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When the world counted down the seconds to 2020 and rang in the new year, nobody knew that only a few short weeks of normalcy lay ahead, which would soon be taken over by fear, uncertainty, illness, and financial insecurity. With news of the coronavirus beginning to spread on a global scale, the pandemic quickly took over the lives of millions of people across the world, wreaking havoc on everything that anyone ever understood to be a 'normal way of life.' In no time at all, words were being introduced into our vocabulary that we had never freely used before, and as the world was shaken and confused by terms such as 'quarantine', 'social distancing' and Personal Protective Equipment, an unsuspecting group of heroes from the fashion world began to formulate a massive plan.
The world of fashion and the sale of high end clothing came to a sudden standstill, but the clever entrepreneurs behind these brands seized their moment of opportunity and Forbes reports they cultivated ways to stay in business, while simultaneously bettering the communities that surrounded them.
Designers Step Forward
A slew of high-fashion designers immediately stepped forward to lend a hand in the epic battle against the spread of COVID-19. Heavyweights such as Yves Saint Laurent, Balenciaga, Gucci and Christian Siriano rose to the occasion and began to develop protective face masks for medical workers, who in the onset of the pandemic simply weren't being offered any workplace protection beyond an average, non N-35 face covering.
According to Forbes, fashion label Revolve donated 10,000 N95 face masks to Los Angeles hospitals and went on to donate more outside of the United States Of America. Designer brand, Sanctuary did the same thing, and went on to create over 5 million N95 masks which were promptly distributed to front line workers and those working in the medical community.
Pivoting The Manufacturing
Powerful fashion brands that were once focused on the mass production of their label immediately shifted their focus to producing a different way to use their factories and employ their workers. Rather than making the clothes that nobody was in the market to purchase, L'Oreal was among the first to step up and begin to manufacture hand sanitizer. They went on to donate the sanitizer to hospitals and nursing homes.
Making Medical Scrubs and Patient Gowns
While most of us generally don't perceive medical scrubs and hospital gowns to be high-end fashion statements, these fabrics were so greatly needed that Gap Inc., and Canada Goose rallied their teams together and began producing these items to donate to hospitals in California and surrounding areas.
Making use of their spaces and employees and creating helpful, useful clothing for those working hardest to battle the coronavirus was an admirable move made by the fashion industry. It wasn't long before Chanel jumped on board and began to manufacture gowns and scrubs as well.
Ralph Lauren opted for a slightly different approach to become charitable during this global time of need. A charitable donation of $10 million was made by Ralph Lauren, alongside a gift of 250,000 masks and hospital gowns. Keeping close at their heels was Prada, who delivered 80,000 medical outfits and 100,000 masks to those in greatest need.
More Generous Donations
Thankfully, as the situation became more dire, the level of assistance from various fashion-based organizations began to pick up steam, and more and more people began to take notice of the movement made by the world of high-end fashion, to not only pivot their brand, but to succeed in assisting those in need that surrounded them.
Business Insider reports that notable contributions were made by The Body Shop, who quickly and quietly became unsung heroes. The Body Shop ended up donating tens of thousands of cleaning products to senior homes in Canada and the United States, and even took the time to distribute care kits for local care workers to enjoy.
There's More To Come
As lockdowns continue and the new variant of the coronavirus starts to seep back into our lives, the public can rest assured in knowing that the biggest organizations that back the fashion world are going to step in and take some sort of course of action. Whether this comes in the form of designer masks, and haute-fashion gowns, or with a simple, sizable donation to a charity, the possibilities are endless.
Fashion sales may be declining due to the fact that nobody has anywhere stylish to go, and there are limited funds to make expensive purchases, but the motivation for these large high-fashion corporations to creatively become part of the solution, has never been more magnified, and they're certainly rising to the occasion.
Sources: Business Insider, Forbes, Flux Magazine