Prabal Gurung’s show at Battery Park this evening not only boasted a spectacular view of the Statue of Liberty and an A-list front row, but also an appearance and announcement from New York Governor Kathy Hochul. Just as Governor Hochul arrived at the venue, her office announced a partnership with NYFW: The Shows, owned by IMG, that would provide Robert F. Wagner Jr. Park downtown and Moynihan Train Hall in midtown to designers participating in NYFW free of charge. Gurung’s show was the first to take the Governor up on her offer; later this week Cynthia Rowley will host her show in the same downtown location and Victor Glemaud will present in Moynihan Train Hall.
“We are grateful to Governor Hochul and New York State for their continued partnership,” said IMG’s president of fashion events and properties Leslie Russo. “Through this unique partnership, we are proud to showcase iconic New York City locations as the backdrop to this season’s collections.”
The Governor, wearing a floral brocade Prabal Gurung dress, met the designer warmly backstage and received a personal introduction to his American-themed spring 2022 collection. (Gurung’s clothing will also be a centerpiece of The Met’s upcoming “In America: A Lexicon of Fashion.”) Before stopping to talk to Vogue in an exclusive interview, the Governor told him, “Your success is going to be the barometer of our success.”
Here, Governor Hochul talks about fashion’s present and its big future. “Fashion is part of our identity as New Yorkers,” she said. “As the Governor of New York, I can’t let anything happen to our reputation on my watch!”
At Vogue we’ve been hoping that NYFW this season really reinvigorates the city with a creative energy. Tell me why you wanted to partner with IMG and reinforce the idea that New York is fashion’s capital.
We all know that New York State and New York City were the epicenter of this pandemic, and usually the independently strong and powerful fashion industry doesn’t need any help from the state because they just blossomed. They are world renowned, everyone knows them and just looks to New York City for inspiration in fashion, the newest, most innovative ideas. This is where all the eyes of the world are when it comes to fashion. But the pandemic knocked us back on our heels. It really was tough for many industries: hospitality, entertainment, and truly fashion. We have over 200,000 jobs associated with this industry and so many places had to close down because people were not out there shopping, they were not going to events. Everything that people would usually do associated with fashion shut down.
As part of our comeback, it is really important to me personally, as a leader and as a woman, that we make sure that we celebrate this industry and give it all the assistance we can from the state. So the state was able to partner with Fashion Week, with IMG, to say: “Why don’t we open [up] these beautiful places?” These are state-owned properties. We have a view of the Statue of Liberty here in Battery Park and [we have] Moynihan Train Hall, and all of our state assets, so let’s open them up for you to use as a backdrop to showcase the magnificent talents of New York fashion designers and let the rest of the world see it and let them know that this is our sign, our way of saying: “We are back. Watch out world, we are back.”
Many come at fashion mostly from the creative angle, but Fashion Week has such an economic importance for the livelihood of this city. Can you tell us a little about why Fashion Week is important to New York from an economic perspective?
It’s a huge percentage of our workforce; over 6% are associated with fashion. Fashion alone is an $11 billion industry… I can’t tell you how many fashion houses I went to during the pandemic to talk about how we can give state money to industries that were literally shut down because they didn’t have the business and we had them manufacture masks and gowns. They were really on the front lines of saving people during the pandemic because hospitals were desperately in need of these products. They could retool instantly and were so passionate about the ways they could give back. This is a small way I can turn around and say: “I recognize what you did, you were there when we needed you, and we’ll be there for you.”
But it is a huge economic driver. The economic tourism it normally draws that will be here next year for sure… events that are normally 400-500 people were a little smaller this year and I thank everyone for following protocols to make sure that we’re as safe as we can be with the masks and making sure they’re vaccinated. So you’re doing all the right things, but just psychologically it’s important that we’re here right now, and also what we can do from this day forward to continue to make investments and do whatever we can to lift a burden off an industry that we need to come back. Fashion is part of our identity as New Yorkers. As the Governor of New York, I can’t let anything happen to our reputation on my watch! I want to make sure that we continue to allow this fascinating, one-of-a-kind industry to flourish.
What are you looking forward to about Prabal’s show? Have you gotten a sneak peek?
I’ve not had a sneak peek! I was very excited that they allowed me to try on one of his dresses. Having the chance to meet him and understand what inspires him… he says he is inspired by powerful women and I have to give credit to his mother for raising a son who appreciates women who are powerful but also still maintain their femininity, so you don’t have to compromise that. We can dress up and celebrate what makes us unique but also have our proper place in the worlds of power, whether it’s in politics, whether it’s in the private sector, non-profits—wherever. Women need to step into the space that is rightfully theirs that has been denied them far too long.