DOCSLIB.ORG

Runway Shows and Fashion Films As a Means of Communicating the Design Concept

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Runway Shows and Fashion Films As a Means of Communicating the Design Concept RUNWAY SHOWS AND FASHION FILMS AS A MEANS OF COMMUNICATING THE DESIGN CONCEPT A thesis submitted to the College of the Arts of Kent State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts By Xiaohan Lin July 2016 2 Thesis written by Xiaohan Lin B.S, Kent State University, 2014 M.A., Kent State University, 2016 Approved by ______________________________________________ Name, Thesis Supervisor ______________________________________________ Name, Thesis Supervisor or Committee Member ______________________________________________ Name, Committee Member ______________________________________________ Dr. Catherine Amoroso Leslie, Graduate Studies Coordinator, The Fashion School ______________________________________________ Dr. Linda Hoeptner Poling, Graduate Studies Coordinator, The School of Art ______________________________________________ Mr. J.R. Campbell, Director, The Fashion School ______________________________________________ Dr. Christine Havice, Director, The School of Art ______________________________________________ Dr. John Crawford-Spinelli, Dean, College of the Arts 3 REPORT OF THESIS FINAL EXAMINATION DATE OF EXAM________________________ Student Number_________________________________ Name of Candidate_______________________________________ Local Address_______________________________________ Degree for which examination is given_______________________________________ Department or School (and area of concentration, if any)_________________________ Exact title of Thesis_______________________________________ If master’s degree candidate elected an option not requiring a thesis, indicate which one and briefly describe work done in lieu of thesis______________________________ Signatures of examining committee: Name (typed or printed) Signatures Pass Fail ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ Advisor ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ ________________ FINAL RESULT: Pass □ Fail □* *Attach comments or specified conditions if student fails. _______________________________________ ____________________________________ Graduate Program Coordinator Chair/Director ____________________________________ While (original): Registrar College Dean Yellow: College Gold: Student Pink: Department/School 4 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF FIGURES vi LIST OF TABLES vii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS vii ABSTRACT viii CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION 9 II. LITERATURE REVIEW AND HYPOTHESIS DEVELOPMENT Runway Shows 13 Models 15 Stage Setting 16 Media 18 Runway Show Videos 19 Fashion Film 19 Design Concept 20 Future Fashion Professionals 21 Summary 21 Hypotheses 22 III. FRAMEWORK AND MODEL Communication Process Model 23 IV. METHOD Preparation 26 Participants 30 Procedure 31 Data Analysis 33 Hypothesis Testing 34 V. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION Discussion 42 Conclusions 43 REFERENCES 47 APPENDIX A. Questionnaire 53 v LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1. The Communication Process Model 24 2. Communication Model as Adapted to Runway Show Video and Fashion Film 25 3. Group 1 and Group 2 Survey Process 32 4. Group 3 and Group 4 Survey Process 33 vi LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1. Expert Opinions of Design Concept 29 2. The Runway Show Was Creative, They Enjoyed Watching and Were Interested 34 3. Frequencies of Adjective Selection Among Participants Watching Dolce & Gabbana Fashion Film (102 Participants) 35 4. Frequencies of Adjective Selection Among Participants Watching Dolce & Gabbana Runway Show (100 Participants) 36 5. Frequencies of Adjective Selection Among Participants Watching Givenchy Fashion Film (100 Participants) 37 6. Frequencies of Adjective Selection Among Participants Watching Givenchy Runway Show (102 Participants) 38 7. Percentage of Participants Whose Perceptions of the Design Concept Were Congruent with Experts’ Perceptions 39 8. Paired Sample t-tests for Differences Between Means 40 vii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I want to thank my family for being wonderful. My parents have always stood by me through all of the difficult days and nights. I want to thank the faculty in the Fashion School especially Dr. Leslie, and Dr. Gargi who had a super positive influence during my life at Kent State University. I would like to thank my committee member Professor Luke Amour, who is knowledgeable and professional. I would like to express the deepest appreciation to my advisor Dr. Nancy Stanforth who has patient and always helps me to improve my thesis line by line. viii Abstract As diverse media technology develops faster and faster, choosing the best media to show artistic expression directly influences the audience understanding of the design concept. The purpose of this study is to investigate which media assists viewers to understand and manage the information from runway show videos and fashion films differently. In this study, Dolce & Gabbana and Givenchy runway shows and fashion films were shown to participants. The results indicate that there are significant differences in perception of design concepts, intrinsic elements, and extrinsic elements between runway shows and fashion films. Also, the study investigated the congruence in perceptions between participants and fashion experts. This study is especially timely given the rapid growth of electronic fashion communication, and provides detailed information to fashion designers and runway show/fashion film producers in order to create more for effective methods to deliver design concepts to audience. 