Tan France & Alexa Chung

Netflix’s new show Next In Fashion is on drama, but even bigger on heart.

On their new Netflix series Next In Fashion, Queer Eye star Tan and designer Alexa are bringing one of the biest work room challenges since Drag Race.

Workroom challenges don’t get much bi er than this. Netflix’s new series, Next In Fashion, sees 18 talented designers compete across 10 episodes for a prize of $250,000 as well as the opportunity to sell their own collection on global retailer

Net-a-Porter.

Naturally, it’s packed full of drama, but this is a reality show full of love and respect. With designers from all over the world – from the US and the UK to Italy and South Korea – the show thrives with its diverse and inclusive cast. It also gives viewers an insight into the creative process, emotional storytelling, and undeniable craftsmanship, showcasing a depth to the fashion industry rarely seen on mainstream shows.

The series is fronted by Queer Eye’s Tan France and model and designer Alexa Chung who add plenty of humour, lightness and support amongst the high-stakes drama. We caught up with them to discuss what sets Next In Fashion apart from other shows based around fashion, why they don’t believe in trends, and how filming this show was more difficult than they first anticipated.

Congratulations on the show. What would say sets Next in Fashion apart from other shows that centre on the fashion industry?

Alexa: I think the warmth of it is quite different from other fashion shows that have preceded it. For us, it has the same essence as Bake Off, celebrating this thing that people are really passionate about, and trying to lift people up. And it’s less catty.

Tan: Totally, it’s so much more positive! And the difference between our show and other shows is that our designers are seasoned designers, some of them have come from major fashion houses, so we’re not trying to start up someone’s career...

Alexa: We’re trying to finish it! That sounds bad. We’re trying to help them, highlight and show them off.

Tan: I like just how incredible their craftsmanship is, after years and years of practice and honing their skills.

You can really see that you both get invested in these people. There’s one point where it gets really emotional towards the end of an episode and you couldn’t make a decision for who goes home, and you’re visibly upset by it. Did you think it was going to be as dicult as it was?

Tan: No, not at all!

Alexa: But I think the further we were into filming, the more emotionally connected we were with the contestants. And having learned more about their journeys as well, it’s really hard to be objective basically, once you get to know someone. You get to know their journey, and it’s really horrible to say goodbye.

As designers yourselves, which part of the competition do you think you would find the most challenging?

Tan: The timing.

Alexa: Yeah, how rushed it has to be. I think we forced them to design very quickly and then start making it. If you wanted to change your mind, and

I’m quite indecisive, it’s just too late. So if you’re not good with immediately coming up with the attack, it’s game over.

Tan: And it’s a game of stamina. It’s not that we’re giving them a tough time period for one piece, we don’t have a day off in between a lot of the challenges. So, when you're done with one, you’re onto the next. And by the time we get to the finale, they’re exhausted.

Alexa: And everyone was getting sick, so we had a really hot doctor.

Tan: A really hot doctor!

Alexa: I think he was the B12 [vitamin] guy...

Tan: Oh, fuck!

Alexa: And everyone was so jazzed to go see him every week.

Tan: And we’d be on set for five weeks, and we don’t get to see anyone other than on the show, so we’re all horny as fuck by the end of it, and that’s the first attractive guy we see .... [looks at publicist] It’s Gay Times, they’re fine with the horn!

Alexa: Everyone was really jazzed when he walked on.

If there’s one piece that was created during the series that you could take home and keep, which piece would it be, and why?

Tan: There’s a camel-coloured suit that was created by Carli [Pearson] and Daniel [W. Fletcher] that I’m obsessed with.

Alexa: I really like the silver dress in the finale.

Tan: Yeah, actually I really want the showstopper in the finale by one of the contestants. You’ll know which one it is when you see it.

Alexa: Really? The veil, with the bridal?

Tan: Yeah, I was obsessed. I wouldn't wear it, but I want it

The fact they have to design a whole collection for the final is pretty intense.

Tan: Yeah, in two and a half days.

Alexa: There’s a TV version of them like ‘Oh, this is a nightmare’ but by the finale they genuinely nearly had breakdowns. They were really stressed. Tan: They were like ‘You guys, we can’t finish it in time.’

Alexa: Before that, they were like ‘We’re really worried’ but by then they were like ‘This is actual hell.’

I bet preparing for Fashion Week seems like a breeze to them now.

Alexa: One of the contestants had to go home and immediately do Fashion Week.

Tan: And one of them actually did produce their collection. I’m using my words wisely so we don’t give it away, but they made their collection within three days, redid what they did on the show and sold it, which is so smart.

What are your favourite styles and trends in fashion at the moment?

