NEW YORK - Designers from around the world are descending on New York City for Fashion Week. 

Fashion Week dates back to 1943.

In the days before Instagram, Twitter and other social media, the event was a rare opportunity for designers to get exposure before a wide audience.

But in this digital age, historian Patricia Mears says Fashion Week is less about retailing than about generating buzz. 

"It's going to change, it's going to mutate just like fashion has always done for centuries, we've been hearing about the demise of fashion every generation people bemoaning the fact that it's 'not like it used to be,' well that's the point of fashion and it's never going to be like it used to be," Mears said.

Fashion Week is estimated to bring in about a billion dollars of tourist money.

The fashion industry employs more than 180,000 people in the five boroughs.