Can Michelle Obama save the fashion industry?
Radha Chadha -
Saturday, January 10, 2009 8:25 AM
Photo courtesy New York Times
Thursday’s New York Times article U.S. Fashion’s One-Woman Bailout? discusses how Mrs. Obama’s stylish-but-grounded dressing (she is as likely to buy from J. Crew and the Gap as she is from Narcisco Rodriguez and Thakoon Panichgul) has the potential to resurrect the faltering fashion industry in the USA.
(Luxury sales in the USA have fallen steadily - JP Morgan, quoting MasterCard, reported that sales declined by 5% in Sept 08, 20% in Oct 08, 24% in Nov 08, and 28% in Dec 08. High end department stores in the USA reflect that trend - same-store sales in December were down 27.5% at Neiman Marcus, down 20% at Saks.)
Can one woman’s sense of style have so much impact?
That the fashion business relies on the likes of you and me copying what the celebrities are wearing is a hard fact… that’s how trends spread, that’s how something becomes “in fashion”. But it is only once in a very long time that a woman of such iconic status comes along that every stitch she wears has the power to influence the masses. Some first ladies have it and some don’t. Jacqueline Kennedy was an all time great and the way she worked with designers on both sides of the Atlantic had a momentous impact on global fashion. On the other hand, Laura Bush’s well-dressed-but-matronly look or Hillary Clinton’s tailored pantsuits have at best a niche appeal. Across in France, Carla Bruni has an effortless glamour, as did the earlier Mrs. Sarkozy. Princess Diana was a compelling visual delight. Indira Gandhi was a bold fashion leader, her gorgeous sari’s, that championed indigenous craft, had a long-lasting impact – check out what Indian women in power wear today, whether it is her daughter-in-law Sonia Gandhi in the political arena or the likes of Naina Lal Kidwai in the corporate one, the style influence of the original Mrs. Gandhi is palpable.
Coming back to Michelle Obama… can she be the next Jackie O for the fashion industry? In my view, yes and even more, in that her appeal is wider and multi-segmented – she is a well-qualified professional, a successful working woman, a mother of young children, and a celebrity at the same time.
Importantly, she doesn’t have Jackie’s made-for-fashion slim frame. She has meat on the bones, a commanding body that is more Beyoncé-bootylicious than Diana-wispy. So she has the power to take fashion from the narrow confines of the size zero's and size two's which is its mainstay today and make it accessible to the average-built everywoman.
What’s more, she mixes expensive labels with the not-so-expensive ones – she wore Narcisco Rodriguez for the election night, but J. Crew on the campaign trail – and manages to look stylish in both. So, she has the power to impact not just the high-end designer brands but also give a fillip to the broader fashion industry.
Even before her husband was elected President, Mrs. Obama was already making it into best-dressed lists, topping Vanity Fair’s list in July 2008. Now, as her husband steps on the world stage as the most powerful man on earth, she, and her clothes, will have the camera clicks and TV eyeballs of the world. That will be worth billions of dollars worth of advertising for the fashion industry…a factor that can only help the fashion business in the USA, and indeed, the whole world.