Can Niche Modeling Agencies Help Fashion’s Diversity Problem?

 

Fashion’s shortcomings in representing minorities are well documented. From the lack of nonwhite and transgender models on the runways to the scant number of faces who don’t conform to traditional beauty standards, the industry has a long way to go in terms of accurately depicting society at large. While everyone from designers to casting directors have taken the blame, modeling agencies are largely cited as the root of the problem. As the gatekeepers between models and the lucrative contracts that make them stars, agencies have the power to represent and advocate for underrepresented minorities, and many have been criticized for failing to fill their boards with women and men who fall outside the white, cisgendered norm that dominates most fashion

imagery.

      In recent years, a new breed of modeling agency has developed, fit to fight against fashion world norms: the boutique agency targeted toward minorities. Niche agencies have always played a role in fashion’s understanding of beauty—from Paul Rowland’s edgy Supreme Models ushering in the look of the early ’00s to Eva Gödel’s Tomorrow Is Another Day tapping into the zeitgeist with its array of lean, androgynous boys—but the newest ones take things one step further by answering fashion’s call for racial and gender diversity.

    Leading the pack are London’s Lorde Inc, representing only nonwhite faces, and Los Angeles’ just-launched Apple Models, targeted toward transgendered models. Both agencies are new—Lorde Inc has been in existence for little over a year—and small in size, but they’re already chipping away at fashion’s norms. Lorde’s 60 models from a variety of ethnic backgrounds are routinelycast in indie magazines and campaigns, and the debut of Apple Models this week has made headlines across the world.

    Whether these niche agencies will be able to influence the industry on a larger scale has yet to be seen.