IFM and Le 1 hebdo ask: What’s the point of fashion?

As Paris Fashion Week® gets under way, Le 1 hebdo has published a special issue in partnership with Institut Français de la Mode, built around one question: fashion, what’s the point? Released on 30 September, the issue explores what clothing and trends say about our identities, our sense of belonging and our collective desires. It also examines the contradictions of an industry that is both powerful and facing major environmental challenges, as well as its future in the age of artificial intelligence.

The contributors span design, research and teaching. Sarah Andelman, founder of colette, reflects on curation and on the pace that social media has imposed. Benjamin Simmenauer, philosopher, professor and research director at IFM, and author of Tendance(s) (Les Léonides, 2026), examines the origins and uses of fashion. Alice Audrezet, professor, head of the Diversity & Beauty chair and director of the MSc in International Fashion and Luxury Management, traces how bloggers and, later, influencers reshaped our tastes. Charles Spence, professor of experimental psychology at the University of Oxford, shows how what we wear acts on how we think and behave.

AI is addressed through Paul Billot, who graduated from IFM in 2025 and presented a collection at Paris Fashion Week® in March, developed in dialogue with an AI model while remaining firmly grounded in his skills and expertise as a designer. Five IFM students extend the discussion from their own paths: Paul Molina and Alexis Lopez Angeles (Fashion Design), Klara Manceron-Vium (Management for Fashion and Creative Industries), Eve Hadjisotiriou (International Fashion & Luxury Management) and Isaure Tron (professional certificate in tailoring). The centre poster is illustrated by students of the BA in Fashion Design.