The Tamesis
One year after the Los Angeles fires ravaged the city, Vogue Business takes stock of the fashion industry’s recovery and rebuilding efforts in its Reimagining Los Angeles series, assessing where the city’s fashion and apparel industry is headed in 2026.
Over the next few weeks, Hollywood will briefly feel like Hollywood again. Awards season has kicked off, with the entertainment world flocking to Los Angeles for non-stop awards shows, culminating in the Oscars in mid-March. But now, the influx of actors and executives has made their absence for the rest of the year even more noticeable.
Many former Angelenos now spend much of the year elsewhere — on sets in Atlanta, Vancouver or Australia, for example — and some have left the city entirely. This shift is driven less by lifestyle than by economics. Studio budgets are shrinking and filming has shifted away from Hollywood as other states and countries introduce tax credits and offsets that make filmmaking cheaper. Film production in Los Angeles hit a record low last year, according to an October report from the nonprofit FilmLA.
“I think everyone is definitely feeling the impact of the budget changes, including talent,” said Kent Belden, CEO of The Only Agency, which represents celebrity stylists such as Danny Mitchell and Sam Woolf.
This had a knock-on effect on fashion. Traditionally, studios create styling budgets for talent going on press tours. But those budgets have shrunk in recent years. One stylist said she was surprised when she saw reports of the box office receipts and success of big-budget movies, yet she charges between $500 and $700 per look.
“These media companies and studios are big companies. They’re public companies. They’re always trying to save money,” commented Karla Welch, who styles stars including actors Renate Reinsve and Tessa Thompson.
“Studio budgets are unsustainable,” said stylist Britt Theodora, who works with the likes of director Celine Song and actor Pete Davidson. “I have a studio, I have a full-time employee, I work with multiple freelance assistants, I have seamstresses. These looks are a lot of work.” Sometimes, she says, you expect a big, 20-look press tour, but it ends up being just a few looks. But you still have to put in the work.
The tide may be turning, at least when it comes to movie budgets. In June 2025, California Governor Gavin Newsom increased the tax credit for film and television production from $330 million to $750 million per year. One stylist who works in fashion and film rather than with celebrities said she hopes the work will bring film and commercial work back to Los Angeles. In December, Newsom announced that 28 film projects had received financial support through the recently expanded tax credit program, which bodes well for 2026.
