Here and Now Fashion Festival

Transparency, employee experience, and diversity/inclusion must all play a major role for brands to be considered authentic. Authenticity is the act of being real and revealing a brand’s human nature. Millennials and Generation Z want to see themselves in the brands they support. This means that brands must reflect the qualities and characteristics found in these highly sought after generational groupings. Brands must be open, honest, passionate, and collaborative. Transparency, employee experience, and diversity/inclusion are a three-circle Venn diagram in that while they contain elements that are solely true to themselves, there are many overlappings. This means that brands cannot claim to have one without having the others.

Li-Shan Jordan has a passion for brands and the stories they tell. Obtaining her Masters in Fashion Management from Parsons School of Design, her capstone research project demystifies brand authenticity within the fashion industry. During her time at Parsons, Li-Shan also created The Back Row—an Instagram account that shares the stories of small underrepresented brands that you’ve probably never heard of. She enjoys researching brands in her spare time that align with her values and has even created an Excel spreadsheet to keep track of them all. Li-Shan hopes to secure a full-time position where she is instrumental in brand storytelling and marketing strategy.