Fashion is quite worldwide, but the bulk of the market is still owned by just a handful of major global cities from New York to Milan. With a new exhibit at the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology though, the idea that other fashion capitals around the world may be on the rise. I mean, there's your Sydneys and Tokyos of the world, but we're talking deep cut spots like Lagos, Nigeria, Antwerp, Stockholm and Mexico City, amongst others, putting fashion on the map. Following in the footsteps of China and Asia in general, where fashion exploded over the past few decades, Africa seems to be the new focus.
There are enough sanctioned fashion weeks around the world that it really feels more like fashion is happening on a daily, international basis year round. While it's good to see smaller cities and thus smaller designers getting some recognition at the local level, the important names still flock to fashion's major capitals. And if there is a smaller brand who wants to make it big, they still must do their damndest to get a spot in the major leagues.
But as Vanessa Friedman points out in The New York Times, emerging fashion locales still need more than just talented designers and the ability for them to build a solid business. Consumers in these cities must buy in as well because obviously you can't have a successful homegrown business if the locals don't buy the clothing. Still, it would be nice to see some of the smaller cities rise up and provide formidable fashion atmospheres to truly make the industry as global as everyone always says it is.
