New York Fashion Week

New York Fashion Week
Model Liu Wen walks the runway modeling fashions by designer Diane von Fürstenberg at New York Fashion Week 2013.
Frequency	Semi-annually
Location(s)	Manhattan, New York City (primarily at Skylight Clarkson Square and Industria)
Country	United States
Inaugurated	1943
Founder	Eleanor Lambert

New York Fashion Week (NYFW), held in February and September of each year, is a semi-annual series of events in Manhattan typically spanning seven to nine days when international fashion collections are shown to buyers, the press, and the general public. It is one of four major fashion weeks in the world, collectively known as the "Big Four," along with those in Paris, London, and Milan. ^{[1] [2]} The Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) created the modern notion of a centralized "New York Fashion Week" in 1993, although cities like London were already using their city's name in conjunction with the words fashion week in the 1980s. NYFW is based on a much older series of events called "Press Week," founded in 1943. ^[3] On a global scale, most business and sales-oriented shows and some couture shows take place in New York City.

A centralized calendar of citywide events (including those affiliated with WME/IMG) is kept by the CFDA, ^[4] and was acquired from calendar founder Ruth Finley. ^[5] The annual economic impact of New York Fashion Week upon New York City was estimated at US$887 million in 2016. ^[6]

Origins

Opening Day for a fashion show in New York, seen in Harper's Bazaar in 1868.

The first New York Fashion Week was created in 1943 by Eleanor Lambert, press director of the American fashion industry's first promotional organization, the New York Dress Institute. ^[7]

The event, the world's first organized fashion week, was called "Press Week", and was created to attract attention away from French fashion during World War II, when fashion industry insiders were unable to travel to Paris to see French fashion shows. ^[8] It was also meant to showcase American designers for fashion journalists, who had neglected U.S. fashion innovations.

Press Week in New York was a success, and fashion magazines like Vogue , which were normally filled with French designs, increasingly featured American fashion. ^[8]

By the mid-1950s, the event was known as "Press Week of New York". Spring 1951 (held February 1951) was the 16th Annual Press Week of New York. ^[9]

Consolidation as "7th on Sixth"

In 1993, the Council of Fashion Designers of America, CFDA, led by president Stan Herman and executive director Fern Mallis, ^{[10] [11]} consolidated the citywide events known as "New York Fashion Week" by staging them in a cluster of white tents in Bryant Park. ^{[12] [13] [14]} The event was branded with the trademark "7th on Sixth". ^[15]

21st century

Internationally, most business and sales-oriented shows and some couture shows have taken place in New York City since 2010. The emphasis, however, has perennially been financial. New York's LGBT fashion design community contributes very significantly to promulgating fashion trends, and drag celebrities have developed a profound influence upon New York Fashion Week. ^[16]

• In 2001, "7th on Sixth" was sold to IMG. ^[17] The exhibition was canceled in September 2001 in light of the September 11 attacks. The 9/11 terrorist attacks occurred on what should have been the fourth day of NYFW. The exhibition they were having to feature a maternity designer was canceled as well as all remaining events .
• In 2007, ^[18] Mercedes-Benz became title sponsor of the IMG-produced events, adding New York to its roster of international "Mercedes-Benz fashion weeks", ^[19] and dubbing it "MB Fashion Week New York". ^[20]
• In 2010, IMG/Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week New York left the Bryant Park tents, relocating to the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. ^{[21] [22]}
• In September 2011, New York designers began live-streaming runway shows, in order to reach a greater audience. The following London, who began in February 2010. ^{[23] [24]} Streams were originally offered on YouTube, and later on other sites.
• In 2013, IMG and its New York Fashion Week events were sold to William Morris Endeavor (WME) and Silver Lake Partners for $2.3 billion. ^{[25] [26]}
• In 2014, the CFDA acquired FashionCalendar.com from Ruth Finley. The company had managed it (originally in the paper, then in digital format) for more than 60 years. ^{[27] [28]}
• In January 2015, Mercedes-Benz announced its departure as title sponsor from WME/IMG's events. ^[29] Producer Kanye West announced he would gladly take over sponsorship of the event. ^[30]
• In March 2015, WME/IMG announced that it had acquired MADE Fashion Week, which takes place during WME/IMG's events. ^{[31] [32]}
• In 2015, IMG's events were moved from Lincoln Center to Spring Studios. ^{[21] [33] [34]}

Current location

The primary location for New York Fashion Week is Spring Studios at 50 Varick Street in Lower Manhattan. Locations have included a waterfront carnival, converted railway terminals and a former post office. ^[35]

Other notable events

2014

Haute couture fashion models walk the runway during New York Fashion Week.