9 Chapter I Introduction Ariel Emanuel, chief of WME/IMG said, “When we look at the world, we see fashion” (Vanessa, 2015，p. 7). Runway shows offer a form of expression through which to showcase the latest styles during fashion weeks each season in New York City, Milan, Paris, and London, the top fashion cities for fashion events. Guide To Producing a Fashion Show, the concept of the runway show is defined as an event that intends to provide the newest ideas in fashion trends, color trends, and the latest styles in apparel and accessories by showcasing specific items on live models in front of an audience (Everett & Swanson, 2013). Therefore, runway shows are both communicated to the audience and a tool for helping designers to show their design concepts. Majima (2008) provides a possible reason why companies and designers choose runway shows to display their ideas, which is “the fundamental role of runway shows and fairs as venues where capital-poor designers (the seller) and capital-rich mass producers/marketers (the buyer) form a reciprocal relationship” (p. 2). The most important reason to hold a runway show is to sell merchandise (Everett & Swanson, 2013). In the contemporary fashion industry runway show videos are among the most useful methods designers have to present their design concepts to an audience. Designers started recording runway shows in mass numbers in 2000, with such videos appearing on specific television or YouTube channels (Everett & Swanson, 2013). In order to gain 10 attention and create memorable brands, designers for major brands such as Chanel, Givenchy, and Alexander Wang began posting their runway show videos on YouTube. Since Givenchy published its runway show video on YouTube March 8, 2015, the video has generated 103,669 views. Therefore, there is a much wider audience for runway show videos than the live runway shows could ever accommodate. These videos are serving as a means for the introduction of fashion items. The success of runway videos and growth of accessibility to online content has led fashion on designers to explore other media. One of the newest ways to present a design concept is via a fashion film. In 2010, some luxury fashion brands such as Chanel, Givenchy and Alexander Wang, started creating fashion films to communicate with their audiences (Min, Koo & DeLong, 2015). Such companies hire a fashion director to produce a dramatized fashion film, expecting this person not only to sell merchandise, but also to present the design concept to a wider audience (Guerin, 2005). Fashion campaigns on film (referred to as fashion films) are cinematic productions that blend “fashion industry, entertainment and art practice” (Uhlirova, 2013, p. 137). Different methods to deliver information to an audience (runway show videos and fashion films) may have different effects on the receivers of messages (Craig, 1999). A few articles discuss runway show production (Everett & Swanson, 2013), and only one article (Min, Koo, and Delong, 2014) has been found that investigates the differences between runway show videos and fashion films. Min, Koo, and Delong (2014) explored differences in information management 11 between runway show videos and fashion films, focusing on the specific case of Chanel. They revealed that a runway show video is easier for consumers to understand and remember than a fashion film. Currently, no research has explored whether runway show videos or fashion films better communicate design concepts. This paper focuses on how runway show videos and fashion films have different impacts on the audience, specifically on future fashion professionals, such as fashion students, who will be responsible for the promotion marketing and purchasing of fashion products in the industry. This study is especially timely given the rapid growth of electronic fashion communication through platforms such as YouTube and Instagram. Where fashion designers used to produce live shows
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Charitably Chic Lynn Willis
    Philadelphia University Spring 2007 development of (PRODUCT) RED, a campaign significantly embraced by the fashion community. Companies working with Focus on . Alumni Focus on . Industry News (PRODUCT) RED donate a large percentage of their profits to the Global Fund to fight Lynn Willis Charitably Chic AIDS. For example, Emporio Armani’s line donates 40 percent of the gross profit By Sara Wetterlin and Chaisley Lussier By Kelsey Rose, Erin Satchell and Holly Ronan margin from its sales and the GAP donates Lynn Willis 50 percent. Additionally, American Express, Trends in fashion come and go, but graduated perhaps the first large company to join the fashions that promote important social from campaign, offers customers its RED card, causes are today’s “it” items. By working where one percent of a user’s purchases Philadelphia with charitable organizations, designers, University in goes toward funding AIDS research and companies and celebrities alike are jumping treatment. Motorola and Apple have also 1994 with on the bandwagon to help promote AIDS a Bachelor created red versions of their electronics and cancer awareness. that benefit the cause. The results from of Science In previous years, Ralph Lauren has the (PRODUCT) RED campaign have been in Fashion offered his time and millions of dollars to significant, with contributions totaling over Design. Willis breast cancer research and treatment, which $1.25 million in May 2006. is senior includes the establishment of health centers Despite the fashion industry’s focus on director for the disease. Now, Lauren has taken image, think about what you can do for of public his philanthropy further by lending his someone else when purchasing clothes relations Polo logo to the breast cancer cause with and other items.
