Must Read: Fashion Is Focused on the Metaverse, How to Practice Transparency in the Beauty Industry

Plus, athletes are building fashion brands.

These are the stories making headlines in fashion on Wednesday.

‘The New York Times’ explores fashion and the metaverse
Vanessa Friedman explores fashion and the metaverse for The New York Times, unpacking Meta’s recent launch of a new avatar fashion store featuring looks from Balenciaga, Thom Browne and Prada. Friedman, though, is not impressed: “While it is good that the tech world, which has shied away from fashion since the attempt to make wearables chic fell pretty much flat on its face, realizes that if it wants to play in the world of dress, best to invite the experts in, these particular offerings seem predicated on the lowest common expectations of our selves in the virtual world,” notes the writer. “The whole point of the kind of fashion Mssrs. Gvasalia et al. create is that it is more than commercial: It shows us who we are, or who we want to be, at a specific moment in time in ways we didn’t even understand until we see it.” {The New York Times}

How to be transparent in a complex beauty industry
Erica La Sala interviews industry experts on how to build a transparent beauty company for Beauty Independent. La Sala compiled insights shared during a panel discussion from Rozenn Barrois, sales manager at Croda active cosmetic ingredient division Sederma; Victoria Fu and Gloria Lu, cosmetic chemists and co-founders of Chemist Confessions; and Lara Koritzke, marketing director at biodiversity-focused nonprofit The Union for Ethical Biotrade (UEBT). {Beauty Independent}

Athletes are building fashion brands
Daniel Yaw-Miller reports on the emergent trend of athlete-led fashion brands for Business of Fashion. Licensing deals focused on hawking merch are becoming more passé for athletes, with names like Megan Rapinoe, Russell Westbrook, Allyson Felix and Raheem Sterling creating their own brands. “Labels like Westbrook’s Honor the Gift are full-line fashion companies, producing seasonal collections without using their founders’ names on a logo to attract fans,” writes Yaw-Miller, adding, “It’s a new category of apparel startups that’s gaining investor interest too, as venture capital firms and large strategic retailers alike see potential in celebrity-backed e-commerce brands with a social impact angle.” {Business of Fashion}

Brad Pitt covers ‘GQ’

Brad Pitt covers GQ‘s August 2022 issue, photographed by Elizaveta Porodina. In an accompanying interview with Ottessa Moshfegh, Pitt reflects on the future of his career, feelings of loneliness and changes he’s made to improve his health. The issue hits newsstands on July 17. {GQ}

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Source: Fashionista.com