Designers Council Says Yeezy Show Is Disruptive To Fashion Week (Again)
Yesterday, Kanye West announced that his Yeezy Season 5 collection would debut during New York Fashion Week on 2/15, and it turns out that the The Council Of Fashion Designers Of America, who schedule NYFW shows so designers do not conflict with each other, was not consulted, and they’re pissed. (Again! The last-minute announcement of a show also caused some ruffled feathers for Yeezy Season 2 and Season 4.)
“Once again, CFDA was not approached or consulted about the possibility of Kanye West showing on the official New York Fashion Week schedule,” president and CEO Steven Kolb said in a statement to Women’s Wear Daily. “As the scheduler of the week, the CFDA works with more than 300 brands to identify appropriate times for them to show their collections and avoid scheduling conflicts. Not going through the proper channels is disruptive to the whole week and unfair to designers who have secured spots through the formal procedure.”
West’s show conflicts with Marchesa’s, whose designers declined to comment on the conflict. As a result of the last-minute scheduling, the CFDA will not list West’s show in the official NYFW, though I’m sure pretty much everyone will be there anyway…
UPDATE: Kanye has decided to play nice. Fashionista reports that West has moved the Yeezy Season 5 show two hours earlier to 3PM, resolving all conflicts. “Kanye called me personally to let me know that he had no intention of showing on top of another designer, and was unaware that there was a conflict,” Kolb said in a statement. “He explained that once he realized Marchesa was in the time slot, he immediately looked at alternative options. The CFDA appreciates Kanye’s outreach and effort, and we look forward to working with him far in advance to integrate Yeezy into the schedule in seasons to come.”