While the fashion industry is becoming more diverse, African American designers are still behind the pack according to Women’s Wear Daily. Historically, the fashion design business in New York was primarily Jewish and WASP and now people of color are increasingly becoming more relevant noted Valerie Steele of the Fashion Institute of Technology.
But with the exemption of Tracy Reese, Patrick Robinson and a few others, African Americans are still not heavy hitters in the game. African Americans also seem to have a lesser presence at the corporate level based on a recent study by the Black Retail Association Group. In their findings, only 2.7 percent of African Americans were at executive levels in organizations with revenues of $2 billion to $10 billion.–BB