    [Show full text]
  • Sensitivity of TRIM Projections to Management, Harvest, Yield, And
    United States Department of Agriculture Sensitivity of TRIM Projections Forest Service Pacific Northwest to Management, Harvest, Yield, Research Station Research Note and Stocking Adjustment PNW-RN-502 March 1991 Assumptions Susan J. Alexander Abstract The Timber Resource Inventory Model (TRIM) was used to make several projections of forest industry timber supply for the Douglas-fir region. The sensitivity of these pro- jections to assumptions about management and yields is discussed. A base run is compared to runs in which yields were altered, stocking adjustment was eliminated, harvest assumptions were changed, and management intensity assumptions were changed. The objective was to determine if there is a difference in supply projections and age-class distributions in the short term (20 years) and the long term (50 years) when assumptions are changed. Changing harvest assumptions had an effect on yield projections and age-class dis- tributions only when artificially high and low harvests were applied. Harvesting oldest age classes first had little effect on age-class distribution projections or supply pro- jections. Changing assumptions about intensity of management and yields can have an effect on supply projections in both the short and the long term. Intensifying cur- rent management, deemphasizing harvest of older age classes, and using modified yield functions increased supply projections. The model showed that long-term vol- ume projections decrease when future inventories are managed in the same way as current inventories. Age-class distributions were not significantly affected by changing assumptions for management and yield. Keywords: Supply projections, age-class distribution, sensitivity analysis. Introduction The Timber Resource Inventory Model (TRIM) (Tedder and others 1987) is a pre- cursor to ATLAS (Aggregate Timberland Assessment System)1 the computer model used by the USDA Forest Service in the 1989 RPA Timber Assessment.2 The Forest ' Mills, John R.; Kincaid, Jonna C.
    [Show full text]
  • The Fashion Runway Through a Critical Race Theory Lens
    THE FASHION RUNWAY THROUGH A CRITICAL RACE THEORY LENS A thesis submitted to the College of the Arts of Kent State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts by Sophia Adodo March, 2016 Thesis written by Sophia Adodo B.A., Texas Woman’s University, 2011 M.A., Kent State University, 2016 Approved by ___________________________________________________________ Dr. Tameka Ellington, Thesis Supervisor ___________________________________________________________ Dr. Kim Hahn, Thesis Supervisor ___________________________________________________________ Dr. Amoaba Gooden, Committee Member ___________________________________________________________ Dr. Catherine Amoroso Leslie, Graduate Studies Coordinator, The Fashion School ___________________________________________________________ Dr. Linda Hoeptner Poling, Graduate Studies Coordinator, The School of Art ___________________________________________________________ Mr. J.R. Campbell, Director, The Fashion School ___________________________________________________________ Dr. Christine Havice, Director, The School of Art ___________________________________________________________ Dr. John Crawford-Spinelli, Dean, College of the Arts TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF FIGURES ....................................................................................................................... iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................................... iii CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Contemporary Collection
    TAKE A LOOK TAKE Mickalene Thomas (American, born 1971) Naomi Looking Forward #2, 2016 Rhinestones, acrylic, enamel and oil on wood panel 84 × 132 in. (213.4 × 335.3 cm) Purchase, acquired through the generosity of the Contemporary and Modern Art Council of the Norton Museum of Art, 2016.245a-b © 2018 Mickalene Thomas / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York norton.org A CLOSER LOOK contemporary collection Mickalene Thomas Naomi Looking Forward #2, 2016 ABOUT The Artwork The Artist Naomi Looking Forward #2 portrays the supermodel Naomi Mickalene Thomas was born in 1971 in Camden, New Jersey. Campbell reclining on a couch, supporting her raised torso She studied art at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York, on her left elbow. The pose recalls many paintings of women before earning her Masters of Fine Art degree from Yale from the Renaissance to the present. However, as Naomi University in 2002. During the past decade, Thomas has twists to look to the right, her right hand pulls her left leg up received numerous honors and awards, and her artwork has over her right leg. Curiously, the calves and feet are distinctly been exhibited and collected by museums around the world. paler than Naomi. In fact, they are a photographic detail She lives and works in Brooklyn, New York. of a famous painting in the Louvre Museum in Paris, the Her compelling, lavishly executed paintings and photographs Grand Odalisque by 19th-century French artist Jean Auguste explore gender and race. Through her understanding of Dominique Ingres (pronounced “Ang”). By painting a fully art history, Thomas often juxtaposes classic, European clothed, extremely successful African-American woman in representations of beauty, such as the reclining figure, with the pose of an earlier nude, Thomas appropriates a long- more modern concepts of what it means to be a woman.
