by Otsile Mabote
It is 2010, the best year of my life. Everyone in the country is buzzing with excitement because of the World cup. There is celebration 24/7 – nothing can bring the mood down. Fast forward a decade later and things are different, tense, to say the least.
Everyone is locked up in their homes reminiscing about the days it was legal to go outside. They are thinking about how all of this could’ve been avoided if one person didn’t eat that specific bat, or about how Covid-19 put everything on hold. The last decade has seen many highs and lows, and this applies to fashion too. As we settle into 2020 and a new decade I will explore what I thought were some of the biggest 'hits' and 'misses' in fashion over the past decade.
Hit: Eco-Friendly Fashion
When pollution comes to mind, we think of big manufacturing companies that have huge factories that release clouds of smoke and harmful gasses. The truth is though, the fashion industry is one of the central polluting industries in the world. Not only is clothing production harmful to our planet, but the process is also harmful to farmers and producers because of the harmful chemicals and waste.
Fast fashion also promotes the exploitation of the employees who produce the fashion garments we wear. Thankfully, brands are becoming increasingly mindful of this and are utilizing more eco-friendly production methods to make garments. Brands have also started to adopt the idea of 'Quality over Quantity' to decrease the impact of fast-fashion.
Hit: Virgil Ablohs move to LV
Virgil Abloh was announced as the Men's Artistic Director of Louis Vuitton, back in 2018. This was a bold move from the luxury fashion house because of Ablohs heavily influenced streetwear-focused style and his loyalty to the industry.
This was a cultural reset because of his instinctive creativity and disruptive approach. This made the luxury brand relevant in all spheres of fashion.
“His sensibility towards luxury and saviour faire will be instrumental in taking LVs menswear into the future”, said Michael Burke, chairman, and CEO of LV.
Miss: H&M Advert in 2018
No retailer is ever free of criticism, especially in the fashion and beauty industries. Consumers are quick to voice their opinions when they feel as though products were misleading or offensive.
H&M felt this type of backlash when the brand released an advertisement that was racist. H&M casted a black boy to model in a sweatshirt that read “coolest monkey in the jungle”. H&M removed the sweatshirt from its website and also released an apology statement but people felt as if this was not enough.
The controversy didn’t end there, one week after the advertisement was released, protests broke out at H&M stores in South Africa. Protestors destroyed the stores forcing H&M to temporarily shut down its South African branches.
Hit: Rihanna’s Met Gala outfits over the years
The Met Gala was cancelled this year due to Covid-19 which was a bit of a bummer because many, myself included, were looking forward to seeing what Rihanna had in store for us this year. For Rihanna to shut down the event is expected – she defies expectations while still following the theme.
Rihanna's most memorable looks to ever make its way up the red carpet was back in 2015. When she shut down the event by wearing a couture piece by Guo Pei which took two years to make. That was not the last time though. In 2017, Rihanna wore a Commes Des Garcon confection covered in floral fabrics. Always expect the unexpected when it comes to BadgalRiri.
It hasn’t been the greatest of starts to this new decade but the great news is that a virus is temporary but drip? Drip is forever.