The Ugly Truth about the Fashion Industry’s Lack of Diversity

And What GIFT (Girls In Fashion And Tech) Plans To Do About It

Fierce female fashion has been widely popularized for decades with the help of Fashion Week runway shows, online style bloggers and most recently, the evolution of street style and the birth of the social influencer. From an outsider’s perspective, the world of fashion has been dominated by creative and influential women thanks to iconic female fashion figures throughout America’s history. From the glamour and sophistication of Coco Chanel’s timeless silhouettes to the critical eye of Vogue’s Anna Wintour — fashion trends have been historically driven by the female perspective. But, pull back the curtain Wizard of Oz style and the ugly truth about the fashion industry may surprise you.

The truth is, women’s labor, ideas and dollars prop up the US Fashion industry yet men still run it.

According to a recent study, women continue to dominate the student bodies at schools like New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology where 85% of students enrolled in 2016 were female. Yet, as you travel up the ranks within the fashion industry the office presence quickly becomes predominantly male. In fact, in 2015 the Business of Fashion surveyed 50 major fashion companies and…