In February 2014, Dr. Danielle Sheypuk became the first wheelchair-using model to appear in a show for New York Fashion Week; she modeled for designer Carrie Hammer. ^{[36] [37]}

In September 2014, Karen Crespo became the first quadruple-amputee to walk at New York Fashion Week, also for Carrie Hammer. ^{[37] [38]}

On December 12, 2014, a New York state court approved a settlement in a lawsuit by community activists over whether allowing the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week tents in Damrosch Park was a violation of the public trust doctrine. In accordance with the settlement, the City of New York, the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, and Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts agreed not to renew their contract with IMG. As a result, the February 2015 Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week was the last one staged in Damrosch Park. ^[39]

In 2014, New York State passed legislation designating models under the age of 18 as child performers, restricting the hours they can perform and requiring additional documentation. ^[40]

2015

Actress Jamie Brewer became the first woman with Down syndrome to walk the red carpet at New York Fashion Week, which she did for designer Carrie Hammer. ^[41]

In December 2015, the CFDA announced that it had hired the Boston Consulting Group to study revising the format of New York Fashion Week to adapt to changes brought about by social media. One option being explored is to bifurcate the event, with private showroom appointments of next season's designs for buyers and public fashion shows displaying in-season merchandise for consumers. ^{[42] [43] [44]}

The first New York Fashion Week dedicated menswear shows, called "New York Fashion Week: Men's", were produced. ^[45]

2016

The season ended with a number of designers either experimenting with, or planning to adopt, a "see now, buy now model", with items available from the runway immediately after (or even during) the show, rather than six months later. ^[46] The charge was led by brands such as Burberry, ^[47] although experiments in the format can be traced back to earlier shows by designers such as Diane von Furstenberg.

Attendance

Admission to shows at New York Fashion Week is typically in the form of accreditation, with specific events by invitation only. Most of the time attendees are other designers, celebrities, and social media influencers. ^[48]

No "official" New York Fashion Week

In spite of CFDA's claim to run the "official" New York Fashion Week calendar, ^[49] and as further purported by publications such as Women's Wear Daily , ^[50] it has been pointed out in publications such as The Fashion Law that CFDA has "little, in any, legal rights in the NYFW name". ^[51] Therefore, trademark rights remain unclear, at best.

Trademark litigation

In 2013 Fashion Week Inc., founded by business executive Trisha Paravas, registered the trademarks "New York Fashion Week", "NYFW" and "NYFW The Runway Shows" to use in conjunction with the production of its consumer-based fashion shows after realizing the current slate of New York Fashion Shows were invitation-only and designed for industry professionals and media.

Trisha Paravas launched bi-yearly shows in December 2013 and initially called them "New York Fashion Shows". After her first few shows drew increasing interest, she decided to rebrand it. At the time, Paravas claimed there was no trademark filed for "New York Fashion Week", and filed for "New York Fashion Week" trademark, along with the abbreviation "NYFW". ^[52]

The Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) lacked registrations for the "New York Fashion Week" trademarks, and tried to cancel Fashion Week Inc's registrations. Nonetheless, the CFDA was unsuccessful in its effort to have Fashion Week, Inc.'s "New York Fashion Week" trademark cancelled. ^{[53] [54]}

On June 28, 2016, Fashion Week Inc. and its CEO Trisha Paravas filed a lawsuit for $10 million against CFDA and WME-IMG for trademark counterfeiting, trademark infringement, false designation of origin, dilution, and unfair competition. ^{[55] [56] [57] [58]}

On August 12, 2016, the court denied Paravas and Fashion Week Inc.'s motion for a preliminary injunction. ^[59] Judge Koeltl held that although Fashion Week, Inc. does have rights in the New York Fashion Week trademark, those rights are "limited" to "online entertainment ticket agency sales". On the other hand, the court held that the CFDA and WME IMG enjoy rights in the mark for the "broad ambit of organizing and producing fashion shows". ^[60]

linked topics

• Fashion portal
• New York City portal
• New York (state) portal
• United States portal
• North America portal

