Must Read: New York Fashion Week's Ties to the Trump-Supporting Billionaire, DIY Beauty Is Trending
Plus, should we find a more sustainable alternative to fashion week?
These are the stories making headlines in fashion on Friday.
Phillip Picardi on NYFW and its ties to the Trump-supporting billionaire
"Any fashion week event heading to Hudson Yards is bound to be tainted by the corporate greed of a billionaire who took from the poor, manipulated city funds and is now using the profits of his expansive empire to pad the pockets of the most overtly racist, anti-LGBTQ+ President in modern history," writes Phillip Picardi in an op-ed for Business of Fashion. Picardi is referring to Stephan Ross, the billionaire real estate developer getting flak for his Trump fundraiser in the Hamptons this weekend. Ross happens to be behind Hudson Yards, which is speculated to be the future home of NYFW. His wife, Kara Ross, is also a board member of the CFDA. {Business of Fashion}
DIY beauty is trending
Euromonitor International reports that 41% of global beauty consumers use a DIY product monthly, with facial cleansers being the most popular product to create. Despite this growing interest, many premium beauty retailers are still reluctant to stock DIY products because the margins on selling single-ingredient products are low, and the category requires more education and testing. {Vogue Business}
Should we find a more sustainable alternative to fashion week?
"From the amount of materials and power used (and wasted) when it comes to show production, to the amount of flights needed to transport thousands of editors, buyers, influencers and models around the world season after season, what cannot be denied is that canceling fashion week as a whole and looking for an alternative means through which to demonstrate creativity would certainly help to alleviate the massive impact the event has on the planet," writes Jake Hall for Dazed. In the piece, Hall gathers insight from a series of fashion insiders, sustainability experts and forward-thinking designers to find out what those alternatives could be. {Dazed}
Emmanuelle Alt reflects on her eight years as the editor-in-chief of Vogue Paris
Emmanuelle Alt replaced Carine Roitfeld as editor-in-chief of Vogue Paris in 2011, having previously served as the magazine's fashion director. Vogue Business caught up with Alt to discuss her last eight years at the title, what the Vogue brand stands for today and what she looks for in a potential hire. "Vogue has become an object to treasure, something to collect, something to keep," she says in the interview. "The more we look at things in a very quick way — Vogue is the opposite. It's a luxury." {Vogue Business}
Influencers are diversifying
Top content creators are starting to leverage their influence into big businesses. Among top-tier influencers, like Chriselle Lim, Danielle Bernstein and Julia Engel, the ultimate goal is to build fashion and beauty empires that don't rely on their image to sell products. Other social media stars are looking to venture into the lucrative world of tech startups. {Business of Fashion}
Sexual wellness startups are ripe for acquisition
Interest in female-centric sexual wellness products have grown over the last year, making the companies that produce them ripe for acquisition. Sustain Natural, which sells a line of organic lubricants, condoms, period cups and tampons, was acquired by e-commerce platform Grove Collaborative earlier this week, and Proctor & Gamble acquired period care startup This is L. in February. Unilever and Sundial both invested in sexual wellness brand The Honey Pot in 2018. {Glossy}
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