BLACKOWNED BRANDS By Raelen Todd
When we think about the fashion industry and the creatives pioneering it, we recognize that fashion now is far more diverse than ever before. This transformation stems from civil rights movements that helped categorize diversity in fashion as a necessity. Black-owned brands have been historically fundamental in organizing grassroot efforts and, to this day, they continue to ignite social change. Proving to be more than just their products and services, these businesses are representations of a future grounded in unity and inclusion: each new designer or brand is an emerging voice for people of color in the fashion industry, and it’s important to appreciate the designers and entrepreneurs who are paving the way for younger generations.
Importance of the Diverse Designer
High-end, designer fashion was once completely white-dominated. Even black designers like Ann Lowe (the first renowned African-American designer) didn’t receive credit for any of her designs. Since then, the industry has done a 360, and designers like Kerby Jean-Raymond and Christopher John Rogers continue to break down the barriers once blocking black designers from reaching their high-end status. Kerby Jean-Raymond, founder of Pyer Moss and Your Friends in New York, a new platform designed to empower the next generation of black creatives, is a Brooklyn-born designer whose high-end fashion brand is continuously blowing away the fashion world and amplifying black voices in the process.
FASHION
Creating Spaces to Fight Prejudice
While the powerhouse behind Pyer Moss has made significant change through his brand and through his individual voice, he struggles with how he’s perceived within the fashion industry as a black designer: “As much as I wanted to just be the black Yohji Yamamoto and not have my race show up in my work, I can’t because it was like the world was still treating me like what I am, which is a black man from Brooklyn who, for the most part people don’t respect until they learn what I do” he told Good Morning Vogue. Kerby Jean-Raymond is known for actively fighting for fair representation in the universe of high-end fashion, breaking ground for streetwear brands including Jackson Napier, 10 deep, 4hunnid, All Caps Studio, Wata, etc. to have successful platforms within this industry. By being a conscious black man in the designer world, he has extended the possibilities for every black streetwear designer for years to come.
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