According to new research from London-based fashion campaigners, the (Fashion) Minority Report, 40 percent of industry professionals believe fashion still favours white employees over those from an ethnic minority background.

The (Fashion) Minority Report, which strives for equity in the fashion world, found that 51 percent of the industry professionals it surveyed believe that fashion is not creating change "at a quick enough pace," regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion.

It adds that white people are likely to have an easier route into the creative industry, as a tenth of those surveyed got a job through a connection, with the majority, 66 percent of them being white.

Around a third (36 percent) got their job as a family member or friend worked at the job they applied for, a similar number had a family member or friend who knew someone senior at the company they applied for (32 percent), and a fifth (22 percent) had a connection who shared their CV for them on their professional network.

Fashion needs to “work harder” to drive diverse recruitment

When looking at the fashion industry more generally, six in 10 (60 percent) believe it’s made up of a majority white population, and a similar number (63 percent) feel there needs to be more diverse representation behind the camera. 53 percent of the respondents believe that the onus lies on recruiters, who they feel need to work harder to recruit more diversely, with 43 percent saying there aren’t enough diverse models.

Despite this, four in 10 (39 percent) did acknowledge “a positive shift” in diverse representation in the head office environment in the past few years.

Daniel Peters, founder of the (Fashion) Minority Report, said in a statement: “Though we are beginning to see increasing diverse representation in 2023, the fashion industry needs to work harder to ensure diverse recruitment drives are not just a ‘tick box’ exercise.

“We need more representation at all levels, both behind and in front of the camera, to ensure that the fashion industry is a level playing field and accessible to all. The launch of the Fashion Minority Report’s newspaper ahead of London Fashion Week will shed light on these issues and raise awareness of the steps we, as an industry, still need to take.”

The (Fashion) Minority Report surveyed 187 industry professionals in January 2023.

The report coincides with the launch of the (Fashion) Minority Report’s newspaper, The Reporter, which will explore the issues of inequality in the industry. The newspaper will be distributed from Liverpool Street Station between 8:30-10:30 am and Oxford Circus Station at 4:30-6:30 pm on February 17. It will also be available from the (Fashion) Minority report website from February 27.