A look at the Magic City’s growing fashion scene
Miami is one of the most popular vacation spots in the U.S., possibly even the world. With a trendy nightlife, a highly anticipated art fair, major sports scene, array of water activities, and vivacious cultural areas of Calle Ocho and Little Havana, there’s something for everyone. And we’re not just talking about tourists. Miami has much to offer to fashion designers and fashion industry professionals alike.
Miami’s rich history in fashion and apparel started in the 1950s and ‘60s when manufacturing warehouses were strewn through the outskirts of the city, while large department stores like Burdines, Jefferson Ward, Jackson Byrons, and Richards were all located downtown. Much of the success of Miami’s fashion industry was because the influx of Cuban refugees to the area. Tens of thousands of Cuban women came to Miami with experience in apparel, eventually becoming pattern makers and sewers for the many manufacturers located there.
The industry eventually fell into sharp decline in the mid-90s, in large part due to globalization, new technologies, cheaper labor available abroad, and open trade agreements.
Today, Miami’s fashion industry has rebounded, with a young and highly motivated group of fashion individuals and institutions looking to expand the sartorial reach of their city. Independent retailers like Alchemist, which has a fine jewelry shop in the Design District, and The Webster, a luxury multi-brand fashion house, have helped create a foundation of designers and fashion professionals to launch their own businesses in the city.
Big-name ateliers Oscar Carvallo and Naeem Khan, both of whom have dressed celebrities, and even the First Lady in Kahn’s case, are moving their operations to Miami by the end of 2018. They will join the likes of Perry Ellis International, one of the country’s largest fashion corporations, as well as numerous designers already established in the area including Ruiz, Tcherassi, Mayda Cisneros, Julian Chang, Eberjey, Aleis, Del Toro, Miansai, and Style Mafia.
Thanks to these businesses and Craig Robin, the CEO and president of commercial and residential developer Dacra, Miami is one of the few metropolitan areas where retail is growing. In 2010, Robin and Dacra joined forces with L Real Estate, an LVMH-affiliated investment firm, to create Miami’s Design District and truly transform the neighborhood.
Possibly the biggest draw for designers and their brands is Miami Fashion Week. Miami has had its own fashion week for nearly two decades, but in 2016 new owners rebranded the event, positioning it as the only in the world to exclusively feature resort/cruise collections. And just last year Miami Fashion Week was added to the prestigious CFDA fashion calendar to become the fifth officially recognized fashion week worldwide and the second in the U.S.
“With Miami Fashion Week officially on the calendar, Miami is ready to take its place in the global fashion industry,” says Miami Fashion Institute’s Chairperson Asanyah Davidson.
Behind all of Miami’s designers and fashion businesses there lies a very large support system. Miami is home to law firms like Foley & Lardner LLP, which are dedicated to the fashion industry; professional networking organizations like Fashion Group International; organizations like The UpCycle Project, which pairs students with mentors in the fashion industry to create garments out of unconventional and recycled materials; and creative studios like DesignLab Miami, which teaches and promotes all aspects of the fashion industry.
The largest addition to Miami’s fashion industry in recent years has been the creation the Miami Fashion Institute (MFI) at Miami Dade College. With a two-year associate degree program with tracks in fashion design and merchandising, the program is helping to train the next generation of designers in Miami. MFI joins the private International university of Art & Design in Miami, whose fashion program is helmed by 40-year industry veteran Charlene Parsons. However, MFI is the only public higher education institution in Florida offering a program of its kind, creating an unprecedented opportunity for affordable fashion education for all.
“Miami Fashion Institute was established to provide industry professionals for the growing Miami fashion industry,” says Davidson. “We spend a lot of time with [students] outside of class time to reinforce the need to practice and always be thinking critically about design ideas.”
And this is only the beginning for MFI and Miami’s fashion industry. With more fashion brands and organizations setting down roots there, it’s only a matter of time before Miami becomes one of fashion’s biggest destinations.
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