fashion
March 1, 2026
Touch, sound and style: how London fashion week is opening up to visually impaired guests
From live audio descriptions to fabric swatch booklets, designers including Chet Lo are rethinking the catwalk experience for blind and low-vision clothes-lovers
TL;DR
- London Fashion Week is implementing 'touch tours' and audio descriptions to improve accessibility for blind and low-vision guests.
- The 'Making Fashion Accessible' initiative, founded by Anna Cofone, aims to make the fashion and beauty industries more inclusive.
- Designer Chet Lo's 'Night Market' collection was featured in a touch tour and show with enhanced accessibility features.
- Visually impaired guests provided positive feedback, highlighting how tactile experiences and audio descriptions enriched their understanding and enjoyment of the fashion show.
- The initiative is inspired by the founder's father's experience and the belief that fashion contributes to identity and independence.
- Challenges for visually impaired shoppers include difficult-to-navigate stores and websites lacking descriptive alt-text, as well as a lack of adaptive features in clothing.
- The spending power of disabled people is significant, yet the fashion industry often overlooks this demographic.
- These accessibility efforts empower visually impaired individuals to be more daring in their personal styling and feel more included in fashion culture.
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