    [Show full text]
  • Models Men/Women Elite Model Management the Legendary Model
    ELITE LICENCE OPPORTUNITIES 73%* GLOBAL AWARENESS the most famous GLAMOUR model agency in the world GLOBAL EXCELLENCE INNOVATION TIMELESS BEAUTY VISIONARY LEADER • GFK Eurisko Study 2014 prompted awareness of women 15-35 who know at least one model agency THE ELITE GROUP: A MULTI-CHANNEL FASHION LEADER ELITE MODEL MANAGEMENT THE LEGENDARY MODEL AGENCY Established 40 years ago, Elite is firmly established as the #1 model agency. Elite made its name by discovering the most famous top models and turning models into supermodels. 25 AGENCIES WORLDWIDE 300 AGENTS 2,000 MODELS MEN/WOMEN ELITE MODEL LOOK Created in 1983, Elite Model Look is the #1 model search 50 COUNTRIES 800 CASTINGS WORLDWIDE 350,000 CANDIDATES/PER YEAR Activation across media including webseries on Hulu, Blinkbox & Youtube ( 2m views ); social media ( 2.2m ) An international TV show watched by over 166 million people worldwide in 2013 and 2014 PAST WINNERS CINDY CRAWFORD GISELE BUNDCHEN CONSTANCE JABLONSKI ALESSANDRA AMBROSIO TATJANA PATITZ RIANNE TEN HAKEN SIGRID AGREN INES SASTRE THEY WERE SCOUTED BY EML VITTORIA SERGE JOSEPHINE MATTHEW MANUELA CERRETI RIGVAVA LE TUTOUR BELL FREY GRETA PAULINE MARYLOU ANTONINA ANITA VARLESE HOARAU MOLL PETKOVIK ZET A YEAR OF ELITE MODEL LOOK ONLINE CASTING From February to September each year, Elite Model Look releases the Facebook casting application which is promoted across all EML digital properties. Participants can easily upload a photo to enter the contest. The public can browse through all entries and support (‘like’) their favorite contestants. This generates significant traffic and fan acquisition. TARGETS Girls and boys 14 to 25 years old, family, friends.
    [Show full text]
  • Fashion Show Essentials Overview
    Fashion Show Essentials Overview. The 4-H Fashion Show allows members to exhibit their skills in wardrobe selection; clothing construction or comparison shopping; fashion interpretation and understanding of style; good grooming and poise; and modeling and presentation of themselves and their garments, at the county, district and state levels. The state 4-H Fashion Show is held during Texas 4-H Roundup. Fashion Show basics. 4-H Fashion Show at the county level is an optional activity open to all 4-H members who have completed a clothing project. Senior 4-H members who have won at the district Fashion Show competition can compete at the Fashion Show at State Roundup. Each district may send one contestant from each of the four categories (casual, dressy, formal and specialty) in the construction and buying divisions, and one contestant from each of the two divisions (cotton and wool/mohair) in Natural Fiber. There are four categories within each division (construction and buying) of the Fashion Show. 4-H members must select a category to compete in at the county level and compete in that same category throughout the levels of competi- tion. The categories are: casual, dressy, formal and specialty. • Construction: A 4-H member applies knowledge and skills in garment construction to make a garment to exhibit in the Fashion Show. Garments may be constructed by sewing, knitting or crocheting using new or recycled materials. • Buying: A 4-H member applies knowledge and skills in comparison shopping to select a garment to exhibit in the Fashion Show. Three different comparison shopping sources must be used and documented.
