As New York Fashion Week unfolds against a backdrop of political and economic uncertainty in the US, emerging brands find themselves navigating an increasingly complex landscape where cultural relevance and commercial viability must work in tandem.
What’s more, the conversation around how underrepresented founders of emerging labels can translate influence into sustainable income has taken on new urgency in 2025, as traditional support systems face unprecedented challenges.
The rollback of corporate diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives following the Trump administration’s executive orders has fundamentally altered the terrain for emerging brands, particularly those led by BIPOC founders. The shift is visible across the industry: Pride collections have gone “beige” as brands opt for neutral tones over traditional rainbow aesthetics; Target has retreated from its diversity commitments; and DEI professionals are rebranding and distancing themselves from conversations around race and gender to secure contracts in today’s working environment.
The economic pressures are equally mounting. High-profile closures like cosmetic brand Ami Colé — which shuttered in July despite being carried in over 600 Sephora stores and having celebrity endorsements — illustrate the precarious position of Black-owned beauty brands. Meanwhile, Trump’s tariffs on China and Vietnam have disproportionately impacted Black beauty businesses, with some salon owners seeing hair extension prices jump from $190 to $290 per package, forcing them to pass costs to customers or absorb the losses themselves.
Yet organisations like RaiseFashion continue to push forward despite the headwinds, providing grants, pro-bono advisory services and network access to underrepresented designers whilst adapting their approach to meet the moment. The nonprofit’s work supporting alumni who have landed collaborations and roles with Louis Vuitton and Abercrombie demonstrates that pathways to success remain viable, even as they require new strategies.
Rachel Scott, founder of Diotima and recently appointed Creative Director of Proenza Schouler, exemplifies this success. Scott joined RaiseFashion four years ago through the masterclass program, where she received strategic support and grant funding.
Felita Harris, RaiseFashion’s executive director and co-founder, hosted a panel featuring Carey Krug, chief marketing officer of Abercrombie & Fitch, Halah AlQahtani, senior director, chief of staff to the CEO, culture and internal communications at Glossier Inc., Jalem Getz, founder of technology agency Fluency, and Marc Farrell, founder & CEO of drinks company Ten To One Rum. Moderated by BoF’s senior correspondent Sheena Butler-Young at Posh VIP during New York Fashion Week, the panel discussed these pressing challenges for the audience of emerging brand founders and creatives.
The panel was part of RaiseFashion’s full-day NYFW Showcase, where 16 designers engaged directly with consumers and industry leaders to drive business growth. As Harris noted during her toast to commemorate the evening, “At RaiseFashion, partnerships are not just about sponsorships, they are about creating spaces where designers, advisors and stakeholders come together with purpose.”
The panel explored how emerging brands can decode the current landscape, bridge influence to income, navigate beyond restrictive labels and identify sustainable pathways to growth. Here, BoF shares key insights from the conversation, “From Visibility to Viability: How Emerging Brands Turn Cultural Capital into Business Success.”
Understand the state of play for emerging founders today
Halah AlQahtani: One of the things we do at Glossier is run a grant programme for new businesses. It’s been interesting hearing from alumni and cohorts of grantees about how difficult it has been to raise money, how many resources have stopped and how funding has become basically non-existent.
The data also shows that, unfortunately, funding continues to drop from a percentage perspective for Black founders. The latest numbers show that less than 1 percent of all VC funding goes to Black founders and it continues to show a downward trajectory.
[…] This is beyond just the money — it’s about access and resources. There are a lot of programmes that offer money, but at some point, it’s done and the relationship is over. For us, some grantees from 2020 continue to have support with their advisors up until this day.
Marc Farrell: If you look at the environment in 2025, everyone tends to be a little cautious — we’re all trying to make sense of a new world order and understand what the rules of engagement look like. That would be true whether you were in fashion, sports, finance or tech.
However, if you’re an emerging creator, designer or entrepreneur, by definition, you’re in the business of doing hard things. That’s what you signed up for. It’s exactly in this kind of environment that diamonds are formed. So in the midst of challenge and frustration, I think we’re going to see iconic, incredible brands and talents emerge from this period, just like all the ones before.
Carey Krug: [At Abercrombie & Fitch,] we just had two of our best years in the history of the organisation as a result of really leaning into [culture, belonging and inclusion].
