Last night Business of Fashion hosted a summit BoF West at the Westfield Mall in Century City. It was a moment in which the worlds of tech, media, Hollywood, beauty and fashion all converged to dissect the financial and cultural impact of the fashion and beauty industries. Here are some things we were able to pick up from the different panels.
_**Shatter the norm the outsider view is important**_. Stitch Fix Founder and CEO Katrina Lake, Everlane Founder and CEO Michael Preysman, and Beautycon CEO Moj Mahdara Spoke of the ways in which their presence as an outsider had affected the conventional practices of fashion and beauty. The risks taken from these practices saw the brands grow dynamically with fewer resources than their more traditional contemporaries.
**_Believe in a world with many smaller brands rather than one big one. Niche audiences becoming mass._** _**Beauty people behaving around tribes and communities commerce and content.**_ As BeautyCon's Moj Mahdara had mentioned the way which bigger companies were trying to adopt practices niche companies had mastered, the fact is that the outreach and communities were grown organically proving that indie companies have a stake in the industry. Though at times daunting, the largest conglomerates still do not grasp more than a high single digit percent of the market allowing for a diverse array of products.
**_A brand can be politically aware but support is more important. The #MeToo moment created a community within the fashion worlds stylists._** Though the concept of fashion activism is no new thing, the activism and political support brought on through the #MeToo and equal pay movement have reached another level in which support and action are at the forefront of speaking to the consumer. Philosophical alignment and statements have been replaced with overall activism and proactive pushes towards change. The second panel of stylists including Elizabeth Saltzman, Karla Welch, and Jason Bolden reflected upon interactions and dynamics which were forged out of the 2018 Golden Globes awards which saw a procession of actresses wearing all black in solidarity of the Weinstein survivors as well as more vocal interviews on equal pay issues in regards to color and gender.
**_Just because you don’t play tennis that doesn’t mean it’s not relevant_** One of the most poignant statements to come out of the night was a quote from Jason Bolden who pointed out several systematic issues which inflicted the fashion worlds coupling of celebrity. From the dynamics of PR relations vs designer and celeb relations to the uses of the atypical beauty of the fashion industry. The main take away is that there are so many markets that have not been tapped into though they yield the same power and growing cachet.
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Photos Courtesy of Business of Fashion/ Getty
Written By BJ Panda Bear
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