By Anand Patel
Special to the Chronicle
Ever wonder what it would be like to have one MASSIVE party in NYC? It’s pretty freaking awesome. That’s essentially what Fashion’s Night Out is. Basically every major retail outlet and flagships around SOHO and the meatpacking district, the Upper East Side, Rockefeller Plaza, Times Square, anywhere and everywhere is packed with a ridiculously large amount of beautiful people. The streets run rampant with plebeians and patricians alike, uniting the plethora of stylish people the city has to offer, even retailers that, as FNO participants, offered 30 percent off your most expensive purchase, jaw-dropping sales and the altruistic donation of 20 percent of all profits to the NYC AIDS Fund, lending its characteristic red to The Empire State Building. Stores stay open late, host parties, have various promotions and just give away goodies—free fashion, entertainment, food and drinks. Yes, open bars everywhere. Starting to feel like you missed out? You have no idea…
Without a doubt, Fashion’s Night Out is probably the best excuse ever to go out into NYC and spend all of your money as frivolously as Hofstra spends theirs. Surely, as with any successful party, there is barely any room on the sidewalks for one to even contemplate personal space. Claustrophobes beware. Walking the streets is nice if you enjoy observing slightly to significantly intoxicated girls stumbling about in their Louboutins and multiple bags of recently purchased articles of designer clothing. Perhaps hop onto the New York sight-seeing tour bus and take free rides around town, complete with a tour guide and the ever-looming threat of being decapitated by a low-hanging branch or stoplight, all courtesy of H&M. Keep your eyes peeled; even though celebrities are using the main attraction as flagships, you’re bound to see someone famous who isn’t being paid to hang out in the most wonderful city on earth on one of the most wonderful nights of the year. As for what occurs after the stores close… It’s more of “you have to be there to understand,” which goes for the entirety of the event to be honest. If you’ve never been to the city in general, I pity you. Go. Especially on FNO, regardless of whether you’re gay, straight, fashionably adept or inept, girl, guy, I don’t care–you’re going to have fun, it’s inevitable. There’s something for everyone.
How did this all begin and why? We can thank the real-life Miranda Priestly. FNO was the child of Vogue’s Editor in Chief, Anna Wintour, who in 2009, set forth FNO as an attempt to boost the economy by encouraging the public to start spending money once again after the financial crisis of 2009. Since then, FNO has grown exponentially, with more than 500 cities participating across the globe. NYC still reigns supreme as not only a fashion epicenter, but of course also as a foremost party destination.