Honourable Mention
By Lucy Mortell | Jan 29 2017
Following Victoria Beckham’s inclusion on the Queen’s New Year’s Honours List, Lucy Mortell charts her career in fashion.[br]TELL me what you want, what you really, really want – a bit of recognition. On December 28th, 2016 it was revealed to the world that Victoria Beckham had been awarded an OBE in the Queen of England’s Honours List for her contribution to the fashion industry. This, to no one’s surprise, was met with social media uproar as a combination of fashion lovers and idle trolls reached for their keyboards to suggest much more deserving candidates who had been overlooked.One of the aforementioned enraged happened to be Daily Mail columnist Sarah Vine, who described the decision as “perverse”. While Vine reassured us that she has “nothing against Mrs Beckham”, she then offered no less than seventeen paragraphs undermining and belittling Beckham’s career and deservedness of the honour. The article generated over 1,100 comments; the majority of which agreed with Vine.“It’s unfair and incorrect to suggest Beckham’s celebrity status detracts from her abilities and influence in the world of design.”
There are, however, many who do not. Beckham’s contribution to the British fashion industry is undeniable, both as an entrepreneur and creator. It’s unfair and incorrect to suggest Beckham’s celebrity status detracts from her abilities and influence in the world of design. Her fashion career has blossomed in front of our very eyes.True, Beckham isn’t a formally trained designer – but neither is Diane von Furstenberg or Ralph Lauren. If anything, Beckham has had to work twice as hard to be taken seriously as a fashion designer, particularly as her time as one of the Spice Girls involved fashion defined by fake tan and hot pants.Since arriving on the scene as Posh Spice in 1994 and then marrying one of the world’s most successful football players in 1999, she has rarely been out of the public eye. It would have been very easy for Beckham to rest on the success of her pop career and never work again, but she didn’t. Instead, we have watched her transform from pop princess to catwalk queen.“It would have been very easy for Beckham to rest on the success of her pop career and never work again, but she didn’t.”
It’s been nothing but hard work for Beckham since 2006 when she first collaborated with denim label Rock and Republic. Later that year, Beckham broke away from the brand to start her own denim line. Two years later she launched her own eponymous brand, which has gone from strength to strength and is now available in more than 500 stores in over 60 countries.The collection combines her own personal style with the desires and demands of women across the world. Eight years later, with numerous awards for her and her team, the brand continues to grow and grow.Yes, there are countless other designers and creators who are yet to receive much deserved recognition, but that does not mean that this designer’s accomplishments should be undermined or discredited. Instead, we should celebrate Beckham’s recognition as a designer and as another successful businesswoman, entrepreneur, and mother.