous with big scale productions, beautiful theatrics, glamorous settings and in more recent times, a-list packed front rows. Starting from the 20’s many high-end fashion houses or designers used models to display their collections to the chosen elite. This eventually evolved into fixed date shows, as demand increased across Europe, especially in Italy and France, from foreign buyers, wanting a taste of European sophistication. Across the ocean, this started a movement for department stores in the United States to host their own fashion runway shows.

Following the Second World war, the Italian fashion industry, alongside the rise of ready to wear clothing production, was also boosted by post-war government policy and reforms to support the export economy. In 1949 fashion shows were held for the benefit of the international press, to showcase Italian art and culture. A pivotal fashion show in the summer of 1951 in Florence, drew in nearly 200 buyers and journalists from the U.S. making internationally publicized shows, now a seasonal affair.

The traditional fashion show format that we know today was firmly set by the 1960’s, often embracing youth culture and appealing more to the masses, via marketing techniques involving mixing fashion with popular music, location staging, and with models who were then becoming globally recognisable.

Now in 2021, it appears that we have reached a turning point; a before and after. Fashion houses are now faced with having to produce shows that will translate for digital audiences.’Digital couture’ was offered as a short term way to navigate the restrictions surrounding the global pandemic, but it could be argued that the 2020 pandemic simply accelerated this process, which would have had to happen inevitably anyway. Not only does it offer a more sustainable solution, but it makes high-end fashion brands and their once exclusive shows, more accessible to the masses.

Starting first with London Fashion Week in June 2020, the British Fashion Council, were the first to innovate and offer a fully online gender fluid event, which included not only virtual shows, but digital parties and video led discussion panels. The notion that fashion editors, buyers and influencers, were flying across the globe for short physical shows, and clocking up huge carbon footprints as a consequence, now seems rather outdated and excessive.

Brands are obviously still figuring out how to deliver on this successfully, and but nevertheless, with two seasons of digital fashion weeks that have taken place in 2020, we can now ask the question… Do they work?

Fashion was already on the cusp of transformative change, given that some brands were moving away from traditional seasonal calendars. Consumers were changing how they consume, so the need for change in the fashion week format, was also inevitable to some degree. There has also been a need in recent years for brands to invest more in virtual and more immersive experiences, in order to remain competitive in the market. 3-D fashion shows, and interactive digital live streams were becoming more commonplace, and the need to make shows more inclusive and relatable for consumers was becoming increasingly important.

Creating connections with the audience is key to the success of this new format, but going digital does offer opportunities to build stories around collections, generate deeper connections with the brand values, and potentially make the shows more impactful. The storytelling opportunities are vast, nevertheless it does present challenges for brands to build the same excitement around virtual shows. While it can be argued that the social aspect cannot be replicated online, digital shows offer opportunities which elevate brands beyond the boundaries of physical venues, seating and set construction.

New technologies present new narratives, with 3-D rendered clothing, CGI, video content and digitally crafted locations. With no clear path for where this experimentation might take us, it allows brands to fully explore the possibilities, and perhaps the future of fashion weeks around the world, might result in a perfect blend of digital and physical shows, created with the brand values and their particular audiences in mind. Perhaps physical shows will get smaller, with more focus on the audience watching at home. Or it will lead to fully green screen virtual multimedia shows, where the full experience is delivered via our devices.

Whatever the answer, the deciding factor will undoubtedly be the impact on the brands reach and their sales. In any format, the products and clothes themselves will need to remain at the centre. Will buyers stock their shelves and consumers spend their hard earned cash with items that they haven’t been able to see or touch in person? Time will tell. That being said, the traditional means of presenting physical collections once season ahead, was already dying, and had zero relevance to many modern consumers. It was time for a rethink, and experimentation will be essential for allowing new fashion events to emerge.

Whatever the future will look like, 2020 has brought us closer to this new reality, and only time will tell if the new experiences of this year, will become the new norm, or if fashion once again reverts back to its heritage, and tries to maintain the exclusivity and physical extravagance of its catwalk shows, for just a little longer.

December 30, 2020 By Helen Katharine

In Business/ Culture/ Fashion

Fashion Culture: Fashion and Politics in 2020

Global fashion brands are engaging with politics more than ever before. The high stakes felt on either side of the US presidential election, prompted fashion brands to end their long held silence, taking action and responding to consumers calls for solidarity, on issues about which they are now expected to get involved.

Generation Z consumers are much more vocal than previous generations, and with their influence growing, and their numbers now surpassing millennials, their opinions about which brands to buy from, are largely formed around brands’ policies concerning inclusivity, racial equality, sustainability and climate change. These same issues drove in part the results of the US election, and voters gravitated towards brands taking an ethical stance and those promoting the same values.

Engaging with politics no doubt has its risks for brands. While some feared alienating consumers, choosing to stay silent, has cost some apparel companies and retail stores much more damage than first anticipated. Complacency or non engagement, was one of the most dangerous mistakes for brands in 2020. They are learning instead, that when their political actions align with their supposed values, consumers believe them to be much more authentic, and this has true economic force.

The ‘Time to Vote’ movement saw buy in during this election from many large fashion brands allowing their employees the time required to cast their ballot. Several apparel brands paid employees to volunteer at voting polls, some offered a vacation day to vote, 19 retailers included QR codes on their receipts to facilitate registration, meanwhile Saks Fifth Avenue was registering voters at its New York flagship and online via Saks.com signalling a new frontier for the fashion industry. Post 2020, we can surely expect a long term shift in retails attitudes towards their required level of involvement in politics.

Brand equity is strengthened when companies have gotten involved in politics, even when remaining non partisan. ‘Vote’ became the most popular fashion slogan in recent months, with celebrities and political figures alike donning the four letter word on everything from necklaces, to eyewear, masks and footwear. Designers such Michael Kors, Stuart Weitzman, and retail chains Levi’s, Keds and Nordstrom have gotten in on the action, often with the involvement of youth organisations to attract younger voters, and drive a cultural shift through fashion. This worked as the turnout among young people surged in 2020 compared to the previous US election, showing a continued trend in participation both in politics in general and in voting.

Black lives, the environment, gender equality and reproductive rights, are in the forefront of young consumers minds and they want to talk about it. Many want to enact change, and stand up for what’s right by putting their spending power in brands that support their cause. With the links between racial justice and voting more under the spotlight than ever this year, youths looked to brands to vocalise their frustrations and fears, and put an end to the exclusion and marginalization of people of colour. The fashion industry in particular was allowed for a very long time to capitalize on black culture, while at the same time never offering a welcoming space for black talent to flourish or thrive.

Consumers now are much more acutely aware of brands who share messages of support for the Black Lives Matter movement, meanwhile have historically disenfranchised and systematically discriminated against them. Brands now need to own their mistakes of the past, make significant change and address their anti racism and ethics policies openly. Removing all these barriers will be a tough, complicated transition, and they need to be approached with the understanding that such systemic structures need to broken down and rebuilt through political change, understanding and communication.

The fashion industry appears to be re-examining its responsibility in shaping political agendas and being more omnipresent in their efforts to drive positive change. The easy thing of course is to remain only about the clothing, but for brands who don’t want to participate in the movement, and advocate on behalf of their consumers, they will potentially be pushed aside, as fashion redesigns itself from the inside out.

December 14, 2020 By Helen Katharine

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