Anna Wintour's brainchild, Fashion's Night Out, has been
cancelled in the U.S. Other cities around the world will celebrate the event in September. WWD reports that retailers were getting tired of having to spend so much money on the event and thinking up new and exciting promotions to get people in stores. Others complained that it took away from Fashion Week.
On its website the event's producers issued this statement, "After four exciting and successful year, Fashion's Night out will
go on hiatus in the United States in 2013, in order to
enable retailers to channel their resources
towards strategies more in keeping with their current
priorities. The event will still be held in select international
cities."
New Yorkers have been grumbling that the event has led to violence with street gangs taking advantage of the scores of nighttime shoppers and revelers. But it seems most likely that the reason is purely financial. The stores weren't selling things on FNO - it's that simple. It was a great party that got great publicity and raised money for charities, such as AIDS awareness. But it never led to an increase in sales, so retailers dumped it.
