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Rethinking the runway fashion show

Some designers and industry leaders are making their runway shows more environmentally friendly.

A model walks the runway during Paris Fashion Week.
A model walks the runway during Paris Fashion Week.
Thierry Chesnot/Getty Images

Paris Fashion Week is wrapping up this week, closing out about a month of fashion shows in Europe and New York. The runway shows, and the excess they symbolize, are facing criticism at a time when other industries are increasingly adopting more sustainable practices.

Marketplace host Kai Ryssdal spoke with Vogue Business’ Rachel Cernansky about how the fashion industry is responding to criticism of its resource-heavy runway shows.

“Helsinki Fashion Week has a comprehensive approach to how they do their shows, everything from energy-efficient lighting to having everyone use public transportation to get to the show rather than private vehicles and flights,” Cernansky said. “Copenhagen is a bigger fashion show, so it was kind of a big deal when they announced a few weeks ago that if brands want to continue showing there they have to implement a set of criteria for how they produce their clothes.”

Even as cities like Helsinki and Cophenagen change their standards, Cernansky notes that the impact of these shows are “just scratching the surface of the larger industry footprint.”

Click the audio player above to hear the interview.

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