Core Concepts in Fashion Chapter Five

Chapter Five Fashion forecasting is the process of predicting new trends Can use a variety of tools to predict Newspapers, magazines

Chapter Five Trickle-up theory Thorstein Veblen George Simmel First discussed the idea of social classes George Simmel Believed in order for a fashion to become accepted, it first had to be accepted by upper classes Theory suggests because people in the lower classes prefer to associate themselves with upper class, they would eventually adopt the fashion of upper class. At this point in time, the fashion would be rejected by the upper class Theory is hard to apply today because there are many more classes and social structure is much different

Chapter Five Trickle up theory Sometimes called the “bottom up theory” Fashion begins in lower classes of society and trickles up, then is eventually copied by upper classes Example: Grunge fashion

Chapter Five Trickle across theory Sometimes called the horizontal flow theory Believes that fashion flows in between social groups Sometimes lower classes will start trends, and sometimes upper classes will start trends Mass communication, such as the internet allows people to see all forms of fashion

Chapter Five External Forces effecting fashion Social Economic Political Legal Technological Global

Chapter Five Social issues effecting fashion Age View on age has changed People in the upper years of their life are more active No longer an “expected” outfit for someone based solely on age Women in the workforce Needed new types of clothing as women entered the workforce

Chapter Five Social Issues effecting fashion Men and their appearance Acceptable for men to care about their appearance Special creams, lotion and clothing developed for men in recent years Ethnic influences Ethnic clothing can inspire new designs Immigrant population of United States brings many forms of fashion together

Chapter Five Economic Forces effecting fashion Consumer income Total income The amount a person makes from all sources Personal income The total amount of income less social security taxes Disposable income The total amount of income less federal income taxes, sales tax and property tax Discretionary income The amount left over after paying all taxes and paying for necessities like food and rent

Chapter Five Economic Forces effecting fashion Purchasing power The amount of goods which can be purchased for the same amount of money in a given time period Things effecting purchasing power: Interest rates Inflation Recessions and layoffs

Chapter Five Legal forces effecting fashion Mergers or acquisition The sale of a company to another Importing regulations Importing is when a good from one country is sent to another country Requirements for labeling Concerns how products should be labeled For example, requirements for care of garment

Chapter Five Political forces effecting fashion Clothing can change depending on which party is in office Technological forces effecting fashion Ability to communicate new fashions quicker through internet Use of computers for garment design Online shopping

Chapter Five Global Issues effecting fashion Trade agreements For example, NAFTA made it possible to have clothing made in Mexico and ship to the United States at no additional cost

Chapter Five Tools to predict fashion Primary data Secondary data Data which is researched and gathered For example, watching for new trends at a local club would be considered primary data Secondary data Newspapers, magazines, websites-any type of data which was not gathered by you

Chapter Five Collection reports Trend reports Expensive but helpful Shows sketches, textile selection and other important data about a designer collection Trend reports Similar to collection reports, but focus on a variety of designers, rather than just one designer

Chapter Five Color services Websites Trade publications Research and predict new upcoming colors Websites Can research websites to find out about street trends Trade publications Any publication made for a specific industry Women’s Wear Daily is an example

Chapter Five Music/Movies/Television Street Fashion Watching what stars are wearing can be a good predictor of new fashions Street Fashion Watching what the everyday trendsetter is wearing can help predict fashion