How New York Fashion Week Transformed into a Celebrity Hotspot

As we edge ever closer to New York Fashion Week, the excitement in the fashion design arena is growing. However, there’s also excitement for celebrities and this is something we want to explore today. How did New York Fashion Week become such an important event for celebrities?

Humble Beginnings

In the early days, fashions weeks all over the world were introduced so that buyers and the press could get an insight into what was to come in the world of fashion. In fact, some would even call it ‘press week’. After seeing the models do their thing on the runway, they would hurry back to their computers and try to be the first to report on new trends. With the first fashion week taking place in 1943, it remained this way for many years.

However, in the 1990s, everything was about to change.

Celebrity Social Gathering

Back in 1993, New York Fashion Week was moved to Bryant Park and everything became centralized for the first time. As a result, celebrities were excited by the prospect of having all of the big names of fashion in one location. The more time that passed, the more common it was to see huge names in the world of music, TV, and film wandering through the tents in Bryant Park.

Of course, as with anything of this nature, the press started to report on the big names that had attended the event. As more celebrities attended and more stories reached the shelves and websites of these celebrities, it quickly became a spectacle. Not only would celebrities enjoy attending fashion weeks, we loved reading about them.

In 2010, New York Fashion Week broke up again but this time as a direct result of the success. As the week continued to expand during the 2000s, the 300 shows started to conflict with the management of Bryant Park, which led to a move. Now, the shows take place in the plazas at Lincoln Center and a number of other locations.

At first, experts were worried about decentralizing the event, but the risk seems to have paid off and more celebrities than ever attend…and are expected to turn up next week.

The Rise of Influencers

Is there a danger of going back to the traditional ‘press week’? Not really, and this is because of the new ‘influencers’ we have in the industry. Whether on YouTube, social media, or another online platform, influencers have a huge role in fashion weeks and many companies rely on their presence for advertising and partnerships.

This year, the New York Fashion Week is highly anticipated for the vast number of shows. If you can’t attend, the classic ‘press week’ traditions of writing about the event still exist and we can’t wait to see the biggest stories that capture the audience’s imagination. Are there any shows you’re looking forward to in particular?