By AFPRelaxnews | Jan 25, 2023
While change is slow at the top, the latest men's fashion week in Paris that wrapped up on Sunday highlighted the number of exciting women designers choosing to focus on menswear
[CAPTION]Hermes designer Veronique Nichanian gestures at the end of the Hermes Menswear Ready-to-wear Fall-Winter 2023-2024 collection show at Paris fashion week on January 21, 2023. Image: Emmanuel Dunand / AFP©[/CAPTION]
Women are increasingly making their mark in men's fashion, breaking through the "fabric ceiling" that has seen the industry dominated by men, and attracted by a sector where some of the most radical changes are taking place.
Fashion has long been an industry focused predominantly on women but run by men, with a 2019 study by PriceWaterhouseCooper showing just 12.5 percent of fashion houses had female bosses.
While change is slow at the top, the latest men's fashion week in Paris that wrapped up on Sunday highlighted the number of exciting women designers choosing to focus on menswear.
_RSS_Grace Wales Bonner's opening night show in a Place Vendome hotel—her first physical event in Paris—was one of the hottest tickets.
Known for literary references and highlighting black and minority artists, it was clear why she is considered a frontrunner to replace the late Virgil Abloh at Louis Vuitton.
"I went into menswear because I thought there's a lot more room for expression," she told AFP.
"It feels like it's not overdeveloped—(menswear) can be quite conservative at times."
It was well-received, with Bloomingdale's men's director Justin Berkowitz praising her "sharp tailoring... with charming details for a spot-on, personal collection".
Bode, meanwhile, returned to Paris for the first time since the pandemic, with a vintage collection inspired by rural America and her mother's family.
Known for handcrafted clothes, often made from recycled materials, she was named menswear designer of the year at the CFDA Awards in 2022.
Also read: Boom time for menswear as Paris Fashion Week returns