I know this title may mislead one to think I haven’t loved Fashion’s Night Out but the truth is…I’ve had a blast! My first Fashion’s Night Out, I met Rihanna, saw Anna Wintour run for her life and partied beside Beyonce and Jay-Z (well not beside but in the vicinity of…you get the picture). This season, Diane von Furstenberg sprayed me with perfume and Solange DJ’ed while I partied during our first-ever blogger crawl. You see, fun!
But…forgive me Anna for saying this, I never really understood it. Sure the concept of letting fashion-crazed people party beside celebs and enjoy free champagne and gifts at their favorite stores is lovely. But in going from theory to practice, something went terribly wrong. Actually, five things went wrong.
Here they are:
5. It started when retailers desperately needed a boost. They don’t anymore.
Cathy Horyn broke it down best: F.N.O. was a good idea when it began, back in the depths of the recession when stores were virtually empty. But now it’s become a party, an institutionalized kickoff to Fashion Week. […] And it’s not as if the city’s retail industry needs a boost, as it did in 2009, when a lot of small stores closed. In fact, many retailers are having an excellent year, with Macy’s, Ralph Lauren, Kohl’s and Nordstrom announcing that they plan to raise profit outlooks.
4. Drinks and no carding? Gasp.
At our blogger crawl at a store which I won’t name, we got on a long line to treat ourselves to some delish mixed drinks. It wasn’t until after we downed drink no. 2 that we realized, we hadn’t been carded! We could totes be well-dressed 14 year-old girls getting trashed in a store thanks to Fashion’s Night Out. Not chic.
3. It’s during the busiest time of year for the fashion industry.
As much fun as FNO’s city-wide party was, the very next day New Yorkers were back in the throes of Fashion Week, drained, hungover and still just as swamped with #NYFW work. Couldn’t FNO be at the end of Fashion Week? Or like, in August? Or not at all?
2. It’s dangerous.
Anna Wintour was chased by a pack of rabied dogs crazed fashion lovers. Kanye West was mobbed. Kim Kardashian‘s arrival to the Dash NYC boutique sounded like a riot. And Nicki Minaj actually started her own riot at YSL. Need we say more?
1. No one Hardly anyone spends money.
We kind of remember somewhere in the talk of fashion’s biggest party ever, Anna mentioned something like revitalize the economy. But while everyone seems to stumble out of #FNO stores with a champagne buzz and that starstruck look on their faces, they’re almost always empty-handed. According to Page Six, for many big-name retailers, the expenses (do you know how much it costs to book a celeb for a couple of hours?) greatly exceed the profits. Well, duh.
What do you think of Fashion’s Night Out? Does it still make sense? Why do you love it and think it should continue?
Kisses,
Glamazon Jessica
I completely agree that it's purpose no longer exists – the economy is not as bad and the retail industry is not suffering the way it did when the idea first came about. However I do like it as the "kick-off" to Fashion Week – particularly for "regular folk" who love to pretend they're part of the excitement of Fashion Week but actually have NOTHING to do with it.
Although people may not be actually spending it's a good little PR stunt for stores, specifically the lesser known stores or more affordable ones. I for instance stumbled into Devachun got a free treatment and sample products and as a result fully plan to continue purchasing products and visiting the salon. I would think others do the same?
To me it still makes sense, it has strayed from the original mission but it is still a great event and I think it should continue with maybe a few tweaks ;)