This culture of inclusivity and supporting emerging designers is not only important to emerging talent but also to bigger organisations like ours. Because in order to have cultural relevance and cultivate that, you need representation and you need diverse voices — and to do that, you need a thriving community of emerging talent.
Build real business strategy beyond compelling storytelling
HA: Many emerging businesses have so much appetite from consumers, but they’re lacking complete funding, resources and capital to […] succeed. For example, getting into Sephora is like winning the lottery — it’s a big deal for any beauty brand. You can open up [in] 700 stores overnight and have access to so many people. At the same time, you have to have so much inventory, regardless of the size of your business. This requires a lot of funding.
[…] The bottom line is the story will only get you so far. The beauty industry is different from other industries in that it’s such a saturated market where both brand and story matter, but that’s not everything. Your story has to be accompanied by an actual business strategy, good economics and good products. All of those together are the recipe for success.
So in the midst of challenge and frustration, I think we’re going to see iconic, incredible brands and talents emerge from this period, just like all the ones before.
Jalem Getz: Don’t be afraid of margin. There are incredible brands here with incredible products, and the consumer often associates value with price — the higher the price, the higher the perceived value. As you get into the game and deal with vendors that don’t pay you, margin is always important.
Turn minimal resources and mentorship into competitive advantages
MF: As entrepreneurs and creators, we’re doing something new and novel. We might feel like we’re not ready to share with the world until the thing is perfect. I have bad news — it’s never going to be perfect. The sooner you can get out there and share what you have, ask some stupid questions about how to commercialise your creative juice and turn it into a product — that’s a road other people have travelled.
There are pitfalls and opportunities to get it wrong. I’ve seen many folks who are too prideful in the early innings, afraid to ask hard questions. In reality, that would save you a tonne of time and heartache.
HA: Just because everyone’s raising [venture capital] doesn’t mean you have to raise VC money. Be incredibly discerning about how you raise money and who you’re raising it from. You are basically marrying whoever is going to be part of your business.
We are also in a time when you can build a brand with very little in terms of budget for telling the story and reaching customers. Lean into that. Glossier is much bigger now, but we still try to operate like we have minimal resources. That allows us to be nimble and quick and respond to our customers. You can probably do way more than we can because you’re smaller and have more flexibility.
JG: Our point of view is that it’s about one-to-one relationships and personal connections in this world of excess social media — bringing it back to simple conversations that can be developed over time in an authentic way. That’s what Fluency does, and that’s what we facilitate.
Historically, I came up as a merchant and retailer, developing relationships with customers starting with our smallest group and then growing from there, building on that and developing the relationship. It doesn’t matter what category you’re in — having that connection is key. That’s what’s missing in the market today.
Embrace your authentic story without letting identity become limiting
CK: I once had a conversation with my CEO. I wanted to celebrate her as a female CEO of a publicly traded company, and she looked at me and said, ‘I’m a CEO. I’m not a female CEO.’ But at the same time, she very much leads and does not leave her identity as a woman or a mum when she comes into the office. She holds herself to the standard of CEOs, not just female CEOs. It was such a poignant conversation and an important learning moment from her. The way she shows up is a big part of the culture we have at our company.
The bottom line is the story will only get you so far.
JG: When it comes to grappling with identity on the influencer side — how much to lean in or out — while it’s certainly part of your identity, it can’t be your only story. There needs to be more depth. Embrace who you are and where you’re from, but it shouldn’t be your only story — we all have multiple layers of stories.
MF: When people ask me to describe who my customer is, I definitely want lots of Black men and women to love Ten To One Rum and champion it, but my customer isn’t defined by race. I think about somebody who is fundamentally curious, creative, has a sense of discovery and likes trying and sharing new things. No matter your race, if you fit that profile, then you’re part of the community we’re trying to create.
A big part of the job for any BIPOC founder is to figure out how to sharpen your elbows a little and break out of that fairly limiting definition that people have at times. Redefine for them what your sense of purpose and quality is, why you being a Black or Brown person matters, and who that customer is beyond any definition of colour.
However, don’t apologise for your story. Labels are labels, but a story is a story. If you push your story aside, then what do you have? At that point, you really are just a widget — just another t-shirt, another bottle of rum, another pair of sneakers.
This feature is part of a community partnership with RaiseFashion.