Wednesday, January 16, 2008
After 30 years the fashion industry is still the same
I vividly remember the day in 1979 when Murray, the owner of a t-shirt company, walked into our fashion buying office in New York City. I was new to my position of assistant buyer and did not yet understand the culture of the industry.
Rick, my boss, handed Murray a copy of an ad for proofing. It featured one of the knit tops he was selling our national chain of discount department stores.
He shouted out, “Darn [sic] it!”
“What's wrong?” Rick asked.
“They put it on a black girl,” he said.
“What's the matter with that?” Rick inquired. “She's very attractive and it looks good on her.”
Murray told us that fashion industry believed that using African-American models would reduce sales by 30 to 50%.
Fast forward to 2008 and a story published by the International Herald Tribune. Reporter Guy Trebay notes that little has changed as today's fashion runways remain various shapes of Caucasian.
According to TargetMarketNews.com, African-American women comprise a $20 billion marketplace. Regardless, Trebay reports that fashion show producers receive explicit orders that fashions appear on Caucasian women. Request of this nature come from fashion shows in New York, Milan, and Paris.
What does this say about the fashion culture?
I vividly remember the day in 1979 when Murray, the owner of a t-shirt company, walked into our fashion buying office in New York City. I was new to my position of assistant buyer and did not yet understand the culture of the industry.Rick, my boss, handed Murray a copy of an ad for proofing. It featured one of the knit tops he was selling our national chain of discount department stores.
He shouted out, “Darn [sic] it!”
“What's wrong?” Rick asked.
“They put it on a black girl,” he said.
“What's the matter with that?” Rick inquired. “She's very attractive and it looks good on her.”
Murray told us that fashion industry believed that using African-American models would reduce sales by 30 to 50%.
Fast forward to 2008 and a story published by the International Herald Tribune. Reporter Guy Trebay notes that little has changed as today's fashion runways remain various shapes of Caucasian.
According to TargetMarketNews.com, African-American women comprise a $20 billion marketplace. Regardless, Trebay reports that fashion show producers receive explicit orders that fashions appear on Caucasian women. Request of this nature come from fashion shows in New York, Milan, and Paris.
What does this say about the fashion culture?
Labels: Race
¶ 1/16/2008
