From Lafayette Chic to Fashion Week By Vicky Roe
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ew York. Los Angeles. Even Atlanta. All cities that may come to mind when you think of Fashion capitals- but one Louisiana native is creating a lane for Lafayette to join the ranks. Hailing from Breaux Bridge, Morgan Pete believes in one simple rule “If we don’t have it, create it.” Following this simple principle, Pete has created several opportunities in Lafayette that otherwise, wouldn’t exist- Acadiana Fashion Week and the Fashion Institute of Louisiana. But how did a quiet and shy young girl, who tried to avoid public speaking at all costs, become the woman running one of the premiere events in Lafayette? Well that’s a question that even Pete is still coming up with the answer to. “All of this is so surprising. I just wanted to play volleyball and become a scientist. That was always my goal. I never thought I’d actually own a business,” said Pete One of Pete’s successful businesses is Acadiana Fashion Week, (AFW) a three day experience where people come to Lafayette and enjoy fashion shows from a number of designers. The concept of Acadiana Fashion Week was born around 2014, but it wasn’t until two years later that Pete took that leap of faith and went for it. “I traveled a lot and went to a few different fashion weeks; some huge (New York Fashion Week) and a few smaller ones. I no-
ticed how much talent our area had but with so little opportunities. I wanted to create a platform where everyone could come together and showcase their work, help out backstage or just be a guest in the audience. I wanted AFW to be big but also wanted it to be looked at as a family atmosphere, where people felt comfortable, could network and actually build a career.” Even with the best intentions, the road to success is almost never a glamorous one, but Pete was determined to turn her trials to triumphs. “I was told ‘no’ a lot, especially since I became interested in modeling. A lot of agencies wanted models who were one size and that’s just not realistic; consumers want to see people they can relate to. Unfortunately, my hips were always too wide, my butt was too big, I wasn’t tall enough and at some points, I did get discouraged and felt like I wasn’t good enough. One agency told me they already had someone who looked like me. This industry forces you to have tough skin. But I was able to use everything I went through and create a platform here in Louisiana that doesn’t cater to the ‘one size fits all’ industry standard. We’re all different, the consumers are different and when I do my shows, I want little kids and adults to see someone who looks like them,” Pete explained.