Alexa: I’m sad I never got on the cycling shorts trend. I wanted to, but I never could find a pair I liked, and now I feel it’s gone.

Tan: I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again, I don’t give a fuck about a trend, I couldn't care less.

Alexa: What he said, I’m following his trend!

Tan: I don’t care, if I like it I like it, even if someone thinks I look like a c**t, I

don’t care.

Alexa: I think the people with the best style, are the people who know themselves the best. Like if you see someone on the street and you respond to something, it’s usually not because they have a nice jacket, it’s because they look like a human who’s cosy.

For people who don’t work in fashion, the industry might have an unfair reputation of seeming very shallow or surface level. Do you hope this show demonstrates the amount of craftsmanship and emotion that goes into fashion for people who don’t have that insight?

Alexa: Yeah, I think it’s a good showcase for how – and don’t get me wrong some parts of fashion are really shallow and ridiculous and it can get quite Zoolandery - but in the same breath it’s an industry that supports a lot of people from a lot of different backgrounds and it’s a place for people to feel at home and have a creative outlet to express themselves. And it’s an industry that’s not very judge-y about that. So, I think it’s a nice community. Plus in the show itself, you can see how poetic a lot of these designers are and how they’re really thinking about the theme, and wanting to interpret it and imbue it with being proud of where they’re from and celebrating their home country, or trying to communicate an idea that can help people progress further. I think it’s a Trojan Horse, fashion, it can get a lot of ideas across.

One thing I really enjoyed about the show was the diverse cast. How important for you was it to have people from dierent backgrounds?

Alexa: They took care of that for us, but I was very pleased to see that happen. I think Tan mentioned this earlier, but I think Netflix is synonymous with a more modern approach to things anyway. So, I was never worried that they wouldn't make sure this was in place.

Tan: Netflix is a global platform, it makes sense that our show is representative of our global audience. I think it would've felt quite exclusive if it was an American-domestic centric show. I think most of the world wouldn't have been interested in tuning in. I feel like it's a way of connecting to our Netflix audience.

Alexa: And I think it’s quite a good mirror of the fashion industry. If you go to Paris Fashion Week, you see people from all over the world, all the editors. Tan: And in the workroom!

Alexa: Yeah, for sure. It’s a very diverse, international industry, so it makes sense it’s represented on this show.

Tan, do you think queer creators in the fashion industry, when they’re trying to design collections for a mainstream audience, they have to compromise a part of their queerness to make it appeal to

a broader audience?

Tan: I think with anyone there’s a certain level of toning down certain things to make it commercial. And commercial is seen as a dirty word in fashion, but if you want to make a sustainable business, you have to compromise to a certain extent. You can’t just do what is personally appropriate for you, you have to think about who’s going to buy this. But I do think in the queer community, they are making their designs more commercial to suit more people, to make sure it’s more commercially viable. However, there are trailblazers who are doing exactly what they want to do. There are gender non-conforming brands that only do gender non-conforming pieces, they’re not offering any that are male or female. I love that, I love that that’s an option out there. I think it depends on the designer and brand, and how strongly they feel about it and what they want to convey.

The underwear design challenge was great for moments when the designers got to blur gender lines. Do you see fashion moving towards more gender-fluid collections in the future?

Tan: I’m going to say something that is super controversial. There are certain things that have to be...

Alexa: For trousers for girls, it’s hard because you’ve got hips, and it’s a different body shape.

Tan: If something’s designed as gender-neutral, so be it. But there are times when I want to wear something I find in the women’s department. I usually shop for womenswear before I shop for men's. However, my body isn’t the same shape as a woman’s, I want to buy a top and it’s got the darts in it, and it creates a weird shape on my body. I don’t deny that clothes available on the market right now have a gender, it’s not because I want it to, I want to wear those clothes, I just can’t. I do think it’s bizarre when people say clothes have no gender, they currently do. Our bodies are shaped differently and the clothing that’s made for it is often made differently.

Alexa: I like the idea that we’re not defined by gender, but at the same time I like to celebrate the form I happen to enjoy, and sometimes that means not having to wear gender-neutral trousers because it makes my ass look bad.

Do you think the solution to that is making that one design available in all the dierent shapes and sizes?

Alexa: One line [for my clothing brand] we’re asked to scale up on is knitwear – a lot of men have been buying our knitwear. But I think it’s allowing it to just flop around if you want. If something’s popular and you get feedback saying ‘I’d buy this if you went up to a 43’ we’ll consider upscaling.

Tan: However, I do think if Alexa wanted a form-fitting corset, we’d have to allow for her breasts. But if it were gender-neutral it wouldn't allow for that, and we’ve got to accept that her body is different from mine.