Dia & Co. Challenges Designers to Serve the 67%
The foundation of fashion is quickly changing as consumers become more involved in the choices reflecting what ends up on store shelves. Like Lane Bryant and Aerie before them, personal styling service Dia & Co. is standing up and demanding that designers see the 67% of women who constitute the invisible majority of the industry. The brand, who has a history of reflecting diverse women in their marketing efforts, including the inspirational IG Wives, has made an unmistakable statement in this Thursday’s Styles section of the New York Times. The full-page ad featured a direct call to action to designers that are currently in town for Fashion Week.
The ad is inteneded to promote the brand’s #movefashionforward campaign which was created by the company's founders in response to the alarming, but sadly unsurprising, results of a customer survey they conducted where 72% of women said that “they do not believe that fashion designers create their designs with the average American woman in mind” and 78% of women revealed that they "would be willing to spend more money on clothing if more designers offered plus-size options”.
Of course the always forward thinking Christian Siriano was ahead of this curve. It was an honor to attend his New York Fashion Week presentation this September and see women with my body type grace the runway alongside what was considered the industry “standard.” Still it seems the progress he represents is slow to spread.
Among the most popular brands that the women surveyed stated they would like to see available in their sizes were “Kate Spade, Tommy Hilfiger, Kenneth Cole, and Diane von Furstenberg."
I personally own well over three thousand dollars in Kate Spade and Diane Von Furstenberg merchandise (all of it purchased on clearance because the freelance struggle is so real) but NONE of it is clothing. I don’t even bother making my way to that section of the store because I know nothing there will be designed with me in mind. I just buy my handbags, scarves, and sunglasses and continue to wish that designers would stop thinking style stops after a size fourteen. Hopefully Dia & Co.’s encouraging efforts will help speed up change.
Want to learn more about Dia & Co? Check out Sandra of the IG Wives unboxing some of their curated styles below!