‘Inclusivity for all’
Every year the fashion industry tries harder to tackle climate change, push for greater inclusivity and diversity in terms of race, gender, sexuality, age, size, and religion. However, you rarely hear about disability in fashion. How someone with prosthetic arms or legs may be able to wear garments, how people with limited use of arms and legs may be able to put a garment on, the use of disabled people on runways for others to relate or inspire to, how people in wheelchairs may access fashion shows, how people with visual impairments can express themselves through the feel of clothing. Fashion is getting there, but it has got a long way to go.
“Fashion and beauty and the runway create culture, and we need to create a culture that’s truly inclusive,”
Vogue, 2021
The problem the fashion industry faces at the moment when it comes to creating clothing suitable for the disabled is that they focus on function over fashion. An item may be accessible for a disabled person to wear but it still isn’t fully inclusive because it is not seen as fashionable as all other garments which are trending, and in modern day society, there really should be as many options out there as possible for everyone to feel included.
A luxury brand which is making positive steps towards adaptable, fashionable clothing for people with disabilities is Tommy Hilfiger. They have a line named ‘Tommy Adaptive’ which includes great quality, stylish clothes which has the function to make it easier to get dressed for disabled people. Products include elasticated, stretchy jeans, with adjustable waists, hems, and straps, to ensure maximum comfort. People have commended Hilfiger on the accessible brand but cannot stress how few there are and how there needs to be more following in these footsteps!
Recently, another brand who got commended for their use of diversity via their ecommerce was fashion brand ASOS on Twitter.
“Definitely not crying because of ASOS using an earring model with a hearing aid,”
A user on Twitter, Cosmopolitan, 2021
The brand shared models with cochlear implants, modelling jewellery such as earrings. A cochlear implant turns sound into electrical signals, stimulating the auditory nerves, which gives the sensation of hearing. People loved the fact that ASOS never even posted about the use of diverse models or surrounded any media attention around the subject, they simply included it on their website and people noticed. Which is how brands should be introducing diversity into their fashion, as it should be seen as a norm.
Congratulations to ASOS so showing brands how to incorporate diversity into fashion, we commend you! Now keep going!
References
Cosmopolitan. 2021. ASOS is being praised for using an earring model with a hearing device. [online] Available at: <https://www.cosmopolitan.com/uk/body/a36129309/asos-earring-model-hearing-device-cochlear-implant/> [Accessed 4 January 2022].
Uk.tommy.com. 2022. Adaptive High Rise Straight Patchwork Jeans | BLUE | Tommy Hilfiger. [online] Available at: <https://uk.tommy.com/adaptive-high-rise-straight-patchwork-jeans-76j2009adp460> [Accessed 4 January 2022].
Vogue. 2021. This Is What’s Missing in Fashion’s Inclusivity Movement. [online] Available at: <https://www.vogue.com/article/whats-missing-in-inclusivity-movement-adaptive-fashion-disabled-community> [Accessed 4 January 2022].