The ties between identity, politics, and fashion have never been clearer.

etween COVID-19 bringing the fashion industry to a halt, to the fight for racial justice, the ties between identity, politics, and fashion have never been clearer. In the last few months, the industry has had a reckoning. Brands are being forced to contend with their problematic cultures and practices, whether that’s racist corporate cultures or not paying their garment workers amid a global pandemic (after already receiving orders).

IKIGAI LABELS, an Amsterdam based slow fashion online store, recently launched a slow fashion video project entitled Fabric for The Mind— exploring themes like the Japanese philosophy ‘ikigai’, slow fashion, inclusivity, emancipation, and social sustainability.

The project is a refreshing reminder on how brands can be extending their role in the fashion landscape— not only as pushers of product, but as champions of larger conversations— about culture, identity, and reimagining fashion’s future.

The series encapsulates a beautiful display of perspectives— from thought leaders such as Aja Barber to zero-waste fashion designers like Nathalia JMag— and I’m excited to share my own thoughts on the state of the industry as we approach a critical cultural juncture where accountability is on the rise, alongside an awareness of how exploitation exists in fashion.

THE PROJECT IS A REFRESHING REMINDER ON HOW BRANDS CAN BE EXTENDING THEIR ROLE IN THE FASHION LANDSCAPE— NOT ONLY AS PUSHERS OF PRODUCT, BUT AS CHAMPIONS OF LARGER CONVERSATIONS— ABOUT CULTURE, IDENTITY, AND REIMAGINING FASHION’S FUTURE.

Alongside this video is an editorial featuring pieces from IKIGAI’s shop. I’m sporting linen trousers from Filanda 18, a brand that is an ode to the antique hunters, the slow-travelers, and the enthusiasts of hand-crafted treasures, and Buki Akomolafe, a Berlin-based clothing label self-named after its founder’s German/Nigerian heritage that weds a background of tradition, handcraft, design experience, and aesthetic vision.