Instantly-Shoppable and More Diverse: How Rebecca Minkoff Is Updating a 'Broken' Fashion Week

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Fashion week is broken," begin the show notes for Rebecca Minkoff's first in-season fashion show, which walked earlier today. It's one of the first in-season shows, a customer-first approach that offers immediately-shoppable looks. "Season after season, I saw that the moment my designs walked the runway, images and videos of them appeared everywhere, but nothing was available to buy until months later," Minkoff continues. "By that time, customers were bored. I couldn't blame them."

The designer has never shied away trying new things during fashion week (last season it was virtual reality). This season, she was the first to announce plans for an in-season fashion show. Her announcement came back in December, and the model has since been echoed by Banana Republic, LaQuan Smith, Burberry, Tom Ford, Proenza Schouler, and Tommy Hilfger.

Minkoff's show notes provide the outline of why her label, and the industry at large, is moving in this direction, pointing to social media in particular. "Since day one, I've valued the ability to connect with my customers," she writes. "I can pick up my phone and immediately find out not just what they're wearing, but who they are, what they look like, who they're hanging out with, and where they're going," she continues. "Today, I'm celebrating my customers. Because these women value 'the now,' everything seen today can be bought and worn right away. This is how it should be."

And, as promised, spring-friendly clothes marched down the runway. A number of looks were duplicates from what the brand showed during the spring 2016 collections back in September. To keep it fresh, there was a healthy addition of new pieces in fabrics, colors, and prints that complimented and expanded that initial spring offering. If you navigate to rebeccaminkoff.com, you will indeed find clothes, bags, and shoes from today's show available for purchase.

The September 2015 cast. Photo: Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images for NYFW: The Shows

One of the biggest differences in today's show, contrasted to September's, was the diversity in casting. Last season, Business of Fashion did the math and found that 80% of the models that walked the shows were white. That percentage was the same a year ago, according to The Fashion Spot's diversity report. A cast of girls that represent a range of backgrounds, complexions, and — the next frontier — body types is an additional service to the end customer. Here is what these clothes might look like on you.