Fashion Week History

Fashion week has been going on in New York this past week. It started on September fourth and goes until the eleventh of September. During this week New York is booming with models, celebrities and designers all going to the shows in order to see the new products that have come out. Some of the different shows that have gone on this week are by DKNY, Monique Lhuillier, Lacoste, Tommy Hilfiger, Ralph Loren, and Michael Kors just to name a few. So many people flock to this event now but when was the first fashion week? Why was fashion week ever created?

 The first ever New York fashion week was called “Press Week”. The event was held in the year 1943 and was the world’s first ever fashion week. A fashion journalist by the name Eleanor Lambert organized this event to show different American designers to national and international media. Lambert had been able to bring 53 designers shows to the Plaza Hotel. At this point in time most people were wearing French fashion and that is what was advertised in magazines. After this week, many different magazines including vogue started to showcase American designers fashion in their magazines and articles. Eleanor Lambert also founded the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CDFA). This organization’s mission is to further the position of fashion design as a recognized branch of American art and culture.

 In 1944 Ruth Finely launched the first Fashion Calendar. She was in charge of putting all of the events into one guide. This guide was helpful in bringing together the fashion and beauty industries. This included buyers, designers, and editors. Finely is still in charge of New York Fashion Week’s official calendar.

 In the year 1994, designers showed their collections in Bryant Park under white tents. This brought out more international exposure to American designers. During this time Fashion Week accumulated some major sponsors such as Mercedes-Benz, which the event is now named after. Soon there were so many people coming that the tents could no longer hold the large crowds. The shows moved to Lincoln Center and that is where it is being held today. Since this time, Fashion Weeks are held around the world in places like Australia, Berlin, and Istanbul. New York Fashion Week is held twice a year for designers to show their Spring/Summer collections and their Fall/ Winter collections. Fashion week gets bigger every year with designers, A-list celebrities and media.