    [Show full text]
  • HISTORY of WESTERN OIL SHALE HISTORY of WESTERN OIL SHALE
    / _... i';C4 - SHELF , Historyof Western Oil Shale Paul L. Russell . " The Center for Professional Advancement Paul Russell received his degree from the University of Arizona. After working for Industry for five years, he began his involvement with oil shale in 1948 when he joined the U.S. Bureau of Mines and was assigned to Rifle, Colorado, to work at Anvil Points. During the middle fifties, he was assigned to the Atomic Energy Com­ mission to study the extraction of ura­ nium from the Chattanooga Shales in Tennessee. He became Research Director of the U.S. Bureau ofMines in 1967 and served in this capacity until he retired in 1979. During these years his involvement with oil shale intensified. Currently, he is an engineering consultant. ISBN: 0-86563-000-3 ,._-------_._.. V.D.ALLRED 6016 SOUTH BANNOCK LI7TLETON. COLO. 80120 ....~ ...........~..... This compelling history spans 65 years of western oil shale development from its begin­ ning to the present day. These were the years in which most of the present-day retorting pro­ cesses were invented and devel­ oped,leading to present studies of in-situ retorting, and to the resumption of leasing of fed­ eral oil shale lands. The many excellent illustra­ tions and contemporary photo­ graphs in themselves provide a pictorial record of an era when the United States was "wild over oil"-an era when Gov­ ernment estimates of billions of barrels of oil in western oil shales were used to advan­ tage for questionable-if not fraudulent-stock promotions designed to raise capital for development, or to fatten the promoters' pockets.
    [Show full text]
  • Secure Fuels from Domestic Resources ______Profiles of Companies Engaged in Domestic Oil Shale and Tar Sands Resource and Technology Development
    5th Edition Secure Fuels from Domestic Resources ______________________________________________________________________________ Profiles of Companies Engaged in Domestic Oil Shale and Tar Sands Resource and Technology Development Prepared by INTEK, Inc. For the U.S. Department of Energy • Office of Petroleum Reserves Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves Fifth Edition: September 2011 Note to Readers Regarding the Revised Edition (September 2011) This report was originally prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy in June 2007. The report and its contents have since been revised and updated to reflect changes and progress that have occurred in the domestic oil shale and tar sands industries since the first release and to include profiles of additional companies engaged in oil shale and tar sands resource and technology development. Each of the companies profiled in the original report has been extended the opportunity to update its profile to reflect progress, current activities and future plans. Acknowledgements This report was prepared by INTEK, Inc. for the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Petroleum Reserves, Naval Petroleum and Oil Shale Reserves (DOE/NPOSR) as a part of the AOC Petroleum Support Services, LLC (AOC- PSS) Contract Number DE-FE0000175 (Task 30). Mr. Khosrow Biglarbigi of INTEK, Inc. served as the Project Manager. AOC-PSS and INTEK, Inc. wish to acknowledge the efforts of representatives of the companies that provided information, drafted revised or reviewed company profiles, or addressed technical issues associated with their companies, technologies, and project efforts. Special recognition is also due to those who directly performed the work on this report. Mr. Peter M. Crawford, Director at INTEK, Inc., served as the principal author of the report.
    [Show full text]
  • Central Saint Martins Fashion Fund
    central saint martins fashion fund Fashion at Central Saint Martins (CSM) is internationally and critically acclaimed. The CSM Fashion Fund will provide programme- wide support for our students, equipment and facilities. The funds raised will contribute to the provision of the world-class education we are renowned for. As a thank-you for this support, we will invite donors to exclusive events and record their generosity in a visible area of the fashion studios. Richard Quinn, MA 2016 fashion inspiration St Martin’s School of Art was established in The internationally renowned centre for arts and design education has one of the most 1859. The first fashion course, headed by Muriel established reputations in fashion education Pemberton, started in 1932 and by the 1970s, and is considered a global leader in its field. St Martin’s School of Art was established, as one The Business of Fashion of the pre-eminent colleges for the study of The many individual careers and artistic contributions that were formed in the fashion. In 1989 St Martin’s joined the Central fashion department of Central Saint Martins School of Art and Design to become Central are well documented. Beyond those, though, Saint Martins College of Art and Design, bringing are a set of standards and a sense of cultural ambition that can’t be attributed to any one Fashion, Textiles and Jewellery Design together designer or teacher. And that’s what’s at the in the School of Fashion and Textile Design. In heart of its success and continuing relevance. It’s almost like an ideology.
