No we’re not talking about Tim Gunn. Even though the fashion industry is heavily geared towards women, the majority of top fashion houses, brands, companies, and retailers are still run by men. It’s hard to believe, but we collected a few statistics that prove we’ve got some work to do when it comes to fixing the fashion industry’s gender divide.
1940 – The year the first New York Fashion Week was held, which was created by a woman—Eleanor Lambert (she also later founded the CFDA).
29 – The number of women who won a CFDA award between 1981-2013 (versus 98 men who won an award during the same time frame). (The Glass Runway, Allyson Stokes)
40.2 – The percentage of designers who showed during the Spring/Summer 2017 fashion week season that were female. (Business of Fashion)
14 – The percentage of major fashion brands run by women. (Business of Fashion)
$25 Million – How much the Tory Burch Foundation and Bank of America have given to over a thousand female-owned businesses since the start of their partnership in 2014. (toryburchfoundation.org)
25 – The percentage of leadership positions in top fashion companies held by women (who also hold only 1.7 percent of CEO positions). (Business of Fashion)
85 – The percentage of students at the Fashion Institute of Technology that is female (fitnyc.edu)
80 – The percentage of the workforce in apparel factories in countries like Bangladesh, Vietnam, and Cambodia that is women (Business of Fashion)
4 – The number of women who made The 25 Richest People in Fashion list in 2017. (Business Insider)
1851 – The year Amelia Bloomer sparked conversation on dress reform, saying, “The costume of women should be suited to her wants and necessities. It should conduce at once to hear health, comfort, and usefulness…”
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