The most present word in fashion debates, yet absent in practice
Creativity is one of the most overused and misrepresented words in the fashion industry—a once-vibrant ideal now reduced to a hollow shell. A broken promise. What was meant to be the heart, the spark, the very foundation of fashion has been pushed to the periphery, sidelined in favour of other priorities. Yet, everybody now talks about it.
2024: an omnipresent, hollow shell of a word
Throughout 2024, the word “creativity” dominated every panel discussion, CEO interview, and designer or creative director reshuffle. It felt like an industry-wide admission: “We’ve been focusing on marketing, naming new creative directors, and growth and then growth again. But we lost sight of creativity.”
For instance, consider the interview with Frédéric Grangié, Chanel’s Head of Watches and Jewellery, in Le Temps. Grangié cautioned that the luxury industry is facing a profound crisis—one that goes beyond the temporary challenges of economic slowdowns. He highlighted a fundamental shift: luxury is losing its mystique as the allure of exclusivity diminishes and customers grow increasingly disillusioned with high-end brands.
Grangié’s message was unequivocal: genuine creativity, coupled with a long-term strategy, is the only viable path forward. Without these, luxury brands risk losing their essence and faltering under the weight of the growing crisis.
Fashion & creativity
Indeed, brands have lost their distinctiveness, morphing into interchangeable entities. An industry once revered for its idiosyncratic creativity has devolved into a hollow vessel, prioritising profit over vision. The relentless chase for marketability and fleeting trends has stripped many maisons of their credibility and authenticity. Also, it relegated creativity to a secondary, almost insignificant role.
As a result, the fashion industry finds itself at an impasse. Simultaneously, prices have skyrocketed—often without justification—further alienating consumers. And yet, in a striking irony, the same experts now declare, “We need to focus on creativity.”
Really? Dear mainstream brands, what have you been offering all this time?
According to the Cambridge Dictionary, creativity is the ability to produce original and imaginative ideas or to create something new.
Isn’t that supposed to be your role?
Conclusion
In short, fashion was once a vibrant celebration of creativity and craftsmanship. A space where ideas flourished and vision reigned supreme. Over time, however, this core spark has been sidelined, overshadowed by greed, financial gain, and unsustainable growth. What was once the heart of the industry—creativity—now stands as a hollow shell, a mere echo of its former vitality.
Now, we are afraid it’s being called back into focus—not out of genuine reverence, but as a desperate response to declining business.
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