Fashion D-Day

"In fashion, one day you're in and the next you're out"

These words are spoken by famous model Heidi Klum on every episode on Project Runway and have quickly become words to live by for many aspiring and established fashion designers. In an industry where there is a constant fight to get to the top, and an even harder one to stay there, it becomes imperative for all designers to know that their downfall will not be because of their communication team.

With this in mind, communication (especially in the time of a crisis) has become an essential part of almost every well-established fashion house and for most upcoming designers. Chapter 8 of Crisis Mangement in the New Startegy Landscape states that when a crisis occurs, it is necessary to communicate with internal stakeholders in a different manner than you would external stakeholders.

The fashion house Marc Jacobs has been at the top of American fashion for many years now due to the inventive runway shows and trendy designs. While I do not know what the Jacobs team communication plan is, I believe they must be doing a good job in order to remain at the top of the industry.

If Marc Jacobs were to face a crisis today, they would need to designate a spokesperson to communicate with external publics such as the media, customers, and other public groups. I feel that within the Marc Jacobs company, the person best suited to handle this responsibility is company President Robert Duffy. He is a well-known man in the fashion industry and would therefore be take seriously by publics.

On the other hand, while dealing with internal stakeholders such as management and employees, the best person to communicate with them would probably be Marc Jacobs himself. This is because Marc is the owner of the company, the most respected, and the only reason the company exists. It is his brain child, and more often than not, any crisis that may occur would directly effect him.