Do Better
“If you’re sitting silently as a fashion brand because you don’t want to disrupt your Instagram grid or lose any customers, that says something at this day and age after everything we’ve been through...A stronger, impactful approach is one that says what you’re going to do. Don’t take the easy way out.”
While this blog has only been around for a few months, I would say it mostly focuses on advancement, innovation, progress, as well as the brands and businesses who are working to make the fashion industry more sustainable. But in light of the protests sweeping the globe, this week I feel I must comment on a brand that I’ve championed in the past for its sustainable practices. While Reformation is a brand that has built its identity around sustainability and ethics, “over the weekend, Reformation was accused by a former employee of fostering an environment in which people of color were routinely overlooked for advancement in the company and had their concerns ignored” (Parisi, para. 1, 2020). Former employee, Elle Santiago, described the company as a place in which the concerns of people of color were not only overlooked but racist comments were made by some of the highest executives and frequently ignored. Reformation’s founder Yael Aflalo apologized via social media and announced the creation of “a Diversity and Inclusion Board to oversee diversity issues at the company and is adding diversity metrics to its annual sustainability report” (para. 9).
Brands taking to social media to condemn the murder of George Floyd and express solidarity with the protestors.
While Reformation is the brand in the hot-seat right now, it is not the only brand in the fashion industry to lack diversity and inclusion. As referenced in an article by Danny Parisi (2020): “Brittnee Anderson, a black former employee of Sephora, Kat Von D Beauty and Equinox, said that brands publicly touting progressive causes [like sustainability] but then not living up to those ideas internally is sadly a common experience for people of color in both beauty and fashion” (para. 7). Brands need to speak up and make a commitment to supporting the community of people of color. But simply posting on social media is not enough, brands must take action by looking internally (Vogue Business Team, 2020). As stated by Nelarine Cornelius, professor of organization studies at Queen Mary University in London, “beyond including people of color in organizations...structural and cultural changes have to be made to move forward” (para. 8). Industry professionals suggest appointing cultural diversity officers, as well as “reverse mentor and sponsor promotions for people of color and bring in external mentoring” (para. 9). Education is definitely necessary to avoid missteps due to ignorance, but it only goes so far. Leaders, employees and educators alike must work together to understand “the psychology of race and unconscious bias,” so that collectively the industry can move forward, allowing people of color voices to be heard (para. 11).
Bye for now,
McGee