Why Zara calling sweats 'genderless' is problematic
Last week Zara released an "ungendered" clothing line, and it's causing controversy.
The clothing retailer joined the unisex and genderless fashion movement that gained steam last year.
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In 2015 luxury labels like Saint Laurent, Gucci and Burberry incorporated elements of gender fluidity into runway shows, while brands like Nicopanda and VFILES showcased both men and women in skirts and dresses.
Zara's new 10-piece offering consists of plain basics that were arguably already genderless by style.
It begs questioning whether this line furthers the intention of the movement or whether calling an unimaginative fashion line "ungendered" is little more than a trendy marketing play.
Twitter users expressed their thoughts.
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Anita Dolce Vita, owner of queer style empowerment site, DapperQ, says at least it's a start.
"It's hard to imagine how these simple items become gendered," she explained. "But, when you think about how similar items are marketed specifically toward women, such retailers calling looser fitting jeans 'boyfriend jeans,' or Victoria's Secret advertising 'PINK,' and Juicy Couture advertising 'Juicy' across the the seat of a pair of sweatpants, it puts Zara's new line into perspective. It's refreshing to see something as benign as a great pair of jeans or sweatpants just be a great pair of jeans or sweatpants, without being tied to normative gender descriptors."
A statement made by an Inditex (Zara's parent company) communications spokesperson explains the reason for the new line: "The launch of this capsule is resultant and organically linked to our proximity with the customers – this closeness plays an intrinsic role in the design process, in that our proposals are drawn from their needs and demands."
"I do worry that the industry's new obsession with 'genderless' will be presented to mainstream culture without context [...]."
While Zara might simply be fulfilling customer requests, Dolce Vita believes brands have been co-opting queer style aesthetics as part of a lucrative business model.
She told Mashable, "I do worry that the industry's new obsession with 'genderless' will be presented to mainstream culture without context and perhaps be discarded once it no longer suits the industry's financial needs."
Dolce Vita believes gender fluid clothing at mainstream retailers has both positive and negative effects on the LBGTQ community.
"On one hand, genderless lines in the mainstream encourages everyone to accept more diverse forms of gender expression, which creates positive change for the queer community," she said. "On the other, the industry seems focused on masculine style for all genders, erasing femme identities and perpetuating a standard that femininity is still very narrowly defined and only acceptable for a limited scope of identities."
If brands are going to enter the genderless category, many believe it's important that they keep the queer community in mind and give credit where credit it due.
Dolce Vita worries that if mass market companies aren't involving LBGTQ members in the development process, then their voices will get lost. "What we have, then, are mainstream mass markets attempting to dictate to the queer community, as well as to the mainstream community, what queer beauty looks like."
While Zara's new collection helps keep the idea of gender fluid fashion at the forefront of the industry, shoppers don't have to rely on corporate retailers to satisfy this category. Many queer-owned brands, such as Stuzo and Sir New York, have been offering genderless styles for years.
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Topics Gender
Noelle Sciacca is a Fashion Reporter at Mashable. Noelle writes on the intersection of fashion and the media. A graduate of Liberty University with a degree in Business Marketing, Noelle previously worked for SELF Magazine and Lucky Magazine. At Mashable, her aim is to make the most innovative, entertaining, and empowering fashion content on the web.
