Fashion: A Reality Check from Manolo Blahnik

Fashion designers are often portrayed as being frivolous or eccentric or both and it's not uncommon for them to be mocked by those outside the industry. This was abundantly on display for instance in Morley Safer's supremely superficial profile of Anna Wintour for U.S. "news" program 60 Minutes a few months back. While some designers like John Galliano or Karl Lagerfeld do indeed invite that kind of derision by cultivating an eccentric public persona and making provocative statements to the press, they are hardly the norm. There are plenty of very talented designers who stand firmly on the other end of the spectrum like shoe-tsar Manolo Blahnik but the press rarely focus on them.

This is why I found the interview of Mr. Blahnik in this weekend's Financial Times "Lunch with the FT" segment particularly refreshing. During the interview he touches upon the recession and the impact on his business:

"(...) I think of the workers in the factories who make my shoes and I worry. The orders are going down but we need to keep them occupied. I don't really care if the shoes sell, you know, I don't. I don't give a damn. I never wanted this crazy success, except I have a responsibility to these people."

I know of very few designers of his stature who would be willing to admit publicly to a drop in orders. I know even fewer who would take the time to acknowledge the impact on the people who toil in obscurity to produce their products. I think that the current turmoil within the industry triggered by the downturn gets less sympathy from the general public than say, the automobile industry, in part because the general public rarely see beyond the hype and glamour of the fashion business. The emphasis is generally placed on the glitzy, celebrity aspect of fashion and rarely on the grittier aspects of what is in reality a multi-billion dollar global industry that has strong ripple effects across countless other sectors.

Mr. Blahnik may be less flamboyant or less quotable than Galliano or Lagerfeld but I find his honesty akin to a welcome breath of fresh air in an industry far too consumed by image and ego. I think fashion would get more respect if more designers could see beyond their egos. Fashion as an industry and designing as an occupation would be all the better for it.

Sincerely,

The Luxe Chronicles

Portrait by Michel Compte.

Comments

[Choubelle]

Wow. This is such a beautiful post. It is very lovely to see a designer without a frivolous attitude who has such a genuine persona. I was actually quite touched. Lovely photo as well!

xx
Choubelle