No New York Fashion Week Press Credential? No Problem!

The following is a guest post from Julia DiNardo, Founder of FashionPulseDaily, a fashion industry veteran and editor covering NY and LA Fashion Weeks over the past 12 years. New new new, everything in fashion has to be new. It’s the nature of the beast! And in keeping with that, IMG, the official organizer of New York Fashion Week. has not only changed up the venues for the shows in this transitional, temporary season (a more permanent home is under construction and should be ready by 2017), but also expressed on its websites, NYFW.com that “As part of this evolution, IMG will only be issuing credentials to major media outlets.” This means that, not surprisingly, yours truly, who has been approved for accreditation for the past 12 years, was denied for the first time ever this year. Ouch? Not really. It actually means that receiving a credential holds less weight than ever before, and in the scheme of things, doesn’t really matter. Here’s why:

1. Information is everywhere.

It’s easier than ever to find the press contact and request an invite, although you must act soon, with fashion week little more than a week away, most invites are going, or have gone out already. My go-to resource has always been Modem Online, a tremendous site for international fashion show schedules, trade shows, and of course, press and showroom contacts. Last, don’t forget to sign up for a FashionGPS account, so that all of your RSVPS that come in from the widely-used system will be streamlined into one handy place, accessible via a handy App as well!

2. You have your own contacts — use them!

Most fashion bloggers have, or build up, a rapport with brands, publicists, and agencies, so why not reach out to them and see if you can get an invite to the show? Consult IMG’s schedule of a the days and times when designer and brands will be showing, but also the official New York Fashion Week Calendar, recently taken over by the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA), which offers a more exhaustive list of designers showing during the week, all over the city.

3. Accreditation doesn’t mean invites anyway.

Being approved for a press credential has never meant that you gained full access to shows. You were just able to enter the main area at Lincoln Center (and Bryant Park before it) more easily by showing the badge without having to fumble and find a paper invite in your bag or digital version on your phone. The invites, however, have always been separate from a press pass, contingent upon your relationships and who had invited you to individual shows and presentations. So, it all goes back to points #1 and #2!

4. So much is livestreamed, you truly don’t need to go to every show.

Honestly, I may sound like an old fart, but I was most at peace last season when I took the afternoon off, caught up on my emails and fashion week writing, and had the shows running off to the side of my working window via livestream. I’m so short that half the time I can’t see the entire look from the seats, so when viewing the livestream (check out NewYorkFashionWeekLive.com or Rightster.com), I oftentimes feel that I see more of the collection than I would if I were at the actual show. Plus, it’s expensive to come here for fashion week, let alone stay the entire time, so watching the videos and checking out the images is an ideal solution. Granted, not every show will be available, but enough are in that I’m actually considering sitting out NYFW in February and experiencing it via livestream instead!

Are you headed to New York Fashion Week? Let us know, we’d love to follow along on your blog!

(Photo by Featureflash via Shutterstock)

Want to contribute a guest post to IFB? Learn how here.

The post No New York Fashion Week Press Credential? No Problem! appeared first on IFB.