Who’s Really Designing Fashion? The Creatives, the Marketers, or the Algorithm?
“Fashion has a viral addiction”
Where do we draw the line between the true meaning of storytelling and marketing? I have watched almost each show from the comfort of my home this past week, only to find out that a lot of brands are relying a lot on producing a fashion gimmick to have that viral factor and get more visibility on social media. There are far too many examples. Nobody posted the finale of Hodakova’s entire collection, but everybody posted the last look—the model wearing that double bass. The first preview we got to see of Duran Lantink’s show was the prosthetic breasts and the male torso. People cared more about Coperni’s gaming venue and Tamagotchi invitation than the collection itself. Balenciaga apparently showed “standard” clothes at the beginning of the show on purpose to then highlight its new collaboration with Puma.
The reality was that most shows that simply present clothes, without a “hook” or an overproduced venue, are doomed to have less visibility on social media. People love gimmicks and brands are fighting harder than ever for attention. But visibility and media amplification can only last so long. Months later, you realize that everybody has already forgotten about your “story” and nobody is rushing out to buy your clothes.
I think social media has ruined a lot of brands. Today, it’s a competition to see who goes viral next—before even questioning whether the clothes are any good. Sometimes, I understand why brands like The Row prohibit attendees from using their phones inside their shows. We’ve got it wrong. They don’t do it to appear more luxurious or exclusive; they do it because they don’t want to be part of the viral competition—the Fashion Week Visibility Olympics. Unfortunately, not everybody is The Row, so some have to play the viral game to get noticed. As a very small writer and creator, I find myself caught up in this game too, so I can only imagine how much more stressful it is for fashion brands.
I’m going to sound old saying this, but years ago, fashion storytelling used to mean something. Now, people barely read press releases. Only a handful of media platforms genuinely care about the context, going backstage to ask creative directors real questions—beyond just searching for Alex Consani to say something funny and can go viral on TikTok or post the only look from the collection that can be ‘memeable’. Some media platforms only interview the creative directors that “matter”. I don’t know if it’s because I’m an outsider looking in from my little screen, seeing how superficial everything appears, or if I’m just wrong. And anyone could tell me I’m wrong—after all, I’m guilty of liking those viral moments on social media too.
What gives me hope is that some brands still align their stories with their collections. And when I see that, I cannot help but feel completely excited, like a kid in a candy store. When references match the clothes, it is impossible not to smile or even feel that urge to buy them—or, if I don’t have the means, at least go to the store to see and touch them in person. Some recent examples from big brands that have done this well include Alaïa, Tom Ford, Rick Owens, Valentino, Issey Miyake, Yohji Yamamoto, Comme des Garçons, Prada, Diesel, Valentino, Burberry, Dilara Findikoglu, Luar, Willy Chavarria and Thom Browne.
After years in the industry, I think most people who fell in love first with the narrative side of fashion—not the superficial side—can agree that your eye becomes more trained each year at recognizing what’s going to sell and what’s not. And being in constant contact with the industry makes you also conscious that gimmicks tend to be forgotten. As the industry keeps chasing viral moments, we have to ask—who is really shaping fashion today? The designers? The marketers? Or the algorithms feeding us what we ‘should’ care about? If storytelling is just a tool for engagement, does it even matter anymore?