"It has become near impossible for an unproven talent to get a foot in the door"

The unmissable lack of diversity at Milan design week pointed to a wider issue within the industry, writes Amy Frearson.

The lack of diversity in the design industry is no secret, but the scale of the problem came fully into focus during this year's Milan design week. In the several hundred exhibitions dotted around the city, you could find designers across a wide range of ages, races and genders. Yet if you looked solely in the showrooms of major furniture manufacturers, that spectrum narrowed significantly.