New York Fashion Week has been affected by the #MeToo movement, and is also dealing with designers choosing not to attend.
More than 230,000 people flood the US city to attend the style festival that generates nearly $900 million (RM3.52 billion) a year for the city.
It is currently scheduled twice a year: in February and September.
But as social media influencers wrestle power from fashion editors and buyers, more labels than ever are opting out this season, abandoning New York for Europe, or tearing up the runway show altogether.
Fashion Week formally gets underway on Thursday and will be preceded by three days of men’s shows.
The sexual harassment watershed engulfing the United States and rocking the fashion industry has seen the Council of Fashion Designers of America unveil new guidelines in an attempt to clamp down on misconduct.
“We have zero tolerance for unsafe environments and strongly encourage everyone in our industry to report abuse in the workplace,” wrote CFDA chairman Diane von Furstenberg in a letter announcing the guidelines, which also raise awareness against eating disorders and advocate greater diversity.
Misconduct accusations have seen celebrated photographers Terry Richardson, Mario Testino, and Bruce Weber barred from collaborating with Vogue and Vanity Fair publisher Conde Nast.
The magazine empire has issued a new “Code of Conduct” to include bans on alcohol on sets, on under-18 models without a chaperone, and for nudity or “sexually suggestive” poses to be agreed beforehand.
But the Model Alliance has demanded “meaningful and lasting change,” saying “voluntary standards” without education, proper complaint mechanisms, and independent enforcement “are not going to work.”
Marchesa, the label of Harvey Weinstein’s estranged wife Georgina Chapman, cancelled their Valentine’s Day show, still reeling from the fallout of his downfall over multiple allegations ranging from sexual harassment to rape, in favour of “an updated format.”
Added to the schedule is a #MeToo fashion show, named for the movement against sexual harassment, on Friday to raise awareness.
“The only way to change things is to be united… and stand up and say, ‘That is not OK, we are not going to accept this anymore,'” organizer Myriam Chalek told The Daily Beast.
Alexander Wang, the New York king of cool whose urban chic is so adored by off-duty models, is making his swansong before this summer ditching the traditional February-September calendar in favour of June-December.
His departure follows the exit of Proenza Schouler and Rodarte for couture week in Paris on the same schedule, and Altuzarra, which moved to Paris Fashion Week.
“Why do something that’s not working?” Stephanie Horton, chief strategy officer at Alexander Wang told a recent industry event in New York. “The business model needs to change because the consumer has changed.”
Steven Kolb, president and CEO of the CFDA, predicts that other designers could follow suit.
“I think it’ll be a period of chaos, maybe, but chaos always calms down at some point,” he told the same event in New York.
Tommy Hilfiger is taking his see-now, buy-now fashion roadshow to Milan, Rihanna’s Fenty collaboration with Puma is taking a break, and rap superstar Kanye West chose to unveil his latest instalment for urban sportswear brand Yeezy last week on Instagram, modelled by his wife Kim Kardashian.
British former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham is marking her last show in New York before celebrating her label’s 10th anniversary in London. Spanish label Delpozo is already moving to London and Tome to Paris.
Bucking the trend is Italian luxury house Bottega Veneta, showing at the American Stock Exchange on Thursday as a one-off to celebrate a new boutique on Madison Avenue.
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Sumber New York Fashion Week weathers #MeToo storm