Fashion needs a revolution. There are signs that it’s here

This morning fashion editors will have caught the 5am flight to Milan. The style parade has moved on and London Fashion Week is over, leaving a trail of sequins and colourful plumage behind. This season felt like a particularly starlit extravaganza. The Americans came to town in their droves: we’ve had Giorgio, Gigi, Kaia and the irrepressible model Slick Woods. But excitement on the front row was mainly fuelled by the arrival of Edward Enninful, the new editor of British Vogue.

There has been acres of press coverage over Enninful’s appointment. And I was unwittingly caught up in elements of it. I ran against him for the editorship and the disappointment was a visceral knock. But, personal emotions aside, I was glad it was Enninful because although every candidate wanted to increase diversity (and the current October issue of Vogue, which I edited before I left, has my view) his appointment shouted a dramatic shift in a way no one else could and cemented what was already playing out on the catwalks.

But racial diversity across the industry is not the only battle that needs winning. The many variations of the female body shape are still largely ignored, despite many valiant attempts to transform the landscape. And here, social media has proved to be the most voluble instrument of change.

Last spring, casting agent James Scully named and shamed on social media those in the industry he considered to be mistreating models. His posts went viral. Just as London Fashion Week opened, the global fashion conglomerates LVMH and Kering announced a joint charter to protect the wellbeing of models. Millions of enraged voices cannot be ignored. And it included a pledge to ban any woman or girl under a French size 34. Not as exciting as what girl is capturing the current zeitgeist but vital nonetheless.

Our desire for the new also hides a dirty secret: fashion is the second most polluting industry on the planet after oil. Pioneering green brands never seemed to capture the imagination.

On Thursday, Livia Firth and Matches.com launched their green initiative. Again, Generation Z and Y and their opinions so freely shared are winning the argument. Global brands, knowing their future lies in their loyalty, have listened. H&M and Kering are among many fashion giants initiating far-reaching guidelines for greener manufacturing practices. This time their action means serious transformation. We hope.

Posh girls may not be in Vogue right now. So be it. I am all for revolution.

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