    [Show full text]
  • Versace's Native American
    VERSACE’S NATIVE AMERICAN A COLONIZED FEMALE BODY IN THE NAME OF AESTHETIC AND DYNASTIC GLORY 1 In this contemporary moment fashion designers have the means to collaborate with Native American fashion designers. However, there is still a flourishing fashion market that refuses to recognize Native American tribes as owners of intellectual property.1 While some brands may initially start on the right track via collaboration with Native artists, it may not always end in success.2 Most recently, Versace has included Native American designs in their ready-to-wear fashion for the 2018 Spring-Summer season. This component of the collection belongs to a tribute honoring Gianni Versace and his original FW ’92 Native American print (Figures 1 and 2).3 I will be discussing the implications of the revived Native American print and how it affects Native North American men and women. In this essay, I will look at Versace’s legacy and his original print; the new Native American Tribute Collection by Donatella Versace; and Donna Karan’s collaboration with Pueblo artist, Virgil Ortiz. I argue that respectful recognition of Native North American property is thrown aside for aesthetic and dynastic glory, which in turn, allows non-Native designers to colonize the ‘exotic’ Native woman’s body by denying Native North American men and women the opportunity to represent themselves to the global fashion community. Virgil Ortiz’s collaboration with Donna Karan illustrates how respectful collaboration can shape the dominant society’s perception of Native North American women. If we use Native North American fashion as a framework to understand how Native designers are working to dismantle mainstream stereotypes, it is imperative that global designers 1 “Navajo Nation Sues Urban Outfitters,” Business Law Daily, March 18, 2012.
    [Show full text]
  • Is Apparel Manufacturing Coming Home? Nearshoring, Automation, and Sustainability – Establishing a Demand-Focused Apparel Value Chain
    Is apparel manufacturing coming home? Nearshoring, automation, and sustainability – establishing a demand-focused apparel value chain McKinsey Apparel, Fashion & Luxury Group October 2018 Authored by: Johanna Andersson Achim Berg Saskia Hedrich Patricio Ibanez Jonatan Janmark Karl-Hendrik Magnus 2 Is apparel manufacturing coming home? Table of Contents Introduction 4 Is apparel manufacturing coming home? 6 Era of change 6 Nearshoring breakeven 10 Overcoming challenges in nearshoring 12 The prospect of automation 15 Promising automation technologies 15 Economic viability of automation 18 How quickly can the prospect become reality? 21 The automation journey 23 Embarking on the journey 24 Defining the future sourcing and production strategy 24 Developing new skills and changing mindsets 26 Building a new ecosystem of partnerships 27 Taking the first step 28 Table of Contents 3 Introduction Tomorrow’s successful apparel companies will be those that take the lead to enhance the apparel value chain on two fronts: nearshoring and automation. It cannot be just one of them and it must be done sustainably. Apparel companies can no longer conduct business as usual and expect to thrive. Due to the Internet and stagnation in key markets, competition is fiercer than ever and consumer demand is more difficult to predict. Mass-market apparel brands and retailers are competing with pure-play online start-ups, the most successful of which can replicate trendy styles and get them to customers within weeks. Furthermore, apparel companies have lost much of their clout in trendsetting. In most mass-market categories, today’s hottest trends are determined by individual influencers and consumers rather than by the marketing departments of fashion companies.
    [Show full text]
  • Fashion Retail: Trends and Challenges 2016
    FashionFashion RetailRetail Trends and Challenges 2016 We serve 150 countries QUALITY INNOVATION in 10 OFFICES worldwide PASSION icole is browsing the websites of Additionally, she receives notification of a sale— several fashion retailers. At one store’s “15% off selected accessories, today only”—that N site, she identifies three models she is applies to two of the items she had added to her interested in and saves them to a “wish list”. wish list. Since she prefers to touch and feel the clothes before buying, she decides to visit the store. When she taps on the wish list, the app provides Under an optimized cross-channel experience, a store map directing Nicole to the desired she is able find the nearest physical outlet on section of the store. The store uses sophisticated the fashion retailer’s website, get directions tagging technologies, information about the using Google Maps, and drive over to view the wish list items has automatically been synced desired products. with other applications on her mobile phone—she can scan reviews using their Even before she walks through the doors, a Consumer Reports app, text her sister for advice, transmitter at the entrance of the store identifies ask Facebook friends to weigh in on the Nicole and sends a push alert to her mobile purchase, and compare the retailer’s prices phone, welcoming her and providing her with against the prices of others. She decides to get a personalized offers and recommendations based dress, but as her size is not in stock, she orders it on her history with the store.
    [Show full text]