Although we're starting to feel like a broken record, it simply cannot be said enough: diversity is a huge problem in the fashion industry. This fact was noticed by a 26-year-old Canadian who decided to take matters into her own hands and open the world's first non-white modeling agency, according to The Guardian.
The 26-year-old, Nafisa Kaptownwala, started Lorde Inc in London in May of last year. Kaptownwala was working in the fashion industry and saw how little models of color there were and decided to open Lorde with a friend. The operation was a quick success and within a year Lorde's models have already been included in several magazines, including issues of Dazed and i-D.
Lorde and Kaptownwala are at the forefront of a wave of prominent designers, including Givenchy's Riccardo Tisci and Balmain's Olivier Rousteing, who have argued in their own ways that the fashion industry is lacking diversity. Dior's selection of Rihanna as its newest campaign star was also seen as a moment to celebrate. However, Kaptownwala is still down on the idea that fashion is actually becoming more diverse.
"There’s still not a massive demand because this is still a radical idea and people in fashion are not really ready for it," she tells The Guardian. "Things are changing but in a minimal way. There were more models of color on the catwalk in the '90s than there are now." It's hard to argue otherwise when only a very small amount of non-white models walked in recent fashion weeks.
Not only of are people of color not getting as many jobs, but when they do they are often forced to bring their own makeup, unlike their white counterparts, according to a recent model who spoke out against the industry.
Read the whole profile on Lorde Inc here.
