Social Media is Taking its Toll on the Fashion Industry

 

As it has made its mark on the world, social media has started to wear and tear the fashion industry. Attendees of fashion week shows are able to see the line before it is displayed for the public, but social media gives them the opportunity to show the rest of the world. Many A-list celebrities are front row viewers at these shows, and their high number of followers isn’t necessarily a good thing for designers. Millions of their followers are seeing the new lines and designs, which diminishes anticipation and excitement for the new arrivals in stores.

Before this year’s fashion week, many designers requested that all phones were to be put away and no pictures were to be taken during the show. This is not something that seems outrageous because most designers don’t want their work to be exposed. One of the biggest problems that led to this decision was that so many people were posting pictures of the fashion online, by the time the clothes were available in stores, nobody wanted them because they were already considered “out of style”. The only way around this is to take away the social media element.

Social Media plays such a big role in our everyday lives. People draw inspiration for their own lives from the lives of celebrities or other people that they follow on social media. Models and celebrities set the trends for what people should be wearing. When they post from Fashion Week, those items may be in style then, but by the time they become available to regular people, months later, there are new trends that people are following.

 

What will this mean for the future of Fashion Week?

Fashion Week has been used for so many years as an outlet for designers to give people a taste of their collection and attract new customers. With the expansion of social media, it doesn’t seem unlikely that designers will create a more interactive way for their work to be displayed. Designers spend so much money on their shows, and if they are not making a profit that will balance out their spending, then there will be a new and cost efficient way to show the world their work. This may mean that Fashion Week will have to find new ways to stay prevalent, without being exposed.