The focus on Black-owned businesses, particularly in industries where there are historically underrepresented, was big. We sold out pretty much all of our remaining stock and gained a few hundred new followers on Instagram, says Jide Onwuazor, who founded Velviere, a menswear luxury fashion apparel.
He isn t alone in wanting to transform an industry within which Black people have been historically underrepresented and which has been shaken by coronavirus.
Onwuazor s company was beginning to produce its spring and summer range when lockdown hit. The pandemic s impact on luxury fashion was huge. Kering, the French luxury goods company responsible for brands such as Gucci, Bottega Veneta, and Balenciaga, suffered a 15.4% drop in profits in the first three months of 2020.