When we talk about certain brands being successful and established, it is usually down to them being known for something positive. Whether that be because they are sustainable, deliver responsible values or hold high expectations of themselves, all brands must have a purpose. This week’s fashion pillar on purpose, explores the concept of brand strategies and what plans they put in place, in order for them to excel with ‘fairness, respect and equality’ (McCartney, 2023)
A brand’s philosophy is important to have in place three factors that make up a strategic brand. Mission, where the company looks at where they are currently, this could be in terms of the scale of the company or how much profit there making or as to why the company exists… what is the purpose of the brand? Etc. The next factor is the vision; Where does the brand want to be and what are the future ambitions? Again, this can relate to not just the economic side of the business and how much profit but also social factors including, who do they want to target as their consumers? Or environmental, how do they want to be seen through marketing by new customers? This then goes alongside the concept of values, what is important to the brand and what are they going to put in place to make it effective. An example of a brand who has set out a clear purpose for their customers is Asos, bringing the message across that through their fashion brings a ‘freedom to explore and express yourself without judgement’ and values of ‘bridging the gap between goals and accomplishments’. (ASOS, 2023) As a brand they also set out a strategy to take them up to 2030 called ‘Fashion with Integrity’. This includes visions such as trying to ‘achieve net zero carbon emissions’ and ensuring packaging of the products use sustainable or recycled materials. (ASOS, 2023)

Although different brands target different types of people, it is Gen z that all brands need to communicate their marketing towards. According to (Wilson, 2021) it is digital campfires that ‘have become a force defining not only gen z audiences connect, but also how they experience and shape culture at large’ This suggests that brands not only need to relate to audiences by social media but through gaming platforms and through celebs. It is important for new brands to learn from ‘existing brilliant minds’ (Mitterfellner, 2023). For example Nike did a collaboration with Billie Eilish ‘Highlighting the importance of recycling but also reminds us that we need to take better care of our planet’.(Nike,2022)

McCartney, S., 2023. Stella McCartney. [Online] 
Available at: 

https://www.stellamccartney.com/us/en/sustainability/sustainability.html#:~:text=We%20strive%20to%20create%20the,behind%20our%20products%20and%20innovations.
[Accessed 28 October 2023].

Asos, 2023 Asos [Online] Available at https://www.asos.com/about/who-we-are/?ctaref=aboutus|whoweare[Accessed 28 October 2023]

Sarah Wilson, 2021 Harvard business Review [Online] Available at https://hbr.org/2021/03/where-brands-are-reaching-gen-z [Accessed 28 October 2023]

Luxury Brand Qualities, Brand Construct and Brand Touchpoints
Mitterfellner, Olga. Luxury Fashion Brand Management : Unifying Fashion with Sustainability, Taylor & Francis Group, 2023.ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/ual/detail.action?docID=7260416.
Created from ual on 2023

Nike, 2022, Nike [online] Available at https://about.nike.com/en/newsroom/releases/nike-x-billie-eilish-af1-low [Accesed 28 October 2023]

Although every designer’s dream is to create a business with striking pieces, new fashion breakthroughs and have top celebrity icons showcase their work, none of this would be possible without Money. This weeks Fashion pillar is based on profit, the main goal for any company, whether fashion or not to enable the measure of success. 

It’s difficult to say exactly the scale of the fashion industry based on the number of people not just in Europe but around the world, due to everyone being involved in fashion from the moment they purchase an item of clothing. However, if we look at it based on profit we are faced with striking statistics. Before the Covid-19 pandemic, the fashion industry global revenue was estimated between $1.7 trillion and $2.5 trillion (McKinsey,2019) although then dropped hugely with most of the company’s profit coming from loungewear. As a result, sectors such as footwear or formal clothes which were not being purchased, declined due to lockdowns. In 2022, due to inflation rates and issues with supply chains the revenue of apparel in the UK was estimated to be just under 58.5 billion British pounds, but is projected to recover, eventually reaching 75 billion British pounds by 2026. (Smith, 2023)

Profit and how successful a brand is doing, especially in the modern day is down to how well the marketing of brands is done, and a lot is due to social media. However, to put the money into the branding for all the ‘crazy’ and latest trends, the profit must be coming from the classic and more original pieces. For example, Nike is a brand who targets all ages and Naomi Klein, 1999 quotes ‘We’ve come around to saying that Nike is a marketing-orientated company, and the product is our most important marketing tool’. (De Castro, 2021). According to the state of fashion ‘Casualwear, followed by sportswear and sneakers, are the highest-ranking categories
in terms of where executives see the greatest growth potential.’ Factors such as trade wars and access to raw materials can obstruct supply chains, across all the fashion sectors. (Mitterfellner,2023).

All companies will go through rocky phases especially in uncertain economic times however it is how they come back from it which is important for them not to drop of the market completely. YSL is a prime example. At the time there was little knowledge about consumers of tomorrow and that is why according to (Kapferer, 2008) it is essential to prevent ageing to avoid the decline of a brand’. They ended up building a multi-channel customer relationship, becoming the top 10 most mentioned companies on twitter, and placed in vogue magazines, (Cabigiosu,2020) all of which got them back on top. 

