Take these rose colored glasses. Just for a minute…
I recently returned from two days of exploring fashion trade shows in Las Vegas. We were showing our collections from the socially-minded apparel brands that I helped found — KNOWN SUPPLY & Krochet Kids intl. I wrote this instagram post to share the overwhelming feeling of being counter-cultural in such a huge industry.
In that setting in particular, with thousands of brands showcasing hundreds of pieces of clothing, you can’t help but feel the weight of the challenges fashion is responsible for. Questions of human rights abuses and harmful environmental impacts rolled through my head incessantly as I walked the endless aisles of different convention centers (yes, it takes up MULTIPLE convention centers). I’ll be honest, after the first day I was pretty disheartened by it.
I tried my best to look at it with fresh perspective on day two, and I was able to leave the experience feeling more optimistic about fashion. Here’s what stood out to me when I took a more generous view of the industry from the perspective of these shows…