Issues in the Fashion Industry Essay Example

Who doesn’t love fashion? Products from designers like Gucci, Alexander McQueen, and Prada? While luxury brands similar to these carry countless items that some cannot live without, they tend to develop cycles of exclusion and subordinate tactics to sell their products. This issue includes solely hiring models whom specific brands dream and desire based on many factors, especially body image. While everyone holds a special place in their heart for that Gucci purse, what luxury brands and labels do behind the scenes may cause one to think twice. Exclusivity in the fashion industry has become a worldwide problem and needs to come to an end. Because of weight and size, skin color, or money, not everyone can be included within the high standards of this unwelcoming setting.

People may think that the fashion industry has thus far figured out how to be all-inclusive. However, this is completely erroneous on their part as the world still exhibits the same type of models, skin colors, and prices being shown through ninety-nine percent of high-end brands. While Robin Givhan argues that “Four years ago, five women walked into IMG Models and immediately impressed the company’s president, Ivan Bart. One of them especially stood out. Her name was Ashley Graham and she was plus-size. But as Bart put it: ‘A star is a star is a star’” (Givhan 1), how do we know this is not just “a show”? Most of the time, designers and owners of big companies, such as IMG, will have a variety of models walk the runway and be displayed on billboards for their own good. This not only causes them to look better, but creates a world full of fake lies and actions. If displaying all kinds of models doesn’t come from the bottom of the brand’s heart, what good even is it? 

The major cause of exclusivity within fashion pertains to weight and size. This is not only applicable to models, but to consumers and viewers as well. Oftentimes, brands tend to hire models with a low body weight and body fat percentage, leading to the formation of society’s overall definition of skinny. Through the eyes of viewers from all ages, this cycle begins to be picked up on and causes others to want to be just like the models they see on various labels. This stems from the horrible and crazed eating disorders that have appeared rapidly in the last couple of years. As a result of desired skinniness and obsession over body image, many people will begin to uncontrollably starve themselves and obsess over the value and effect of food. This can lead to two of the most common eating disorders, Anorexia and Bulimia. Psychologists define Anorexia as a disorder where “individuals often see themselves as overweight, regardless of their true physical states” (PsychGuides 1). While not all of this is based directly off of the fashion industry itself, models and people apart of social media show signs of this daily, influencing followers, specifically teenagers, to develop eating issues. Attempting to starve oneself through Anorexia eventually leads to terrible suicidal thoughts and depression. This, in now way, demonstrates signs of inclusion. Bulimia also can also be attracted to viewers, defined as “ to consume vast quantities of food only to later induce vomiting in an effort to prevent absorption of the food” (PsychGuides 1). Bulimia most commonly stems from one with Anorexia as an attempt for one to hack the system with food. As having one of these disorders isn’t enough, malnourishment, bad breath, decayed teeth, and rapid weight gain can all arise due to the harsh damage one’s body receives. All of these effects and issues arise from one just wanting to be like the models and people they view through the fashion world. Wow. 

Diversity is another huge issue that the fashion industry needs to work on. Due to fear of judgment, differentiation, and standardization, companies within the fashion industry lack diversity within their models and workers. While they might not realize, this takes a huge toll on various races and ethnicities as they can never feel included or welcomed to buying the items they desire from certain brands. This is extremely noticeable within the high-end category of fashion. Designer Virgil Abloh, a designer for Louis Vuitton, shares his input as one of the few black figures working for the company, “Diversity isn’t just a question of gender and ethnicity. It’s a question of experience. It brings new ideas to the table. And it would be good if the fashion industry actually listened and took them on board” (Abloh 1). As he shares this message, Abloh missions to persuade other diverse and ethnic individuals to take their dreams by storm in a great aspiring way. Just because one’s skin color is against “the norm” doesn’t mean they should feel lesser and Louis Vuitton is causing this to occur as Abloh is one of the few black representatives. It is saddening and evident that diversity is lacking within fashion through Abloh’s experience. While some companies may have the diversity aspect down, it could just be for the appropriation and fame. This is evident through Dior as the brand “launched a message of support and solidarity accompanied with a black background” (Shukla/Khalifa 1) and has now been caught red handed. If diversity is going to be incorporated into a company, it should exclusively be done for the right reasons. 

The last citing of exclusion within the fashion industry is the expensive and unreasonable prices in which designers list their products at. While designer fashion is normally very expensive, there should be a cutoff on the amounts they are allowed to sell certain products at. It has been proven that “As their super-rich clients get wealthier still, haute couture brands cash in by offering increasingly rarefied fashion” (Helmore 1). While most might not care for this issue, designers are being extremely exclusive in the sense that they only focus on the good of their wealthy clients. As wealthy individuals buy more and more from these brands, the brands assume they are making more money, deciding to mark up the prices. This is unsensible and so unfair to clients with less money to spend. What if someone was saving up for a new Chanel bag and they just decided to mark up the price because of their wealthy clients? Now they can’t afford it because of the price change. They are not only hurting the people, but themselves as their wealthy clients will eventually get tired of spending money at these places. It is so unmannered and wrong for companies to achieve this level. While they have every right to do this, it is better to stay faithful to mankind and true to the values of their brand.

As a whole, the fashion industry undergoes exclusion through many ways, including body image, ethnicity, and pricing. While they have every right to do this, it’s extremely wrong to mankind. Staying true to your morals is much more than undergoing cycles of exclusion to make that extra cash.