Harlem’s Fashion Row (HFR) is expanding to include diverse designers of color by launching an official online shopping directory to promote Black and Latinx fashion lines.
On Monday, Harlem’s Fashion Row unveiled HFR&Co, an official online directory to facilitate consumers’ search for Black- and Latinx-owned brands, Vogue reported. The new platform was created in partnership with a group of retailers including Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s, and Shopbop.
“For the last 15 years, we’ve said to people that Black designers represent less than 1% of the designers sold in major retailers,” HFR founder Brandice Daniel said.
“But we have never given people a way to then shop these Black brands on the HFR platform.”
Now, through the new directory, fashion lovers can shop from a selection of Black and Latinx designers who have collections for men, women, and children. Among the designers available include Wales Bonner
, Ahluwalia, Off-White, Diarrablu, and Sergio Hudson, among others.“One of the challenges that exists right now is when people go into stores, and they want to shop Black or Latinx brands, they can’t find them,” Daniel said.
“[Now you can] come on and easily shop the site, [as well as] see a range of price points.
Not only can shoppers search through a directory of diverse designers, but 10% of all proceeds from the sales will go to Icon 360, Harlem’s Fashion Row’s nonprofit
that provides financial and professional resources to emerging designers.Daniel is hard at work expanding the directory and already has projects lined up for 2023. Supporters can expect more designers, and even the inclusion of beauty brands in the near future, according to Vogue.
“This is a big moment for us because we’re saying to the retailers, if you are bringing in more Black brands, we will highlight that,” Daniel shared.
“We hope that as we grow and sell, we help retailers sell more products from the brands, and designers get more orders.”