Zilong Wang

Introduce the pillar.

Purpose pillar means that a company or brand in the fashion industry makes a series of marketing strategies and plans to achieve a mission. Making mission statement usually takes place at the beginning of each stage. The employees of the brand/company will complete a series of details according to the general purpose, but all the work is done to achieve the final purpose. The purpose is usually abstract, general, and grand. To inform consumers and the fashion industry by explaining the ultimate expectations and goals of the brand while explaining the brand’s concept. As asos states on their website, their brand philosophy is: “Our vision is to be the world’s number one fashion destination for fashion-loving 20-somethings.” So that’s the purpose of asos. (asos, no date)

Why is brand philosophy (mission, vision, value proposition) important?

There are many benefits to a brand setting a brand concept. It can help the brand to clarify its goals and introduce consumers to the difference between its brand and other brands.

How do brands communicate their purpose to Gen Z?

Based on a conversation with Bo Finneman, Emma Spagnuollo, and Lucia Rahilly, McKinsey concludes that there are several ways a brand wants to reach Generation Z consumers. 

1. Unlike Gen X, Gen Z consumers are more focused on what they really want and are willing to pay a premium for it. “It’s fascinating how Gen Z is willing to invest in luxury, contrary to what is often portrayed in the media. The distinguishing factor here is that Gen Z doesn’t perceive luxury  as simply a prestigious brand name to be prominently displayed on their clothing or accessories. They are genuinely seeking distinctive and individualistic items that make them stand out.” Stated by Emma. (Emma, 2020) So a brand can reach Generation Z consumers at a high price.
2. Define product concepts specific to Gen Z and design products that meet the unique needs of Gen Z. Emma and Bio mentioned that Gen Z consumers don’t want to be labeled or want to be anything, they just want to pursue what they really love and feel good about being who they are. (Emma and Bio, 2020)
3. Use more online sales channels. Gen Z consumers clearly have electronic devices and are paying more attention to the Internet.As Emma mentioned, “They don’t approach shopping in a binary fashion, where they must visit specific types of stores for particular items. Instead, they explore various formats,  including pop-up boutiques, Instagram shops, department stores, specialty stores,  and online shopping on their laptops. They don’t have a fixed notion of a “go-to” place for shopping. They engage with  brands across different platforms and moments, and their smartphone plays a crucial role in this experience.” (Emma,2020)

Reference list: 

Asos. (no date) Our purpose and values. Available at: https://www.asosplc.com/this-is-asos/our-purpose-and-values/ (Accessed 29/10/2023)

Bio,F, Emma,S and Lucia,R. (2020) Meet Generation Z: Shaping the future of shopping. Available at: https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/consumer-packaged-goods/our-insights/meet-generation-z-shaping-the-future-of-shopping (Accessed 29/10/2023)

Introduce the pillar

According to the report from Jennifer, The foundation of the profit aspect lies in a company’s effective and conscientious utilization of resources, which ultimately results in sustained profitability. When applied to the fashion industry, clothing companies that implement sustainability measures can enhance their efficiency and long-term financial returns. (Jennifer, 2022) As an important pillar of sustainable fashion, profit pillar makes obvious sense. “Only in the UK, the sustainable fashion market revenue reached about 70 million in 2020.” (Certilogo, 2022)

What is the size of the fashion industry?

“Fashion is one of the world’s most important industries,  driving a significant part of the global economy. It is one of the key value-creating industries for the world economy.  If it were ranked alongside individual countries’ GDP the global fashion industry would represent the seventh-largest economy in the world,’’ stated McKinsey in its State of Fashion 2017 report. (McKinsey, 2017) 

According to Euromonitor, the global apparel and footwear industry grew by 18.1% at current prices in 2020-2021, to $1.71 billion dollars in market size (retail value USD million) in 2021.

The world’s apparel retail market is expected to enjoy a 7.5% growth in 2021-2022 to $1.84 billion dollars in 2022 and a 6.1% growth in 2022-2023 to $1.95 billion dollars in 2023. (Fashion united, no date)

How are the various sectors of the industry performing?

The topic of sustainability in the fashion industry is gaining more and more attention. The once-great fast fashion trend is facing increased scrutiny not only from the fashion industry and consumers, but also from people who are increasingly concerned about whether the fashion products themselves are harmful to the environment. With the increasing popularity of electronic products in the world, the end of covid-19, global warming and other issues, more and more consumers begin to shop online, which makes the fashion industry begin to enter another era, digital fashion. Consumers pay more attention to the meta-universe and online shopping. Almost all luxury brands have entered the meta-universe market, and most mass brands have also developed their own digital fashion projects.

How can a brand remain competitive in uncertain economic times?

According to the report from Eric:

1. Concentrate intently on the current customer base, clients, and partners.
2. Reiterate to the management that during an economic downturn, it’s not a time to withdraw from marketing efforts. As Henry Ford once said, “A man who stops advertising to save money is like a man who stops a clock to save time.” When recessions hit, marketing is often among the first budget cuts. Doing so could potentially cause long-term damage to the brand and allow  smaller or weaker competitors to steal market share. There are countless studies going back more than a decade showing  that brands maintaining or increasing advertising during a recession gain market share over time.
3. Remain flexible and receptive to emerging technologies, tools, and platforms.
4. Use the time to focus on strategy, build content and analyze customers’ behaviors.
5. Use the time going into a tougher economy to build assets, materials and programs while you have access to resources.
6. Provide certainty when people are overwhelmed with uncertainty. (Eric, 2020)

How do creative directors bridge the gap between creativity and commerce?

