“We Need to Bring Back Gatekeeping” — Model Says Influencers Are Ruining NYFW

New York Fashion Week has historically been the time when the who’s who of the fashion and entertainment industry gathers to see the trends in store for the following season. Throughout the years, an invitation to a fashion week event meant that you were an exclusive member of the fashion elite.

However, within the last decade, influencers with massive social media followings have found themselves in the front rows of luxury shows — take, for instance, TikTok star Remi Bader’s appearance at the Christian Siriano spring 2024 fashion show.

Despite the influencers introducing their audience to NYFW, one model thinks many of them should watch the shows at home like the rest of us. According to the woman, influencers are ruining the events with their horrid style.

And that’s not all she has to say...

With TikTok’s rise infiltrating nearly every industry these days, it’s no surprise that the influencers who seem to always appear on users’ #FYP (For You Page) also receive a ticket to NYFW’s shows. But, as with many reality stars before them, some feel the influencers have no place at NYFW.

One of their strongest naysayers is a model and (ironically) fellow influencer named Taylor, who goes by @taiilormade on TikTok. She believes “Fashion Week is dead” and the industry needs to start “gatekeeping” again.

In Taylor’s September 2023 TikTok, she shared that she went to a show and its afterparty with a friend, and to say she was disappointed would be a grand understatement.

Taylor said she had “two things I’m really trying to understand” about the new era of NYFW. She ended the sentence by saying she had “maybe three” concerns.

She then wondered why does NYFW’s team refuse to have their afterparties anywhere besides the Boom Boom Room, a famous NYC club? The model also wondered, “Where are the PR girlies?” and noted that they should be at the door instead of security.

“Can we stop dressing like we all live in Buschwick?” Taylor asked on TikTok, noting that she’s not in the “we” category. “There are other things to wear besides cargo pants, leather mini skirts, denim pleated mini skirts, and cowboy boots.”

“I felt like I was at a f------ college homecoming,” she added. “And not an HBCU either.”

Taylor’s controversial take on NYFW influencers resonated with many TikTok commenters. Underneath the comments, several users agreed, with some stating that the influencer tickets aren’t for fashion or beauty influencers, making their presence even more annoying.

“It’s a lot of fashion influencers that really know fashion; they just don’t have the numbers sometimes... You’re so right,” one commenter wrote to Taylor.

“It’s become an influencer event,” a second user stated

“Literally,” another agreed. “The shift I’ve seen in the last decade is insane.”

“Preachhhhh,” a third user wrote.

"I literally left Fashion Week because of this," wrote another, adding: "You ate."

While I definitely see Taylor’s point in her TikTok rant, one thing I can say is that “gatekeeping” the fashion industry might not be the answer to keeping influencers away, especially if we’re reverting back to the non-diverse, body-shaming practices that have plagued the fashion industry for decades.