• Fashion week
• List of fashion events

References

1. Bradford, Julie (2014). Fashion Journalism. Routledge. p. 129. ISBN   9781136475368. Archived from the original on January 1, 2016. Retrieved November 20, 2015.
2. Dillon, Susan (2011). The Fundamentals of Fashion Management. A&C Black. p. 115. ISBN   9782940411580. Archived from the original on January 1, 2016. Retrieved November 20, 2015.
3. "History of New York Fashion Week – New York Fashion Week". Archived from the original on May 5, 2017. Retrieved April 11, 2016.
4. CFDA. "CFDA + Fashion Calendar". Archived from the original on July 3, 2015. Retrieved July 2, 2015.
5. "The CFDA Purchases The Fashion Calendar With The Promise To Streamline Fashion Week". fashionweekdaily.com. July 25, 2014. Archived from the original on July 3, 2015. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
6. "NYFW Memo from the CFDA". cfda.com. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved February 26, 2016.
7. "History". cfda.com. Archived from the original on March 7, 2016. Retrieved August 3, 2015.
8. Fortini, Amanda (February 8, 2006). "A brief history of the fashion show". Slate.com. Archived from the original on October 10, 2020. Retrieved April 21, 2014.
9. "Indian Valley Record February 1, 1951 Page 10". Archived from the original on October 10, 2020. Retrieved August 3, 2015.
10. Chunovic, Louis (April 16, 2014). "The People's Designer – Stan Herman". Loews Magazine. Archived from the original on November 22, 2016. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
11. Fernandez, Chantal (June 29, 2015). "How Stan Herman, Father of Fashion Week, Changed the U.S. Fashion Industry". Fashionista. Archived from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
12. Mell, Eila (2011). New York Fashion Week: The Designers, the Models, the Fashions of the Bryant Park Era. Running Press. p.  10. ISBN   978-0762441914.
13. "Pitching a Few New Tents of Her Own". The New York Times. February 9, 2012. Archived from the original on February 2, 2017. Retrieved February 17, 2017.
14. Spindler, Amy (October 31, 1993). "Designers Turn New York Into a Fashion Big Top". The New York Times. Archived from the original on February 19, 2015. Retrieved December 19, 2014.
15. Lieber, Chavie (January 22, 2015). "The Glamorous Past, Troubled Present, and Uncertain Future of NYFW". racked.com. Archived from the original on July 3, 2015. Retrieved July 2, 2015.
16. Tyler McCall (September 15, 2022). "Drag Queens Are the New VIPs of Fashion Week". The CUT, New York magazine . Retrieved September 19, 2022.
17. Horyn, Cathy (February 6, 2001). "Front Row: Designers council sells sponsorship of New York Fashion Week to IMG, the sports management and marketing company". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 8, 2015. Retrieved December 19, 2014.
18. "EventsPartnerships". Archived from the original on July 3, 2015. Retrieved July 2, 2015.
19. "Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week". mbfashionweek.com. Archived from the original on May 5, 2014. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
20. "Mercedes Threatens to Bail on New York Fashion Week". hollywoodreporter.com. November 12, 2014. Archived from the original on August 4, 2020. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
21. "It's Official: New York Fashion Week Is Leaving Lincoln Center". The Hollywood Reporter . December 18, 2014. Archived from the original on November 13, 2015. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
22. "A New Home for New York Fashion Week". The New York Times. February 3, 2009. Archived from the original on April 1, 2017. Retrieved February 17, 2017.
23. "London Fashion Week to be streamed live". Independent.co.uk . February 19, 2010. Archived from the original on October 29, 2017. Retrieved September 6, 2017.
24. "Way Off the Runway: Live Streaming of Fashion Week". The New York Times. September 8, 2011. Archived from the original on May 2, 2015. Retrieved February 17, 2017.
25. Cohan, William D. (February 13, 2015). "Ari Emanuel's Risky and Possibly Catastrophic WME-IMG Merger". vanityfair.com. Archived from the original on February 14, 2015. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
26. "IMG WORLDWIDE TO BE ACQUIRED BY SILVER LAKE PARTNERS AND WILLIAM MORRIS ENDEAVOR". IMG. Archived from the original on July 4, 2015.
27. "How the CFDA's Acquisition of the Fashion Calendar Will Change Fashion Week". July 25, 2014. Archived from the original on December 12, 2020. Retrieved July 2, 2015.
28. "Fashion Calendar". fashioncalendar.com. Archived from the original on July 3, 2015. Retrieved July 2, 2015.
29. "IMG Loses Mercedes as New York Fashion Week Sponsor". hollywoodreporter.com. January 5, 2015. Archived from the original on August 3, 2018. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
30. T. H. R. Staff (February 4, 2015). "Kanye West Will Debut Adidas Collab at New York Fashion Week (Report)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 17, 2021.
31. Zumberge, Marianne (March 23, 2015). "IMG Acquires MADE Fashion Week". IMG. Archived from the original on August 16, 2018. Retrieved December 10, 2017.
