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The Fashion Statement: What are These Guys Doing in Fashion?

Filed under: Apparel, Men's Style, The Fashion Statement

What is the "Fashion Capital of the World," you ask? Paris? New York? Mayor Bloomberg is leaving nothing up to chance.

This week, the New York Mayor (pictured above with Diane von Furstenberg) announced six initiatives to give the $55 billion industry a boost. After a yearlong look study, the city is starting an NYC Fashion Fund to help emerging designers get capital and support services. Another initiative, Project Pop-up, will be an annual competition to promote and foster new and unique retail concepts. The New York City Fashion Draft will recruit fashion students to get into fashion management. Fashion Campus NYC will offer business seminars to summer interns led by industry executives. New York City Fashion Fellows will honor 30 rising stars in fashion business (the business side of the business often gets overshadowed by the creative side in award ceremonies). Finally, there will be a Designer as Entrepreneur program that will help emerging designers with the business side of things by teaching them how to draft business plans, their financial management and how to participate in e-commerce.

Whew! It's a lot to take in. We can only hope it helps New York's Garment District that has been decimated by production going overseas.

Tags: Bloomberg, Chad Hurley, ForbesMagazine, Garment District, Hlaska, New York City, Silicon Valley, YouTube