Mitterfellner once mentioned the case of YSL and Chanel. Although Miss COCO Chanel was a very excellent designer and led the Chanel era, fashion trends are very important in the fashion industry, and not all designers can keenly capture the fashion trends. Coco Chanel did not like jeans and mini skirts, she was not even willing to consider designing this style of products, which more or less led to Chanel in that era almost end. But during Lagerfeld’s tenure, he saved the brand by merging the fashion trends of the time with Chanel’s brand philosophy. (Mitterfellner, 2023, p137) “The product life cycle is more restrictive than the brand life cycle. This is because a brand is more resilient than a single product, and management should apply the right technology and appropriate marketing strategies at the mature stage to ensure that the brand continues to stay healthy and fresh.” (Mitterfellner, 2023, p133) Therefore, to sum up, the creative director of a brand should design products in combination with the trends of contemporary fashion captured by the creative director and the concept of the brand itself. Not all consumers like the products of the creative director, and all the purpose is to cater to consumers and make profits.

Reference list:

Certilogo (2022) A sustainable Fashion business model (Online). Available at: https://discover.certilogo.com/blogs/insights/sustainable-fashion-business-model (Accessed 21/10/23)

Erik,C (2020) Marketing Rules To Follow During Uncertain Economic Times. (Online) Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurendebter/2023/10/20/how-struggling-college-bookstores-found-a-way-to-beat-amazon/? (Accessed 22/10/23)

Fashionunited. (no date) Global Fashion Industry Statistics (Online). Available at: https://fashionunited.com/global-fashion-industry-statistics (Accessed 20/10/23)

Imran,A (2022) (Online). The State of Fashion 2023: Holding onto growth as global clouds gather. Available at: https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/retail/our-insights/state-of-fashion (Accessed 20/10/23)

Jennifer,S. (2022) Pillars Of Sustainable Fashion (Online). Available at: https://www.thesewingroomalameda.com/fashion-studies-blog/2022/7/15/pillars-of-sustainable-fashion (Accessed 21/10/23)

Mitterfellner,O. (2023) Luxury fashion brand management (electronic resource): unifying fashion with sustainability / Olga Mitterfellner. London : Routledge. Available at: https://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/ual/reader.action?docID=7260416. (Accessed 21/10/23)

People pillar

People pillar in fashion industry refers to people and consumers working and shopping in the fashion industry, including designers, in-store employees, production floor workers, and customers of fashion products. They receive the welfare and enjoy related rights and interests in the fashion circle. All the people involved in the whole process from manufacturing to consumption are called the people pillar of the fashion industry.

Describe Gen Z as consumers

The Gen Z have their own subjective thoughts, and they are no longer blindly following the trend to pursue the most popular products of the current era. They pay for products they love and are more willing to trust their feelings. Francis has noted that, “As global connectivity soars,  generational shifts could come to play a more important role in setting behavior than socioeconomic differences do. Young people have become a potent influence on people of all ages and incomes,  as well as on the way those people consume and relate to brands.” (Francis, 2018) Gen Z is gradually having a sustainable consumption awareness, their awareness of environmental protection has become better and better, so they began to choose to buy sustainable products.

Consider what a brand should do to attract Gen Z?

According to the report from Mckiney Company, “Generation Z comprises people born between 1996 and 2010. This generation’s identity has been shaped by the digital age, climate anxiety, a shifting financial landscape, and COVID-19.” (Mckiney Company, 2023) Gen Z has its own unique consumption concept and values. Brands have to design special products for this group, develop marketing strategies that resonate with their values.

Give an example of how a brand has responded to diversity.

Gucci Metaverse

According to the Forbes report: “Gucci has a reputation for being an innovative brand at the forefront of metaverse and Web3 technologies. In May 2021,  Gucci made history as the pioneer luxury brand to introduce an NFT. Concurrently,  they introduced the Gucci Garden experience on Roblox during the same month. This digital rendition of Gucci Garden,  an interactive multimedia experience situated in Florence, Italy showcasing the brand’s creative ethos,  attracted more than 20 million users. Recently, Gucci launched Gucci Vault Land,  available from October 27 to November 9,  utilizing The Sandbox platform. The Sandbox is a virtual realm allowing players to possess, construct,  and monetize their gaming possessions and ventures within an extensive virtual universe.” (Bernard, 2022) 

Gucci’s metaversee project has several purposes. The first carbon emission is completely zero, it is a sustainable project. Second, due to the great changes in the world pattern (war, global warming, inflation, etc.), people pay more attention to the Internet, which means that there is a huge niche market. The third is to attract Gen Z, who grew up in an era surrounded by multiculturalism and the Internet, and who expect and follow new things: technology, fashion, electronics, games, etc. To sum up, Gucci, as a traditional top luxury brand, jumps out of its original comfort zone to develop diversified projects, which is a very wise strategy to attract not only more consumers in other markets, but also consumers of Generation Z.

What are the key people skills needed for a fashion brand to be successful?

Communications. Effective and efficient communication is the prerequisite for all productivity. Any process from design to production requires different people at each step to communicate with each other to get things done. So communication is the most critical people skill.

Reference list:

Bernard, M. (2022). Gucci Enters The Metaverse. (Online) https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2022/11/30/gucci-enters-the-metaverse/ (Accessed 14/10/2023)

Francis, T. and Hoefel, F. (2018). ‘True Gen’: Generation Z and its implications for companies. (Online) https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/consumer-packaged-goods/our-insights/true-gen-generation-z-and-its-implications-for-companies. (Accessed 14/10/2023)

McKinsey & Company. (2023). What is Gen Z? (Online) https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/mckinsey-explainers/what-is-gen-z (Accessed 14/10/2023)