COVID and the revolution, as well as the accelerated impact of the speed of change, are having a long awaited, profound effect on the fashion industry.

As I tell you about my collection through this virtual showroom, I contemplate whether fashion will be a part of the new normal and what will style mean going forward. We are in this transition and this is just the beginning. We are presenting this collection as we are experiencing what the new normal might look like going forward. The way we make clothing, the way we present the clothing and the deliveries are all being reevaluated. Under times of change and disruption, new methods and ideas are invented.

We have all been home in lounge clothing, possibly not wearing real shoes for months. And the comfort of this lifestyle will definitely impact our lives going forward. There will always be weddings, births, birthdays and family gatherings that bring us together. There will always be social gatherings of purpose as well. However, this ease and comfort and how well it now fits into working from home and working out at home and how clothing makes us feel is still going to be a very important part of how we think about how we dress and how we feel.

Even though the clothing will be Instagramable, the Instagram doesn't have the same value unless it has some message of conscience. Just having a photo of clothing on a beautiful person may not be enough. We may need to consider a conscience now more than ever before in the way we communicate on social media. In any case, comfort and movement will be meaningful. On demand, livestream workouts are a revelation that finally we all take seriously and allows us to work at our convenience without any instructor and any method we want. And guess what? We're already dressed for it. Day pajamas and night pajamas are a new category. But in fact, when the easy care, comfort and casual style come together, you are addressing the very needs of the new normal.

In 1980, I launched a sweats collection that began as swim cover ups, and by the time the collection was completed, I had thirty six styles in grey heather from sweatshirts to jackets, coats and gowns. Before that, sweats were found in men's army navy stores and were never in women's ready to wear clothing and fashion.

The casual sportswear that emerged from this is now referred to as athleisure lifestyle - and began its influence then, but will continue to influence how we look and how we dress for all occasions. Here we are 40 years later, accelerated by COVID as we are living the home-work style and that will continue to impact style going forward.

Healthy lifestyle is more meaningful than ever and includes fitness and relaxed clothing. We have an opportunity to reframe what fashion means during COVID.

This collection is the beginning of the timeless style that should feel safe and comfortable and therefore has a cocooning effect. Actually in exactly the same way our increased sales of sleeping bag coats did during 9/11. I returned to sweats in this collection as a statement using the elegant shades of grey heather, black and white, in a beautiful, affordable, quality of sweats cloth sculpted shapes by quilting and bonding for outerwear to shaping blanket coats and then extending it to utilitarian cargo styles, all combining comfort and style.

There are cozy t-shirt styles in modal, light grey and dark grey heather in robes, swimwear, sleepwear and active. All layering with the sweats and they lay the groundwork for a classic, timeless wardrobe. This collection can be worn year-round simply by layering it and is a sustainable mantra for seasonless concept.

As the health and wellness advocate, protection from the sun is important for me. I have concerns about using many of the products in the market for sunscreen. Therefore, I'm offering a collection of styles made of SPF fabric in white and fluorescent green. Smart clothing that affect performance and style and safety are an important part of the new normal in clothing.

OMO Gym was the logo I created for my first active collection. And in the vintage world today, active sportswear clothing is extremely desirable, and that's how I became alerted to the interest in OMO gym.

So OMO Gym is now in this collection in black and white.

I thought this was a good time to also add some silver gunmetal lamé, also washable and easy care, by the way, in our drapey jersey. It adds a pop of shine to the collection. It's in slip dresses, cardigans, sweatpants, and even some fun ruffled styles that work just right with a sweatshirt or sweatpant. The delivery period for this collection is October primarily, and then November, and December.

There's a collection of printed classic jersey styles from herringbone to double pinstripe tweeds and glenn plaids and a tightly patterned star print that really worked beautifully together. And again, back to the shades of grey in the sweats and the modal. All of it, shades of grey, black and white for the entire collection.

Sleeping bag coats are made in the same patterns as the prints, and this collection, from its inception in 1973 was never thought of as fashion. But the sleeping bag coats were considered a functional commodity and that its protective nature first thought up in the first coat I ever made remains comforting and especially meaningful at this time. I did a tiger print, it's a caramel tiger print and it adds color and pattern and texture in a collection of coats, dresses, active sportswear and swimwear. This group is probably THE fashion in the collection and I cautiously use the word fashion now, since we're evolving into a new normal in clothing.

The KAMALIKULTURE Collection is the core and the part of the collection that folks want multiples of in a few colors. We have a broad demographic for this collection that includes anyone who wants comfort and style at the same time. Easy care is the mantra for the collection, the entire collection of KAMALIKULTURE and the entire collection of Norma Kamali.  Dry-Cleaning must be a thing of the past in regards to unnecessary costs, safety, and a sustainability point of view.

The colors for KAMALIKULTURE are black, midnight, pewter, nude, and white. By the time this collection is shipped, we will still be under the COVID protocol for Fall. If we are still at home or carefully navigating the cold weather and winter season, we will want to feel safe and comfortable and will want to stay fit in our new normal. I'm looking forward to wearing this collection myself and sharing it with all of you.