Last week was arguably the most glamorous week of the year: New York Fashion Week. And, as a fresh new york city resident, I got to experience it through the lens of a Fashion PR Intern.
This was a childhood dream come true. I expected the full-on dazzling glitz that I had seen in the media my whole life. Red carpets, A-listers, the works. Well… partially because of Covid and partially just reality I realized how not glamorous and glitzy the fashion industry can be. I quickly realized which side of the table I sat at (literally and figuratively). I was the one working the event, not attending it.
Now, don’t get me wrong, there are lots of glamorous parts about my job. Sometimes I get free designer clothes, everyone in the office is always dressed up, and I get to communicate with stylists of big celebrities every day. (Just yesterday I got a whole package of clothes back that Scarlett Johanson wore to an event) But NYFW wasn’t an entirely glamorous week the way I thought it would be.
My experience started the week before. We moved clothes, racks, hangers, and everything you could think of for photoshoots into the venue. Now I’m going to quickly remind you that the summer heat has not left New York City yet, and this venue did not have air conditioning. We physically carried all of the supplies to the venue 5 avenues and 3 blocks. By the time we got there, we were drenched in sweat. We set up for the shows and went home.
The first event I worked was New York Men’s Day. I was there from 6:30 am to 7:30 pm checking in guests. It was super cool to meet influencers and VIPs, attend some of the shows myself, and start networking. I loved the energy that all of these people brought to the space, and as my boss recently reminded me, this was the first big fashion event in the USA since the start of Covid. I was honored to be a part of this overwhelmingly exciting event.
The next day I was back in the office working. I had to do some pulls, email stylists, the regular stuff. But, that night was, in my opinion, the coolest event I got to attend. It was the Bergdorf Goodman Valentino dinner. I changed into ‘black tie’ clothes in my office bathroom and hit the subway to get there. I was then taken through the labyrinth of Bergdorf’s executive offices, and the venue where a dinner for the press and some A-list celebrities was going to take place. It was straight out of “Devil Wears Prada”. I was given a face sheet which is a document with photos of everyone who was attending. I was expected to know who they were, what they did, and why they were attending.
Most of my night was spent standing at the door and directing people into the venue, by the end of it I was dead on my feet, But the venue, I might add, was gorgeous. That night my view was the sunset over Central Park.
I ended off my NYFW experience the morning after with another event hosted by a designer my agency has been working closely with. It was at a wellness center near Union Square and it was the calmest event yet. I was exhausted by this point. The meditative environment of the venue helped so much.
As my NYFW experience was wrapping up, I was insanely grateful for the experience, but I couldn’t help but think about how much improvement I hope to make. My first New York Fashion Week was spent working the events, but my new goal is to make sure that I spend my future NYFW’s attending them.