32. "IIMG ACQUIRES MADE FASHION WEEK". IMG. Archived from the original on July 4, 2015.
33. "For Fashion Week This Fall: Location, Location, Location". The New York Times. January 8, 2015. Archived from the original on September 6, 2015. Retrieved February 17, 2017.
34. Lockwood, Lisa (April 13, 2015). "New York Fashion Week Leaves Lincoln Center". Archived from the original on September 4, 2015. Retrieved July 2, 2015.
35. "New York Fashion Week: When, where, what to wear | am New York". Archived from the original on October 27, 2017. Retrieved October 27, 2017.
36. "Model Danielle Sheypuk: 'People with disabilities are consumers of fashion'". The Guardian. February 14, 2014. Archived from the original on September 15, 2019. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
37. "Karen Crespo's Triumphant Walk". ABC News. September 8, 2014. Archived from the original on September 18, 2020. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
38. Jessica Probus (March 7, 2015). "A Quadruple Amputee Walked The Runway At New York Fashion Week". Buzzfeed.com. Archived from the original on April 27, 2017. Retrieved March 12, 2015.
39. "New York Fashion Week Booted Out of Lincoln Center". The New York Times. December 18, 2014. Archived from the original on December 20, 2014. Retrieved December 19, 2014.
40. Koblin, John (February 9, 2014). "New York Law Adds Maturity to Runways". The New York Times. Archived from the original on September 11, 2016. Retrieved March 16, 2019.
41. Jessica Probus, Stephanie McNeal (February 12, 2015). "Meet The First Woman With Down Syndrome To Walk At Fashion Week". BuzzFeed. Archived from the original on September 2, 2017. Retrieved September 6, 2017.
42. Lockwood, Lisa (December 15, 2015). "NYFW Going Consumer? CFDA Studies Idea". Women's Wear Daily. Archived from the original on December 16, 2015. Retrieved December 16, 2015.
43. CFDA. "The Results are in: Examining the Future of New York Fashion Week". Archived from the original on March 7, 2016. Retrieved March 7, 2016.
44. "CFDA Releases Its (Slightly Obvious) Study Results on the New York Fashion Week Format". March 3, 2016. Archived from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved March 7, 2016.
45. CFDA. "Full Coverage of NYFW: Men's S/S 2017". Archived from the original on February 29, 2016. Retrieved February 24, 2016.
46. "Is This The Last Traditional New York Fashion Week?". February 14, 2016. Archived from the original on March 31, 2016. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
47. "Burberry Announces a See Now/Buy Now System for New Collections". The New York Times. February 6, 2016. Archived from the original on January 18, 2017. Retrieved February 17, 2017.
48. Chan, Sewell (September 6, 2007). "Fashion Week: Not Open to the Public". The New York Times. Archived from the original on October 26, 2015. Retrieved December 18, 2014.
49. "Fashion Calendar | CFDA". Archived from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved November 7, 2017.
50. "The Tentative Official NYFW Calendar is Here – WWD". July 28, 2017. Archived from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved November 7, 2017.
51. "The CFDA Has Little - if Any - Legal Rights in the NYFW Name — the Fashion Law". Archived from the original on April 5, 2016.
52. "The Behind-the-Scenes Battle for the "New York Fashion Week" Name". The Fashion Law. September 17, 2018. Archived from the original on October 14, 2019. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
53. "The CFDA Has Little – If Any – Legal Rights in the NYFW Name". The Fashion Law. Archived from the original on April 5, 2016. Retrieved August 3, 2016.
54. Cullins, Ashley (September 20, 2018). "Hollywood Docket: $25M Tickbox Settlement; Manson Movie Dispute; Red Gold Trademark Fight". The Hollywood Reporter . Archived from the original on October 14, 2019. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
55. Cullins, A (July 6, 2016). "WME-IMG and CFDA Facing $10M Lawsuit for "Usurping" New York Fashion Week Trademark". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on November 8, 2020. Retrieved August 3, 2016.
56. Hoshikawa, K (July 11, 2016). "The CFDA is being sued over 'NYFW' trademark". Fashionista. Archived from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved August 3, 2016.
57. Drain, K. "New York Fashion Week Logo Lawsuit: CFDA, WME-IMG Sued". Fashion Times. Archived from the original on November 10, 2016. Retrieved August 3, 2016.
58. "UPDATED: CFDA, WME-IMG Sued for Using New York Fashion Week Trademark". The Fashion Law. Archived from the original on October 14, 2019. Retrieved August 3, 2016.
59. "FASHION WEEK, INC., Plaintiff, v. COUNCIL OF FASHION DESIGNERS OF AMERICA, INC., CFDA FOUNDATION INC., and WME IMG LLC" (PDF). August 12, 2016. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 11, 2016.
60. "Fashion Week Inc. Presents a Zang Toi Collection at Fashion Week New York". The Free Library. September 9, 2014. Archived from the original on October 14, 2019. Retrieved October 14, 2019.

External links

• New York Fashion Week collected news and commentary at The New York Times