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  "path": "/curious-city/2026/04/15/like-nyc-and-paris-chicago-was-once-a-hub-for-fashion-designers",
  "publishedAt": "2026-04-15T10:00:00.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.wbez.org",
  "textContent": "<p><i>Editor's note: This story first published April 23, 2025. </i></p><p>When teacher Emily Porter showed up at Mount Sinai Resale Shop in Lakeview, she was looking to shake up her classroom wardrobe of simple blouses and slacks. She happened upon a woven sweater that “fit perfectly”; the label read “Maria Rodriguez Chicago.” This piqued Porter’s interest, as she hadn’t heard of many designers from Chicago.</p><p>“You know that Chanel is from Paris and you know that Prada is from Italy,” Porter said. “But Maria Rodriguez, like, she had her moment, and she’s from Chicago.”</p><p>Given the Magnificent Mile, Ebony Fashion Fair and the giant that was Marshall Field’s, it’s no secret that the City of Big Shoulders has always been a global fashion hub. What is less known is that the 1970s and ’80s were a golden age for fashion designers who were based in Chicago. This period could be a roadmap for the efforts to revive the industry for designers in the city today. Read and listen to the full story <a class=\"Link\" href=\"https://www.wbez.org/curious-city/2025/04/23/like-nyc-and-paris-chicago-was-once-a-hub-for-fashion-designers\" target=\"_blank\" ><u>here</u></a>.</p><div class=\"Enhancement\" data-align-center> <div class=\"HtmlModule\"><a class=\"AnchorLink\" id=\"html-embed-module-750000\" name=\"html-embed-module-750000\"></a><script async src=\"https://modules.wearehearken.com/wbez/embed/4190.js\"></script> </div> </div><p></p>",
  "title": "Like NYC and Paris, Chicago was once a hub for fashion designers",
  "updatedAt": "2026-04-15T10:00:01.758Z"
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