Vive La Diversite

Fashion is finally embracing difference and diversity— but too many in the industry are doing it just because it’s on-trend, says model Winnie Harlow.

- Alison De Souza

Diversity is bang on-trend these days. And if a contradiction could sum up the complexities of the fashion industry, it’s that a business built in no small part on being an exclusive inner circle is finally seeing the upside of embracing difference, from plus-size to gender non-binary and every stripe in between.

But one of the poster children for this movement, Canadian model Winnie Harlow, is calling it to account. Diversity shouldn’t just be the flavour of the month, and yet that is precisely what it often boils down to, she tells Harper’s BAZAAR Singapore—despite the industry patting itself on its back for being more inclusive in recent years.

Discovered on Instagram by America’s Next Top Model creator Tyra Banks, the 23-year-old, who has the skin depigmentation condition known as vitiligo, appeared on the 21 st cycle of the reality series in 2014. Competing under her real name, Chantelle Brown- Young, she didn’t win, but emerged as a fan favourite and one of the series’ most bankable stars. Hired to front brands such as Diesel and Desigual, and walk the runways for Dior and Marc Jacobs, Harlow is now one of the world’s most recognisable models, often credited with helping change the face of fashion with her unconventional beauty. But she astutely notes that in many respects, she remains the exception that proves the rule.