Alicia Searcy is on a mission to help everyone, regardless of age, race, gender-identity, size, sexual-orientation or physical ability, look and feel amazing. No, she is not a stylist or a designer. She is the founder of a nonprofit organization whose purpose is to advocate for inclusion and promote body positivity and self-esteem through fashion.
Alicia is walker and wheelchair dependent due to cerebral palsy, a condition that affects movement and posture. She was born in 1961, a time when families often put children with disabilities into institutions. Her parents, however, sent her to regular school. “I never really felt good about myself,” she says. “For a long time, you could say I was an anti-fashion statement.” She was not concerned about what she wore.
She noticed people did not pay any attention to her. “I think most of them thought because I was in a wheelchair, I had no intellectual faculties,” Alicia says. In 2010, Nashville experienced a severe flood that ruined most of her clothes. In response, she decided to take a different approach to her wardrobe, opting to buy nicer apparel and dress more stylishly whenever she went out. To her surprise, people began taking notice.
Alicia then started the first-ever disabled fashion blog and used it as a platform to talk about finding herself through fashion. Over time, she met Krystle Ramos, the owner of Pura Vida Vintage and the two often discussed how nice it would be if everybody could be seen and validated in their clothes. But it wasn’t until David Bowie’s death in 2016, that she sprang into action to pursue her dream. “I realized that if David Bowie could die, so could I, so I had better hurry,” she says. She held her first fashion show that same year using local designers and non-traditional models. The following year, the nonprofit “Fashion is for Every Body,” was born, and its fashion show has become a staple of the Nashville fashion calendar on the Saturday after Labor Day ever since.
The show not only highlights the importance of inclusion but also showcases local designers, many of whom had not previously worked with diverse sizes and abilities. As designers must ensure models can dress independently in their creations, they are provided with an Adaptive Resource Guide, developed in collaboration with Vanderbilt University. This guide offers tools and techniques for adapting designs to meet various needs, such as using magnetic clasps instead of buttons to accommodate someone with limited dexterity.
Leading Fashion is for Every Body has been a validating experience for Alicia, who is training someone to succeed her as director. She finds joy in seeing the friendships formed, as well as the increase in self-esteem among the models. As she prepares to hang up her hat, Alicia offers this advice: “The world is a diverse place so the more we step out of our bubble and pay attention to people who are not like us, the more we will learn.” She reminds us of the importance of connection and how you can do it while looking good. FashionIsForEverybody.com
“The world is a diverse place so the more we step out of our bubble, and pay attention to people who are not like us, the more we will learn.”
“I realized that if David Bowie could die, so could I, so I had better hurry.”