New York Fashion Week starts Thursday. This means crowded runway shows, street-style shots and entirely new collections to covet—but it also means a huge boost for the American economy. While most of us are blinded by the glitter and glamour of the stages, behind-the-scenes millions of dollars are being poured into the city. New York Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney and the Joint Economic Committee released a report Friday that outlined their findings on the fiscal importance of America’s biggest fashion event. Annually, NYFW week is bringing in $887 million—more than the U.S. Open at $700 million, the New York City Marathon with $340 million and even the XLVIII Super Bowl which brought in roughly $500 million.
“Fashion is so much more than style; it’s big business that creates a vast array of good paying jobs,” Maloney said in a release. “Fashion is one of the largest industries in the city, producing $887 million in economic activity. Approximately 180,000 people are employed in the fashion industry in primarily good middle class jobs.” Roughly 900 fashion brands have their headquarters in New York City and these companies make up a notable portion of the city’s revenues. The New York fashion industry alone pays approximately $11 billion annually in wages and generates almost $2 billion in tax revenue.
“New York leads the way for the American fashion industry,” said CFDA CEO Steven Kolb. “It is the major engine behind the $350 billion apparel Industry that employs 4 million workers, which is 3 million more than the car manufacturers—and more than the U.S. video game industry, fast food industry, and beverage industry.” But industry employees make up only a small portion of the yearly revenue. Runway shows, presentations, PR events and even after parties draw in over 230,000 attendees yearly—attendees that spend $547 million alone.
