6 podcasts anyone curious about fashion should listen to right now

Fashion, being a visual medium with a relatively niche audience, may not appear to be the most conducive subject matter for a podcast. But in a peak podcast era, where there seems to be a show for everything, style has no shortage of audio content.

These six shows approach style from a variety of perspectives, exploring breaking news from the fashion industry, the place of clothing in pop culture, and the historical and societal forces that shape what we wear.

EVERY OUTFIT

Every Outfit started life as a sharp-tongued Instagram account deconstructing the notoriously fabulous fashion worn by the core cast members of Sex And The City, both on and offscreen.

Having amassed a dedicated following, Chelsea Fairless and Lauren Garroni created this spinoff podcast in 2021, where they apply their brand of snarky-yet-loving fashion policing to a much broader range of topics, analysing pop culture news and trends through the lens of what was worn.

Fairless, a social media consultant and designer, and Garroni, a writer and director, share a dryly witty repartee. On recent episodes they have tackled the aesthetics of the teen survival drama Yellowjackets, Gwyneth Paltrow’s much-discussed ski trial style, and the “ludicrously capacious” Burberry bag that gained infamy in the Season 4 premiere of Succession.

Starter episode: On Gwyneth’s Trial, Capacious Bags, Lana Del Rey

DRESSED: THE HISTORY OF FASHION

Historians have long studied clothing to understand the economics, values and belief systems of cultures, and this richly researched podcast takes the same approach.

Hosted by two fashion historians, Cassidy Zachary and April Calahan, each episode of Dressed delves into an aspect of style through the ages, with subjects that include the history of black dandyism, the connection of fashion and politics during the French Revolution, and the story of pioneering designer Elizabeth Hawes, who was ahead of her time decrying the industry’s mistreatment of women. With a back catalogue of more than 300 episodes, this series is a treasure trove.

Starter episode: A Dressed Guide to Dressed, Part 1

ARTICLES OF INTEREST

99% Invisible, the long-running radio show-turned-podcast, considers the hidden or unappreciated role of design in our everyday lives, often focusing on architecture and physical structures.

Articles of Interest, hosted by Avery Trufelman, started out as a clothing-focused miniseries within 99% Invisible but spun off into an independent series about how clothing design both mirrors and shapes society.

Now in its fourth season, the show has examined gender constructs within clothing, the surprisingly complex history of Hawaiian shirts, and Cher Horowitz’s iconic closet in Clueless (more specifically, the question of why it doesn’t exist in the real world yet).

Last year, the show debuted its first miniseries, American Ivy, on the perennial popularity of the preppy look. Preppy style, which evolved from Ivy League style, favours neat and understated staples – Oxford shirts, chinos, blazers – and has become so ubiquitous that it’s now, to quote Trufelman, “not the clothing of a subculture … but the clothing of the dominant culture”. That provides plenty of fodder for the insightful seven-part deep dive that follows.

Starter episode: Pockets

POP FASHION

Begun in 2014, this weekly fashion podcast offers a rare blend of down-to-earth comedy and sartorial commentary. With a stated aim of appealing to industry insiders and outsiders alike, Lisa Rowan, a finance writer, and Kaarin Vembar, a fashion journalist, talk fashion news, breaking down what’s happening with retailers, designers and celebrity labels, as well as on the runway and the red carpet.

As hosts, Rowan and Vembar are well-informed, but never in a way that feels alienating to novices. And the range of subjects makes for enjoyably unpredictable listening: In a given episode, you might hear about Estee Lauder buying Tom Ford, how the pandemic affected retail worker pay, or the extraordinary story of the biggest diamond heist in world history.

Starter episode: Fashion Inferno

THE DEBRIEF

The Business of Fashion, which started life as a Typepad blog in 2007, has grown into a resource for news and analysis within the fashion industry. Its accompanying podcast has found similar success, with Imran Amed, its CEO and founder, delivering coverage geared toward fashion creatives and executives.

But it’s not the most accessible entry point for non-insiders, which is where The Debrief comes in. Hosted by Lauren Sherman, the former chief correspondent for The Business of Fashion, this shorter-lived weekly show offered deep dives into more mainstream fashion subjects, like the much-exaggerated downfall of skinny jeans, the rise of direct-to-consumer clothing, and how Gen Z is reshaping the industry as both consumers and employees.

The Debrief wrapped up its run in January when Sherman departed Business of Fashion, but the back catalog is well worth the delve for anyone seeking a better understanding of modern fashion.

Starter episode: The Decline of the Skinny Jean

WHO WHAT WEAR WITH HILLARY KERR

Who What Wear was one of the first digital-only fashion brands, founded in 2006 by former Elle magazine editors Hillary Kerr and Katherine Power, and in the years since the duo have launched clothing lines, a media company and written books on style.

In May 2021 came the brand’s first podcast, offering trend analysis, runway coverage and interviews with designers, stylists and celebrities. Kerr, who also leads Second Life, a podcast about career pivots, is a warm and affable host whose interviews go deeper than many others in the genre.

The show is also an especially smart resource for anyone curious about Hollywood costuming; interviewees have included designers from Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Daisy Jones & the Six and the original Gossip Girl.

Starter episode: WWW 100: Your Definitive (and Exhaustive) Guide to Spring Shopping

By Emma Dibdin © The New York Times Company

The article originally appeared in The New York Times.