of the world economy ). To put that in context, the global pharmaceutical industry ( supplying all the medicines in the world ) is just over half that in size ( at US$880 billion ). Fashion is therefore, " ...one of the crowning achievements of western civilization or it is incontrovertible evidence of consumers culture's witless obsession with the trivial and the unreal. It is either creative to the point of being an 'art', enabling individuals and cultures to express their inner feelings and personalities, or it is exploitative to the point of criminality, forcing people to work and spend more than is healthy for them or society... " (Kurt W. Back, ' Modernism and Fashion ') So what is the true impact of fashion in human culture? In these exclusive interviews, we speak to Claudia Schiffer ( a globally renowned model, icon and businesswoman ), Robin Givhan ( Pulitzer Prize winning fashion writer and special correspondent for Newsweek/Daily Beast ) and Dov Charney (CEO and Founder of American Apparel). We discuss the very fundamental questions of 'what' fashion is, and how it has become such an important part of human culture and identity. Digging deeper, we also look at issues ranging from brand, to sexuality and even the business of fashion itself. Arguably the most famous of the original 'super' models, Claudia Schiffer is universally renowned as a model, icon and businesswoman. Discovered at 17, Claudia shot to success almost immediately as the face of the highly publicised Guess?