Fe Noel Designer Uses Fashion To Spotlight U.S. Income Inequality

Fashion is wearable art and the runway is often the stage where designers make their biggest statements. At this year’s New York Fashion Week, Grenada-born designer Felicia Noel sent a strong message to end income inequality with the debut of her first couture dress at her Spring 2023 show.

Noel’s brand Fe Noel teamed up with retirement agency services provider TIAA, and its initiative #RetireInequality, to highlight the glaring wage gaps between men and women. This messaging and empowerment was displayed in “The Dre$$,” a breathtaking couture gown and cape ensemble constructed with stitched together paper bills printed in various denominations totaling $1.6 million dollars—representing the potential amount women lose out in retirement savings as a result of the persistent wage gap between genders and the income that could have been earned through investment of those lost wages.

On average, women earn 83 cents on the dollar to every man. This means that by the end of a her career, a full-time, working woman will have lost an average of $417,400 of income. To determine the symbolic number to make the dress, Noel referenced The Center for American Progress’s calculations.

Even the gown’s corseted bodice is intended to evoke “constraint,” and the robe’s 16-foot train also has a message. “It’s like we have a long road ahead, but we’re still going to carry it, we’re still going to walk that, we’re still going to do everything we can to continue to close this gap and let women know about this information and what they can do to essentially create life for themselves, create wealth for themselves,” said Noel.

Noel also told WWD her primary goal with the collection was to spark conversation. With a monumental piece as big as the statement made, it feels safe to say mission accomplished. 

Discover more of the moving collection below.