As representatives of New York City, one of the world’s greatest fashion capitals, CUNY students have a reputation to uphold. One of Baruch College’s own students has decided he wants to redefine college fashion and highlight individuality among CUNY students.
@CunyOutfits is an Instagram account created by an anonymous student that aims to showcase the fashion choices of students on all CUNY campuses. The account was created near the end of the Spring 2022 semester. The student was inspired to create this account after spending his free time at Clivner=Field Plaza, located on the Baruch campus.
“It’s almost set up like a natural track,” the creator said in an interview with The Ticker. “So that inspired me to want to showcase student fashion and I thought a social media account would be the best way.”
As an international business major with a minor in marketing, the creator recognized Instagram as the obvious choice to lay the foundation for the account’s inevitable growth.
Before becoming @CunyOutfits, the account began as @BaruchOutfits and was dedicated to showcasing fashion from students around Baruch.
“I felt it would be great to just include all of CUNY,” he said. “Other than the CUNY by Students account, there is no collective student-run CUNY account.”
The creator took inspiration from other archive Instagram accounts like @blackcactusx and @hidden.ny. The latter eventually became big enough to create the fashion brand Hidden NY. While the creator also looked at the account as a jumping off point to create his own fashion brand, he is not the main target of the account.
Currently, the creator’s year-end goal is to have a follower count of 5,000. With just over 3,000 followers as of September, that goal isn’t too far off.
The creator also said his dream collaboration would be with fashion brand Kith, founded by former Baruch student Ronnie Fieg.
“It could potentially be the college fashion magazine of New York,” he said. “I’m working on the newsletter to help take steps in that direction.”
@CunyOutfits recently shared a need for student journalists to help produce a free, monthly subscription-based newsletter.
“It will be a more detailed output than the account,” said the creator. “It’s just going to be a way for students to show off any artistic creativity they have.”
He has already sought out students interested in art, cinematography, journalism, photography and modeling in his efforts to increase the artistic diversity of the account.
In fact, @CunyOutfits launched a modeling app to connect CUNY students with NYC-based fashion brands that need models to showcase their products.
The creator is currently in contact with local fashion brands Néo-Manhattan and Abstract by Jules.
After receiving nearly 300 applicants, @CunyOutfits helped Néo-Manhattan select two models for an upcoming photoshoot.
While it’s easy to show up to class in sweatpants, the creator wants to encourage all students to look their best.
“If you look good, you feel good,” he said. “And if you feel good, you look better that day.”
Fast fashion may make it easier for many students to do so. But the account often receives criticism for featuring students wearing fast fashion brands, with some followers blaming the students in the post for their attire. However, the creator believes that this is an unfair standard against students.
“Having grown up in New York City and the Bronx, I can vouch for it,” he said. “Not everyone can afford fashion, but fashion is not something where there should be an entry price level. Everyone should be able to participate in it.”
Despite the negative effects of fast fashion, the creator acknowledges that it helps make the fashion industry more accessible and relieves the financial strain on college students. For this reason, @CunyOutfits is not against using it to develop one’s style.
Because it also takes time to develop, he also suggested using social media. He encouraged them to find accounts they liked to use as a source of inspiration.
The creator also suggested identifying a hobby and associating a look with that hobby as a starting point for dressing better. For example, before getting into fashion, the creator loved skateboarding and watching other skateboarders in parks helped him build a style that fit that genre.
Over the summer, @CunyOutfits relied heavily on direct message submissions. As the semester continues, the creator plans to visit each campus to take live photos of students’ outfits as they travel between classes. It not only creates the excitement of gaining recognition from the Instagram page, but also allows viewers to see first-hand how students are doing in the classroom.
The growing popularity of @CunyOutfits is likely to change culture of college student fashion. @CunyOutfits isn’t just featuring studentsS ‘ individuality, but also creating a community for students from all walks of life to grow stylistically.
