Donald Trumpâs victory in a bitterly fought election capped a year of rapid change and uncertainty in fashion workplaces.
The decline of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives that were widely adopted in 2020 accelerated amid legal threats from conservative activists. Walmart, the largest US retailer, underscored this shift by unraveling many of its DEI initiatives in November.
Many fashion firms turned to AI to address a host of employment issues, including leaning on the technology to overcome longstanding recruitment challenges, from screening résumés to drafting job postings. The rise of AI is also placing a new premium on soft skills that canât easily be automated â like communication, creativity, critical thinking and adaptability.
The post-Covid hybrid work battles continued, with many companies settling on a three-days-in, two-days-out compromise. But employers are increasingly taking a harder line, with Amazon, Patagonia, Walmart and Asos among the firms reining in remote work. Foot Locker bucked the trend, announcing a move from its New York HQ to St. Petersburg, Fla., without requiring employee relocation.
Looking to 2025, Trumpâs policy agenda â potential mass deportations, tariffs and divisive stances on womenâs, LGBTQ, and immigrant rights â could heighten pressure on fashion and beauty brands to re-engage with the discourse. For some, that means reviving advocacy work that had waned towards the end of Joe Bidenâs administration. However, there are some early signs pointing to fashion leaders looking to curry favour with the president-elect as well.
Top Stories
Fashionâs Most (and Least) In-Demand Skills: An industry-wide reckoning is leading fashion firms to prioritise soft skills like critical thinking and curiosity over once in-demand technical proficiencies.
How AI Is Changing Fashionâs Recruiting Process: A growing number of fashion and beauty brands are looking to AI to solve age-old recruiting challenges, from wading through piles of résumés to writing job postings â but even with all their promise, these new technologies arenât without shortcomings.
Is Fashion Done With Diversity Departments?: DEI programmes, widely adopted across the industry in 2020, now face a backlash from conservative activists and internal doubts about their effectiveness. To survive, they must evolve, experts say.
How Fashion Is Adapting to the Diversity Backlash: While some companies are backing away from diversity, equity and inclusion efforts amid a conservative backlash, others are finding clever new approaches to meeting their original goals.
Why Kamala Harris Isnât Making Bold Fashion Choices â Yet: With her wardrobe of pantsuits in conservative colours, the vice president has studiously avoided drawing attention to her style choices. Experts say that reflects the reality that, as a Black and Indian woman in the upper echelon of politics, self-expression carries risks.
Fixing Retailâs Sales Floor to C-Suite Pipeline: Fashion retailers are promoting fewer store employees into corporate roles, missing out on key expertise and diversity as a result.
Is It Time for Retailers to Rethink the Part-Time Work Model?: Fashion companies rely heavily on part-time associates in an industry where demand is often seasonal and margins are thin â but many drop the ball when it comes to making the job rewarding.
Who International Retailers Hire to Crack the US Market: Entering a new country requires a delicate balance between staying true to a brandâs DNA and adapting to local tastes. Having the right people in place from day one can often be the determining factor between success and failure.
Should Fashion Brands Still Make Employees Move for a Job?: In a post-pandemic working world, most companies recognise they canât be as prescriptive about where their employees live and work â but increased flexibility has only made negotiations more complicated as both sides try to strike the right balance.
The Rise and Fall of Noncompete Clauses, Explained: A US regulator has banned most uses of the clauses, which started as a way for fashion companies to prevent senior executives from walking off with trade secrets, but have become a standard retention tool.
