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Does the Fashion Industry Neglect Disability?
Fashion is a huge industry and is so embedded into our daily lives even if we do not necessarily notice it. Fashion is everywhere on television adverts, billboards, magazines, and many more platforms, and over the years has sparked various questions as to whether the fashion industry is bias to certain stereotypes. Disabled people for many years have been ignored in mainstream fashion and in the year 2020, it should be something celebrated and expressed through fashion and fashion marketing. It is prominent that from mainstream fashion brands websites, and social media pages that their content clearly does not tailor the disabled community, as in many cases there is zero…
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Designing for Disabilities: The Rise of Adaptive Fashion
Abled does not mean enabled. Disabled does not mean less abled. Khang Kijarro Nguyen Over the past few years, there has been a huge rise in demand for ‘adaptive fashion’. Adaptive fashion is “clothing specifically designed for those with disabilities and chronic conditions.” We’ve seen this on runways, across social media, and in magazines. Previously, there was always a lack of inclusion for those with disabilities in the world of fashion, however, now there is global awareness of making everyBODY feel worthy of the runway. Owning the modelling industry Particularly, there have been a tremendous amount of models who have broke the non-inclusive mould by sharing their disability stories with…
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It’s time to represent everyone in fashion
Since the start of advertising for industries like fashion, there have been specific standards and stereotypes used to present products to the consumer. In the fashion world, these standards and stereotypes are imagined through tall, thin, and predominantly white models. These models are beautiful people in the eyes of society but only represent the minority. It’s time for this industry to open its eyes and represent every person, every body type, every gender and every culture. The dawn of diverse representation In a world where there are so many different types of people, the fashion industry was slow to represent them. It was only in the 2010s when we began…
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It is Time for Inclusivity in the Fashion Industry
Does the fashion industry do enough to cater to people with disabilities? Over the course of the last few years, diversity and the representation of minority groups has been a pivotal topic within the fashion industry. As a result of this the industry has become more inclusive. There seems to be a conscious effort to diversify brands, moving away from the default of basing and advertising brands only on the appearance of typical Eurocentric beauty standards. This has been attained through the inclusion of a diverse range of models of varying race, gender, and religious backgrounds. A significant example of this in the industry can be seen through the debut…
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Are Brands Ignoring The Needs of Those With Disabilities?
For all the positive changes that the fashion industry is making in terms of diversity, there are still changes to be made for the groups of people who still lack visibility. There are currently 13.9 million people living with disabilities in the UK alone. Due to the lack of representation of people with disabilities in the workforce, media, and fashion industry, this figure goes unnoticed. As a consequence, there is much to be addressed in the fashion industry for this dynamic and vibrant community to make steps towards inclusiveness. The industry has grown massively in terms of diversity, designers and brands have become more conscious of body types, skin colour,…
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Chanel Ignites Controversy Upon Appointing its First Head of Diversity and Inclusion Chief
Throughout the past few years, diversity and inclusion has become the pinocle point of importance for most industries, particularly the fashion industry. Mitú reports the fashion industry is notorious for safeguarding and creating “a lack of diversity in its designers, models and photographers.” Trailing the steps of major luxury brands, French fashion house Chanel appoint its first Head of Diversity and Inclusion. According to Business of Fashion, Fiona Pargeter will be taking on this new role. Pargeter’s previous role was Head of Diversity and Inclusion at Swiss Bank UBS in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. A variety of luxury fashion houses such as Gucci, Prada and Dolce & Gabbana have testified and claimed to…
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Diverse Fashion: Let Your Freak Flag Fly
When I think of diversity, I do not necessarily go to the normal categories. Race, sexuality, gender, age, disability, and many others can seem, on occasion, not universal enough for people to discuss on a broader scale. When I think of diversity I think of the self, how each person, no matter their age, creed, hopes or dreams, is different and how we can make our individuality who we are. People are not all that different once we start wearing our true face on the outside. Everyone knows a little about themselves and therefore can determine their own style. Everyone can create their own diverse fashion. Frivolity: How fancy free…
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Fashion + Diversity – Are Brands Doing Enough?
Slowly, and steadily the fashion industry is becoming more diverse, but there is still a long way to go. If I asked you to name any models you could, you would probably give me names like Kate Moss, Kendall Jenner, and Cara Delevingne. What do all these women have in common? They’re all tall, skinny white women. If I asked you to name any models who don’t fit this description, how many could you name? In 2018, a report said that out of 7,608 models 32.5% were people of colour. Within the past decade, the industry has taken baby steps to be more inclusive. But we are still at the…
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The Long and Winding Road: Fashion Brands’ Journey to Diversity
The fashion industry has changed in many ways during the last few decades. Although the evolvement of fast fashion has resulted in a variety of complexities, some positive developments have occurred as well. Slowly, the fashion product offer has begun to diversify and serve more than one or two body types. More recently, the marketing of fashion has allowed a more diverse range of models to be seen by consumers. Narrow size ranges Many fashion brands from high street to luxury have had a narrow clothing size offer in the past. Those size ranges have not reflected the needs of many fashion consumers. By choosing to offer clothes in sizes…
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When Will Adaptive Clothing Become the New Normal?
The fashion industry has made noticeable progress with its level of diversity but the disabled market is still significantly underrepresented. From catwalk shows to marketing campaigns to shopping on the high-street, disabled consumers are often forgotten, despite the fact they want to be just as stylish as the rest of us. Over 13.9 million people are disabled in the UK alone, of which many have significant spending power. So why have nearly all fashion brands chosen to ignore this huge sector of the market? With consumers becoming more woke and only aligning with brands that offer diversity and inclusivity, adaptive clothing could soon be crucial to a brand’s success. The…
