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Austin Fashion Week Uplifts Minority Talent

By Bryn Palmer

Ty Larson and Kenny “Maz” Jones wear pieces designed by Eddie Serra during Austin Fashion Week at the Domain in Austin, Texas on Saturday, Nov. 11, 2023. Misunderstood by Eddie was the opening brand for the 3:30 p.m. block of shows, which featured all Black designers.

Organizers of Austin Fashion Week pull Black designers out from the shadows of their white peers by equipping them with the necessary resources to succeed.

“We built it on designers who don’t necessarily have a big name or a big brand,” founder Matt Swinney said. “It’s an opportunity to say it doesn’t matter how big or small you are. If you’ve got talent in your little finger, it matters. That’s what keeps me coming back over and over again: just to give them that chance.”

Swinney launched the event 15 years ago as a means of uniting Austin’s small fashion community. He said he noticed an absence of Black designers and later discovered the reason was a lack of access to funding resources and supplies. For the past weekend's show at the Domain, his organization partnered with Austin Area Urban League, a nonprofit in Austin and Central Texas aimed at achieving economic equity and equality for African American and underserved communities. Together, the companies endowed scholarships to 10 Black designers to help combat this disproportionate access.

Austin Fashion Week veteran Eddie Serra, founder of clothing brand Misunderstood by Eddie, opened Saturday’s 3:30 p.m. show, which consisted of all Black designers. He said he appreciates the show’s organizers for their dedication to amplifying Black artistry and he heavily encourages minority designers to apply for the opportunities presented by the fashion show. As a result of the event, his network and social media following has grown immensely and the resulting support has been pivotal, he said.

“It is starting to snowball uphill,” Serra said. “But it’s a good problem to have.”

Serra said he does not solely want to reap the benefits, but he also wants to pay them forward.

He is in the midst of his ‘Fashion is Community’ initiative, a self-created project intended to help his local community through fashion. His first project manifested in the form of a T-shirt inspired by a friend who was diagnosed with a rare form of breast cancer. Profits from each sale of the shirt go directly to her GoFundMe.

“Hopefully I can do that on a bigger scale as the brand continues to grow,” he said.

Serra is not alone in his philanthropic efforts.

Daizy López, founder of Espíritu Libre, approached her Austin Fashion Week debut with selflessness. She spent the past year presenting her work at various shows and said that she has established strong relationships with models, specifically of Black and Latina descent.

Erika Martinez models pieces from Daizy López’s brand Espíritu Libre during Austin Fashion Week at the Domain in Austin, Texas on Saturday, Nov. 11, 2023. She wore López adorned her top with gold nameplates displaying the brand name and styled her in large gold bamboo earrings as an ode to her Latina culture.

López said she was excited about the prospect of the show’s attendees connecting to her work. She said her favorite part about shows is the ability to build relationships with other creatives in the fashion realm. Understanding the event’s reputability, she said she was excited to give her models the opportunity to gain exposure as well.

Her models said they appreciate her fostering of a supportive, symbiotic environment.

“I love the feeling of being out there and showing off these pieces, especially for Daizy,” model Lexi Chavez said. “Her pieces are gorgeous and she’s always giving opportunities to POCs and I just love it. She’s trying to give us that space to shine.”

López’s models said the event presents a huge opportunity for women of color to be recognized and appreciated in the modeling industry.

“Growing up I never really saw people who looked like me in magazines or modeling,” Chavez said. “It’s super thin girls, tall, fair skin. I just want to be that representation out in the world.”

Ivette Joann Cruz decorates model Lexi Chavez’s face with makeup in the hours leading up to Austin Fashion Week at the Domain in Austin, Texas on Saturday, Nov. 11, 2023. The final look consisted of black eyeshadow with orange jewels to coordinate with the gold decals on Chavez’s all black matching set.

Attendees definitely resonated with the diversity that came down the runway.

“My favorite thing about the show was seeing the looks themselves and the attitude that the models were serving,” audience member Brooke Conner said.

Attendees also said they enjoyed having the sheer ability to watch a fashion show, an occurrence many think can only happen in a fashion capital like New York or Paris.

Over a decade ago, Swinney said Austin’s fashion industry was held on the backs of a few designers. Over time, he said, the city’s transformation into a major city, onset by the wave of newcomers relocating to Texas, shifted the culture by sparking ingenuity and blossoming creativity. Now that the city hosts the longest-running fashion event in Texas, many believe Austin has the potential to become the next fashion hub, and Swinney said he supports this mindset.

“We’re on that train regardless, so we may as well embrace it,” he said.