Losing your job in fashion needs a rebrand

When the issue is rarely due to employee performance, why does it still feel so personal?

It’s been a tough time for employees in fashion over the past couple of years, as tumbling revenues, the demise of retail e-commerce and company sales, mergers and takeovers have led to a never-ending spate of redundancies. At Burberry, as many as 400 jobs were reported to be at risk amid plunging profits, following the 500 positions that were slashed in 2020. H&M, PVH, and Nordstrom laid off more than 10% of their corporate workforce, while Nike told staff they would be cutting 2% of staff – more than 1,500 jobs – as part of a plan to save 2 billion US dollars. The list of independent brands that have closed continues to grow, too. Today, it isn’t just hard to find a job in fashion; it’s increasingly hard to keep one.