Can Fashion Designers Be Successful Without Going Viral?
When fashion’s front row hurled rubbish at AVAVAV’s Fall/Winter 2024 runway in Milan, iPhone-gripping attendees knew they had captured viral gold. That same week, SUNNEI’s models divulged their candid mid-walk thoughts to form the show’s soundtrack: “The blonde in the second row, she thinks her review will change the world,” one said over the speakers. “I can’t wait to eat pasta,” another thought. In London, Charles Jeffrey Loverboy revealed life-like banana boots, which catalyzed chuckles across TikTok. And after Beyoncé made a last-minute trek to Brooklyn’s Bushwick neighborhood for Luar, The New York Times wrote that designer Raul Lopez had won “the attention lottery.”
Virality appears to be a prerequisite for industry success in 2024; without it, many labels, especially those emerging, find themselves trailing behind a drawn-out list of triumphant designers with digital buzz.
Must designers strive to break the Internet, or can they find the same success without harnessing the eyes of millions online?
The Row, for one, believes the latter to be possible. During Paris Fashion Week, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen’s label requested that showgoers “refrain from capturing or sharing any content” during their experience. With their hands free from the clutches of smartphones, attendees instead took notes using pens and notepads gifted by the brand, fueling nostalgia for the classic fashion journalist. It was a countercultural move from the reserved fashion house, especially on the heels of a 93% increase in online searches last quarter.
“The Row is the bread and the butter of the chicest fashion,” @stylenotcom, who joked that the brand’s content ban would be “no problem” for his text-heavy coverage strategy, wrote in his book. Others, like The New York Times’ fashion director Vanessa Friedman, were not as thrilled by the show’s silence: “I would love to show you pictures