When you move to New York City as an adult, it’s probably to have a set of experiences that you are unlikely to find anywhere else. And if you have spent most of your life convinced that style is the sixth sense, a New York Fashion Week show is surely at the top of that list. Saturday, nearly three years into my transition to New York, I had the privilege of being a guest at Sergio Hudson’s Spring/Summer 2025 fashion show. This moment was especially thrilling to me because long before I was passing BlackBerrys to governors and ushering presidents around venues throughout the world, I was pushing racks of luxury goods around the back corridors of high-end retailers.
Hudson’s show was ideal for a “first-timer.” If you were to examine Hudson’s collections over the years, you’d see his commitment to designing for women who exude glamour and strength. For over a decade, he’s been on repeat for powerful women who embrace flawless presentation as a strategy. Women such as Michelle Obama, Keke Palmer and most notably, Vice President Kamala Harris. The Spring/Summer 2025 collection was a continuation of the designer’s point of view, displaying a uniform of tailored suits and short-sleeved gowns that portray women as multihyphenates rather than one-dimensional figures.
Hudson’s place in the closets of American political dignitaries elevated the pre-show cocktail reception chatter from the standard deliberation of what shows attendees were highly anticipating to predictions and analysis of the upcoming election. Staged at Neuehouse in the Flatiron District, guests greeted each other with “How are you feeling?” and “Are we going to pull this off?” Although the election was likely far from Hudson’s mind Saturday night, he has made it clear who he plans to cast his vote for in November by designing an exclusive piece for the Harris-Walz Designers for Democracy Collection.
Hudson is feeling optimistic and prepared to advocate for a woman-led presidency. One that redefines professional attire as fearless as much as it is, dare I say, sexy. Hudson’s suitings and separates were like unpacking a gift box assortment of Ladurée macarons. Flavors of vanilla lemon, black currant lavender and blueberry fig, were distinct in their call for women to be bold and welcome their top-of-the-ticket energy. Maxi-length belted skirts and sequin gowns, whether with jeweled necklines and long sleeves or sleeveless, patterned or solid, help define Hudson’s modern-day swan. An aesthetic that has become the designer’s signature. While Hudson’s swan still carries the gracefulness of a bygone era, his is a swan who is also a powerful woman who relies on pieces that can take her from bilateral meetings with foreign heads of state to a fundraiser at Radio City Music Hall.
But Hudson’s affection for “camp” is not lost as was evident in Master Hairstylist Tamika Gibson’s very literal French roll, as well as the side part with structurally swept bangs. You can almost picture a young Hudson watching reruns of 1960s, ’70s, and ’80s high-fashion television and movie moments late at night on Nick at Nite and Turner Classic Movies, mentally cataloging the best of Diahann Carroll, Pam Grier, and Nichelle Nichols. Hudson has a knack for blending the three eras offering a collection punctuated with strong shoulders, miniskirts, and Peter Pan collars. He keeps the looks fresh with the addition of a midriff or halter neckline.
Hudson’s friend and muse, Veronica Webb, one of multiple 90s-era supermodels who continue to demonstrate their relevance and longevity, helped to close the show in an exceptionally classically tailored long-sleeve white sequin gown. A custom version of which Vice President Harris wore in slate blue to the 2023 White House Correspondents Dinner.
It’s thrilling to see Webb on the runway. She, along with presidential candidate Harris, appears to epitomize everything that is the Hudson devotee – unafraid, intelligent and overwhelmingly elegant. During the show, someone proclaimed to me, “Fashion is politics!” So, here’s to keeping style right where it belongs, in the White House.
