New York's Blind Eye

The specific route - London, New York, Milan and finally Paris. Each playing a defined role in the creation of a fashion label.

But cutting to the chase, it is all about the money and the money is in New York. Slicker than the average and predictable, this is where the financial backing, big accounts and the big influential stores reside. This city is where the clothes evolve into something wearable. Playing it's distinct role, money- making has become priority.

In terms of innovation and determining trends, this has been left to London and Paris. The British tailoring, eccentricity and street style is celebrated in London, but not so in New York.
Designers in New York have the ability to celebrate the inspirations surrounding them, like Jean Paul Gaultier and Ralph Lauren being inspired by the tribal vibe surrounding hip hop, Asian underground and funk clubs. But you wouldn't catch Ralph playing out his experiences of the Brixton sweatbox on a jungle night in his collections.

Fashion is a form of self-expression that allows people to try on many roles in life. Whether you prefer hip-hop or Chanel-chic, fashion celebrates the chameleon in all of us. It's a way of accommodating the diversity and variety of the world in which we live. Fashion is about change which is necessary to keep life interesting. New York has the potential to deliver this, but chooses not to.
New York has been a breeding ground for many genres of music and the New York streets is a barometer of style. It has the ability to wipe the street styles of any other capital off the map, but holds back, in exchange for safe designs that capture the eye from the big cats.