THE FASHION CAPITAL
AT THE FOREFRONT OF FASHION, GLAMOUR AND INNOVATION, New York City embodies American style. It’s here that fashion ideas take root and trends are defined. New York City is where everything in fashion is happening–and happening first.
“There’s a buzz, a creative energy in New York City that can’t be found anywhere else in the world. It’s an extraordinarily stimulating place for fashion—I think that’s why so many people choose to be here.”
– Diane von Furstenberg |
What makes New York City the world’s fashion capital?
Exceptional Talent Base
New York City has the greatest concentration of design talent in the world. Its wealth of fashion design schools ensures a steady flow of fresh faces and new ideas that continually reinforce New York’s place at the forefront of fashion innovation.
“The factories and suppliers in the NYC Garment Center enabled me to start a business on a small scale and grow into a 150-person company. We would have to completely reinvent the way we do business if the Garment Center didn’t exist.”
– Nanette Lepore |
The Garment Center: Anchoring the Industry
Though fashion activity takes place all over New York’s five boroughs, the heart of the industry is Manhattan’s Garment Center. The area, home to the majority of New York’s showrooms and to numerous major fashion labels, caters to all aspects of the fashion process–from design and production to wholesale selling. No other city has a comparable concentration of fashion businesses and talent in a single district.
The Fashion Center Business Improvement District has made notable investments in the area over the past two decades, opening the beloved Fashion Center Information Kiosk in 1996 and creating the Fashion Walk of Fame along Seventh “Fashion” Avenue in 2000. The area has also begun to diversify, adding to its attractiveness to fashion businesses, boasting theaters, artists, architects, graphic designers, non-profits and commercial office tenants, which have in turn attracted new restaurants and retail tenants.
Check out the newly released multi-media study of the Garment District called "Made in Midtown", by the NYC non-profit the Design Trust for Public Space
NYC Fashion Week
New York’s semiannual Fashion Week is an event unparalleled in the world and the kickoff for other fashion weeks in London, Paris and Milan.
Fact: More than 250 events throughout the city attract approximately 232,000 attendees annually (116,000 each Fashion Week), including fashion designers, media/press, senior executives, buyers and other industry professionals.
Incomparable Wholesale Market
The wealth of wholesalers, suppliers, designers and support services in New York City make it an unsurpassed location for wholesale activity.
Fact: NYC boasts more than 5,000 active showrooms–more than any other city in the world–and more than 6,600 wholesale and design businesses operating within the City, accounting for 58,000 employees and annual sales of $38.7 billion.
World-Class Media Exposure
New York City is home to a unique combination of major global marketing firms, trade and consumer publications, and media outlets. Among others, Vogue, GQ and Women’s Wear Daily all call NYC home.