Welcome to the 238th insertion of DEMUR®, an analytical series highlighting the intricacies of the artistic world and the minutiae lying within. In this episode, we look at fashion's questionable relationship with age, explaining why the industry is obsessed with the youth yet run by old people.
Fashion is a contradictory industry by nature. The sub-culture is built upon contrasting ideals like Summer collections in the Winter and pet lovers who wear fur. Still, the most confusing idea lies in the shadows of an unspoken age gap between the consumers and the target audiences. Having surfaced in the wake of the 21st century, this unique disparity has only continued to grow as time ticks onward, leaving us to unravel a seemingly backward system.
At first glance, the number of relevant seniors in the fashion industry is shocking. To name a few, Karl Lagerfeld (80) upheld his position at Chanel until his passing in 2019, Ralph Lauren (84) is the executive chairman and chief creative officer at his namesake label, Anna Wintour (74) is a runway critic and editor, Giorgio Armani (89), remains as the sole CEO of his design empire and Miuccia Prada (74) designs for her eponymous label to this day.
With such a large power tilt toward the elderly, it's puzzling to see fashion continue to cater to the youth through marketing, design and attitude. Not only does the 60s-80s demographic have the most significant sum of disposable income, but hell, the whole industry is controlled by them. One would think designers would lean into this pool of payment-ready clients instead of pushing mini skirts and platform heels, but beauty sells products, and it's most commonly found in early adulthood.
While this means the ripe age for modelling dies around 27, it also makes for large, external silhouette markets like handbags and jewellery, which can focus less on the wearer and more on the commodity. But, it can also lead to challenges as adolescent interest turns to luxury for the first time since couture's inception, leaving designers torn between corporate sales goals, relevancy and creative expression.
Comments