The Nazis had an odd attitude towards women’s fashion: on one hand they wanted all women to be dirndl-wearing hausfraus, but on the other they wanted women to be chic & modish. They aimed to destroy Paris’ hold on haute couture & make Vienna & Berlin fashion capitals THREAD
The Nazi regime decimated the Jewish businesses that dominated German fashion. In 1933, there were about 2,700 first-class fashion producers in Berlin but by 1939, there were less than 150. Many Jewish designers & manufacturers fled to UK where they set up shop.
The Empress of fashion was Magda Goebbels, wife of the Propaganda Minister. Famed for her love of couture, she changed several times a day, slathered on Elizabeth Arden cosmetics, chain smoked and wore handmade Ferragamo shoes. She was put in charge of the Reich Fashion Bureau