INDUSTRY IMPLICATIONS: A-GENDER AGENDA

The idea of the Agender Agenda is to push past the idea of girls borrowing boys clothing and open the spectrum to any type of clothing being available to anyone regardless of how they identify. The idea of identity and what it means has started to shift, more industries are becoming inclusive and new identities are given the opportunity to enter the mainstream mindset. This can be seen predominantly within the Beauty and Fashion Industry, where the A-gender Agenda is being pushed forward and a consumer’s gender identity is no longer a deciding factor in the clothes you wear (Walker, Buchanan, Stott, 2015).

The feeling for ‘genderless’ fashion ran through the entire Spring/Summer 2019 season in Paris and culminated on closing night in three particularly eye-catching looks at Louis Vuitton; two sharply structured suits and a bomber jacket with a boxy trouser, styled on short haired young models (Madsen, 2018).

The new mood for neutralising gender specific labels of garments consumers have always blindly accepted is entrenched in the current mainstream transgender movement (Madsen, 2018).

Designers such as John Galliano have been experimenting with gender-neutral clothing for years; liberally styling staples such as dresses and heels conventionally defined as womenswear on male models and vice versa (Madsen, 2018). As a result, genderneutral clothing was exclusive to luxury consumers only. It was Selfridges Agender pop-up that brought the idea of genderneutral clothing to a wider audience (Walker, Buchanan, Stott, 2015).

Although this is still a niche concept, the A-gender Agenda has been slowly filtering through to forward-thinking high-street brands such as ASOS when they launched their gender-neutral Capsule Collection. By making an accessible gender-neutral range, ASOS extended the idea of the A-gender Agenda to a wider audience who previously, were not exposed to such ideas and could not afford the garments which represented them. As a result, this sub-trend will manifest within an entirely new market and start a bigger conversation of how the modern-day consumer views Diversity and Inclusivity and what their needs are because of this.

The beauty industry has not always been open minded and inclusive, yet with the new shift in culture where consumers are demanding brands to be diverse, there is an increasing amount of cosmetic companies’ whose initiatives revolves around self-expression, self-empowerment, uniqueness, and revolting against limitations placed on gender and diversity. This is because representation of gender and what that means is seen as a game changer within the beauty industry (Jones, 2019).

A frontrunner of this sub-trend is the gender-neutral cosmetic company Fluid, which is building their brand around the idea of inclusivity by catering to gender fluid and gender nonconforming communities.

“Makeup for him, her, them, everyone.” – Fluid, 2019.

Fluid understands that societies and in particular, young people’s mindsets have changed. They are now more inclusive and accepting of nonconformance and in some cases it is even encouraged. The brand has made it its mission to bring sensibility into the beauty industry, through using diverse models as the face of their brand and naming their cosmetic line colours after iconic LGBTQ+ locations (A+E Networks, 2019).

Another frontrunner is cosmetic brand JECCA Makeup. This unisex makeup brand started when founder, Jessica Blackler was offering makeovers to transgender women and realised that her clients had specific needs such as covering up beard shadow that traditional mainstream makeup brands could not meet. JECCA Makeup operates with the belief that everyone has the right to feel fabulous however, the brand primarily serves the transgender community and donates five percent of all profits to LGBTQ+ organizations (A+E Networks, 2019).

In recent years the beauty industry has been a huge leader within Diversity and Inclusivity. Famous influencers such as James Charles who is CoverGirls first ‘cover boy’ and Jeffree Star who is an active member of the LGBTQ+ community and owns a successful genderless cosmetic company have paved the way for how Diversity and Inclusivity has impacted the beauty industry. This has been accomplished by continually pushing the idea of the A-gender Agenda and what that means to an audience of millions. These influencers are revolutionising the beauty industry by making it clear that makeup is no longer for women, it is a form of art allowing everyone to express themselves.