The fashion industry couldn’t exist without storytelling. Compelling and aspirational stories conveyed across runways, campaigns and social media are the stuff that makes garments fashionable and inspires a robust desire to be seen wearing them.
Fashion stories can spread positive messages about issues that affect us all. In 2020, Stella McCartney's Paris show featured models wearing cartoon animal costumes. This humorous stunt highlighted a serious aspect of the “eco-friendly” brand promise not to make use of leather, fur, hides, feathers or animal adhesives.
However, the darker and more uncomfortable truth is more often that storytelling in fashion results in overconsumption. And it defines unrealistic beauty expectations that exclude many by perpetuating Western standards of what’s normal and acceptable.
As a cultural historian who studies fashion, I consider the industry must do more to create change, and this might be achieved through stronger, more inclusive and responsible storytelling.
Fashion and world problems
According to the present fashion industry Reports, Storytelling is becoming increasingly essential as brands look to reveal their social responsibility by constructing deeper relationships with consumers. The increasing importance of storytelling in fashion might be linked to 2 themes which have dominated the social and political debate in regards to the global post-COVID recovery: the self and the society.
Consumers want more meaningful experiences that allow them to explore their identities and connect with others. Especially in times of social and political unrest, fashion is the best medium for this. The industry's global reach implies that visual cues and messages conveyed through clothing campaigns might be easily shared and understood.
The report from The Business of Fashion, The state of fashion in 2024, links the increasing importance of storytelling to consumers “being more discerning when it comes to authenticity and relatability.” People wish to buy brands that share and support their values.
The consumer group most concerned with aligning their lifestyle decisions and beliefs with the businesses that clothe them is Generation Z – people born between 1996 and 2010 – who “value being their own to pursue unique identity and value diversity.”
The increasing importance of storytelling in fashion can be related to the worldwide importance of the industry and the associated social responsibility. Organizations just like the UN are increasingly clear that the style industry will only help address the worldwide challenges highlighted by COVID if it uses its influence to alter consumer mindsets.
The unequal social impact of the pandemic highlighted long-standing inequalitieswas a wake-up call to take motion on many global problems, including climate change, overconsumption and racial discrimination. That's what the style industry does contributes 2% to global GDPa malefactor, but in addition a possible advocate for change.
The British Fashion Council Fashion Diversity Equality and Inclusion Report, published in January 2024, highlights “fashion’s colossal power to influence, provide cultural references and steer social trends.” Likewise the UN Fashion Communication PlaybookThe study, published last yr, calls on the industry to “use its cultural reach, persuasive power and educational role to both raise awareness and drive change towards a more sustainable and equitable industry”.
To achieve this, the UN report calls on storytellers, image makers and role models to alter the narrative of the style industry. They are asked to coach consumers and encourage them to alter their behavior if this will contribute to positive change.
The latest stories of fashion
Since the pandemic, there’s evidence that the style industry has begun to alter the content and type of the stories it tells, particularly by putting a human face on current global challenges. Big, deep-rooted societal problems are examined through real-life stories. This may help people understand the issues they face and their role in working to beat them.
One example is Nike Move to Zero campaigna worldwide sustainability initiative launched through the pandemic in 2020. Instead of infinite statistics and apocalyptic warnings of a dire climate emergency, Nike encourages people to: “Update“Sports equipment with maintenance and repair. Old Nike products which were recreated by designers are sold through pop-ups. When rescue isn't possible, Nike gives people options to accomplish that Recycle and donate old products.
By promoting relatively small changes that adapt a product's life cycle to consumers' on a regular basis lives, Nike's campaign challenges the standard idea of clothing as latest, immediate and ultimately disposable by making change its goal.
Narrative hangers
While some fashion brands are rethinking the stories they tell, mine current bookHang-Ups: Reflections on the Causes and Consequences of Fashion's Western Centrism, explains that a few of fashion's strongest and damaging stories are deeply rooted.
Concepts defined within the 18th and nineteenth centuries – civilization, anthropology, sexology – still influence the way in which the style industry treats age, gender, race and sex. Its pursuit of newness and the way in which it pushes the concept that buying expensive brands robotically brings status can be based on traditional Western societal values that fit poorly with twenty first century perspectives and priorities.
The persistence of centuries-old attitudes can be evident in Nike's Move to Zero campaign, nevertheless well-intentioned it might be. Although the initiative is clearly designed to positively influence consumer behavior, it doesn’t fundamentally address what the style industry is and does. But at the very least it’s accepted that fashion works through high consumption and the sense of status that owning and wearing a brand provides.
Throw all the pieces out
One of the important thing points I make in my book is that effective change is more likely after we understand how the industry evolved to what it’s today. This requires bolder storytelling that critiques notions of normality, acceptance and inclusivity.
An example is the Swedish brand अववाव, which is committed to “creative freedom driven by humor, entertainment and design development.” In February 2024 the brand can be Milan fashion show ended with models having trash thrown at them. This experimental performance examined dominant social media narratives by denouncing online trolls and highlighting the harm of hate speech inside and out of doors the style industry.
Of course it’s caused a stir and was covered extensively within the media. A ploy perhaps, but it surely got people talking and drew attention to designer Beate Karlsson's message about online hate. It's clear that compelling and progressive storytelling has the facility to alter minds and behavior.
image credit : theconversation.com