3 questions for . . . Sophie Fontanel, fashion journalist for l’Obs news magazine, @sophiefontanel

Though social networks appear to be the favourite playground of digital natives, they’re far from being just for them. Well known fashion journalist Sophie Fontanel was part of the Elle magazine editorial staff for 16 years and head of the fashion department for one year. Now a columnist for l’Obs news magazine and still a novelist, this chic 54 year-old quickly became hooked on internet and especially on Instagram, logging on day and night the minute she woke up. It got to the point where she decided to limit her number of daily publications, but that decision didn’t stop her Instagram account from growing. She has 88,500 followers.

Is fashion a good way to observe societal changes in France or even internationally?

In general, fashion is what people agree to wear. So, it’s a good way to observe society’s evolution. In my column for l’Obs, I regularly remind readers that clothing is important, that it really is a reflection of something, but that we have to be careful about making generalities. For example, I’m not a fan of the analyses that say, among other things, that in times of economic crisis, skirt lengths change. As a whole, fashion is a lot more irrational than that; it’s impossible to decipher. When it’s good it always goes even further. It’s often very politically incorrect. Designers didn’t wait for the debate about women wearing veils to find the topic interesting and make it lighthearted, the only way tensions can be diffused. In fact, fashion can offer immense freedom. Unfortunately however, society’s evolution concerning clothing remains very slow and the situation barely changes. We could perhaps hope that things are progressing with young people, since men wear pink sweatshirts, but that doesn’t convince me. You just have to look at photos of my friends’ parents who wore the whole goatskin and clogs look in the 70s. Well, today they all work for the stock market.

In short, everything depends on whether or not we’re ready to, as Alain Souchon [French singer-songwriter] said, ” follow the rules and stay in line”. As a 54-year-old baby boomer, yes, I was able to break free from fashion conventions, but I also know it wasn’t easy. I needed around 50 years to no longer care about my brother’s comments. That’s why I don’t accept the stigmatization of young Muslim women. We, too, are subject to dictates, even though they’re less visible. If I listened to my Instagram followers, I’d stay within the norm; some of the comments are so conventional. The way others perceive them is immensely important to people. If you show a “crazy” outfit on Instagram, people say it’s unwearable. But if you publish a photo of Bowie, people think it’s great. There’s a lot of work to be done.

Given the growing pressure from companies that advertise and leave little room for small brands and young designers, and given the power of images and the intense competition between brands, what do you think makes a brand successful today?

First of all, you have to remember that the big companies and brands operate in a realm where nobody can go. They hire agencies. There again is another extremely conventional system. The big brands are still putting publicity in fashion magazines, but those magazines no longer attract the young women who are future clients. So yes, the big companies that advertise have set up a system to sell their products, but that system has limits and now everybody is looking for a new model. Right now a small brand doesn’t need to advertise to survive. It doesn’t need as many resources to succeed.

If its founder has business sense and the great idea, and if the brand can create a good network, and set up a virtuous circle with, in particular, a press agent who doesn’t want too much money to get started and who knows good influencers, then that brand will be able to exist and emerge. An example is what happened with Jacquemus. Within a few seasons the brand started from almost nothing and then experienced phenomenal growth. Jacquemus knows how to exist, which is very simple to say but very difficult to do. Talking about yourself and how you talk about yourself has become essential. And yet, when I visited a big fashion school, I was struck by the number of students who didn’t want to share their work on social networks. They were afraid of being copied. But showing your designs is now an integral part of the job. You have to get noticed before you can sell. And, as crazy as that seems, students aren’t learning that!

Has Instagram become essential to fashion today? And, more generally, what impact does social media have on fashion communication?

Brands and newspapers are often the last ones to notice or anticipate changes since they function according to what works, but also because a lot of people (excuse me) exploit the situation. They didn’t see that Instagram was going to be important because they couldn’t imagine an “economic model” within this social network. They were right, because it had to be invented! They didn’t realize Instagram was becoming the fashion world’s top media. The Instagram accounts with the most followers, besides NASA and National Geographic, are dedicated to fashion. And yet, no brand or magazine has known how to create a network worthy of the term on Instagram. The brands publish their content, which is generally very basic, without thinking about this media’s specific characteristics or having a dialogue with their public. An Instagram or Facebook account is for people you share affinities with, so it’s very influential. But for that to happen, there has to be dialogue and interactions. When you know how to use social media, the impact of an image, information, or “word of mouth” can be enormous and extremely quick. Brands won’t be able to do this if they just count their number of followers, believing there’s no work involved.

When I left Elle two years ago, I worked as a consultant for brands. I advised them to put some life and humour into their Instagram and Facebook accounts. That’s real work, but nobody wanted to hear it. A brand asked me to take photos backstage, but then I waited several days for the photos to be approved by brand management. It’s absurd to wait so long when social networks are based on instant communication and an absence of official control. Overall, brands are being left behind by social media, and there’s just one reason: not accepting the concept of freedom.

And yet, social media is a real Eldorado. You just have to have ideas. I really like the Colette salesperson Elisabeth Teixeira (Une Morue à Paris blog), who publishes photos of herself wearing clothing from the boutique mixed with things from Zara. Salespeople with the right look can be goldmines. If I managed H&M, I’d turn them all into untamed stylists and put their daily outfits on Instagram. The truth is, brands don’t need celebrity Instagrammers. The only real thing is real life!