The fashion industry has gone through many changes over the last year, and emerging fashion designers have been particularly affected by the difficulties brought on by Covid. For example, fashion weeks and runway shows have either changed formats or been canceled, eliminating a marketing tool that many have come to rely on.
Through conversations with designers, Leslie Russo, who heads up fashion events at NYFW owner IMG, saw that aid was needed. “We kept seeing and hearing about this [industry] desire for change and themes around rebuilding, revitalization and resiliency,” she said. “We thought, ‘How do we come together as an industry and, more importantly, as a community, and create a bedrock of talent and support for the industry’s return?’”
Formed in May, the IMG Fashion Alliance proved her answer. Among the 11 designers that IMG enlisted to take part in the launch of the alliance were Joseph Altuzarra of Altuzarra, Brandon Maxwell, LaQuan Smith, Kate and Laura Mulleavy of Rodarte, and cult favorite Telfar. Each of the designers has committed to showing their collections at NYFW for the next three seasons.
While the alliance is mainly focused on supporting designers during the pandemic through business support and financial assistance, it is also set to help shine a spotlight on NYFW and the designers that show there for future seasons, similarly to the BFC in the U.K. “We’ve seen that collections tend to get more media attention when they take advantage of moments like fashion week and the tide of attention that comes with it. Having to sit out a few seasons because they didn’t have plans or funding has held back the growth of some designers.”
As the fashion weeks are rapidly evolving to increasingly include the consumer, designers will play a crucial role in determining its direction. “During these weeks, there is an opportunity to think about fashion as the lens through which global customers are able to curate how fashion fits into their lives and what it says about them,” Russo said.
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