Cutting the French Apron Strings.

As was true for many industries, the war had an unexpected effect on the American fashion industry. With the fall of Paris to the Nazis in 1940, the city was effectively cut off from the world of international fashion shows, fashion journalism, and fashion manufacturing. Without the French as a guide, American fashion was forced inward. This gave American designers the opportunity to make a name for themselves with the American public.

A Boom to the Industry.

Under the encouragement of Mayor Fiorello La Guardia, New York made a bid to be the next fashion capital of the Western world. La Guardia worked with designers and the press to organize new shows and new press coverage of New York designers. Yet the dominance in fashion of New York was challenged almost immediately by Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and Boston, as designers...