Discrimination in Fashion Gate

28.4.2017

Question for written answer E-003023-17
to the Commission
Rule 130
Aldo Patriciello (PPE) , Lara Comi (PPE)

In an article in the New York Times, Vanessa Friedman wrote that, among the 470 designers in the Council of Fashion Designers of America, there were only 12 Afro-Americans, and of the 260 shows scheduled for New York Fashion Week, only three were dedicated to Afro-American designers.

According to the American consultancy firm Bain & Company, in the last eight years the luxury market has grown by about 10%, particularly in countries in Asia and the Pacific.

According to data on the advertising of luxury products which was presented in an article by The Fashion Spot, of the 460 advertisements analysed, about 85% featured white models.

African Fashion Gate is a not-for-profit association that organises an annual ‘Global Congress of Women, Fashion and Design’. It aims to discuss, together with Member State ambassadors and journalists from across the world, the problems of discrimination within the fashion industry.

In view of the above, would the Commission state whether it believes it necessary to monitor and study this phenomenon in depth (also with the support of associations and experts) in order to eradicate every form of discrimination?