How do we bridge the gap between creativity and commerce?

Elbaz was a luxury designer who stated that designers “start with dreams” and then became “creative directors” (Dacre,2015). In the fashion industry it is the role of the creative director who is essentially the one who balances money with creativity. Their main roles being Lead fashion designer, Brand visionary, Manager of multiple teams and brand Ambassador. (Mitterfellner,2023).

Refrences 

Mitterfellner, Olga. Luxury Fashion Brand Management, 2023

The state of Fashion, 2023

UAL Powerpoint, De Castro, 2021

When it comes to the fashion industry, the fundamental thing brands depend on are the people, the consumers. Without people not only will brands not be making profit or progress but businesses will not be able to follow consumer behaviour and stay up to date with latest trends. Whether that be scrolling on social media or by the thousands of customers that come through high street brands.

For brands to target there marketing towards the correct group of consumers, the latest generation is referred too as ‘Gen Z’. The people of generation Z loosely come under the age of being born after 1995 having characteristics such as high ambition to ensure security and stability within their life. They are described as true digital natives: from earliest youth, they have been exposed to the internet, to social networks, and to mobile systems. (Francis, T. and Hoefel, F, 2018). Dependent on the generation, Brands must adapt their ethos’s and values to suit the beliefs of consumers, for example people of ‘gen Z’ tend to search for authenticity, generating greater freedom of expression and greater openness to understanding different kinds of people (Francis, T. and Hoefel, F, 2018) reflected in current fashion brand. However, it is difficult for established, fashion brands to constantly keep up with trends especially those who have original and unique pieces. The Future Laboratory’s Deol says, “Gen Z consumers “will check, cross-check, find a dupe, double down on comparisons and consult with their favourite expert influencers before they make a purchase” (Long,2023             )

Although so that newer companies can be successful in making customers happy, they should attend to the three implications:

. Consumption as access rather than possession

. Consumption as an expression of individual identity 

. Consumption as a matter of ethical concern. 

(Francis, T. and Hoefel, F, 2018). According to the state of fashion beauty, Fashion brands can implement several things to attract Gen z, for example by reflecting their values relating to topics ranging from mental health to climate change, while also acknowledging their diversity, all matters which are particularly important to this generation. (McKinsey,2023). This also leads onto a point that gen z tends to purchase items which they know the background behind; for example, where it came from? where it was made? who made it? Etc. For example Selena Gomez’s Rare Beauty brand portray her own issues with mental health, whilst brands like Topicals and Eidem are addressing skin issues found among consumers of colour, hyperpigmentation, and dark spots, deepening the beauty industry conversation around skin tones that was started by brands like Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty. (McKinsey,2023) Lastly to wrap up the blog based on people, it is important know there are many skills a person needs to have in the fashion industry for them to be successful. First and for most having your own sense of style and identity to remain true to yourself, as well as doing unique things that enable you to stand out and maintain motivated. (Gewal,2023).

References

(Francis, T. and Hoefel, F., 2018, ‘True Gen’: Generation Z and its implications for companies)

(McKinsey,2023, The state of fashion Beauty)

(Gewal,2023, Lcf Lecture)

(Long, 2023, Rabanne joins Gen Z beauty race with cosmic cosmetics collections)

Although the concept of fashion is typically thought to be one that is vibrant and positive, throughout this blog I intend to explore the more negative side of the fashion industry, in particularly the alarming effect it has on the planet. From manufacturing and purchasing all the way to the washing of clothes, the fashion industry alone was responsible for 1715 million tones of c02 in 2015. (Khusainova,2019) This conveys how the industry must continue to and further make responsible decisions which will lead to less harmful effects on our planet thinking less about measuring success by just sales and profit (Rimarcikova,2023).

For these changes to be made brands need to work with a scheme or programme that guides them to being more sustainable. For example, introducing a circular economy into fashion brands is one way that will be positively impactful as it explores the concept of slow fashion as opposed to fast fashion. No matter how strategic a brand is to ensure they do the best to limit the effects their company has on the environment, it is impossible to say a fashion brad will ever be ‘sustainable’. However instead we need to focus more on the idea of regenerating products we already have. The circular economy is a system where materials never become waste and nature is regenerated. (Ellen Macarthur, no date) The system is based off three principles being. The first one is eliminating waste and pollution, which is targeting staggering statistics such as 85 % of the fashion industries textiles are being sent to landfills. By keeping clothes in use and adapting them to be made from safer materials it then leads on to the second principle of Circulating products. This suggests that brands could potentially rework materials from items that are unable to be worn or scrap materials to prevent unnecessary factory production which will impact carbon emission. An example of a fashion brand who already implements this idea is Patrick McDowell. His brand alone has three founding pillars which are beliefs and targets, shown through his work, one being supporting people and the planet. McDowells system to target sustainability is by having direct relationship with customers enabling them to contact him once they have made use of their pieces and this is where the idea of regenerating comes in. From a maxi dress worn on the red carpet, McDowell works with his customers to re-create something new which then may look something like cushions on the sofa. The last principle in circular economy looks at regenerating nature. 

References 

(Khusainova, 2019, Why the Circular Economy Will Not Fix Fashion’s Sustainability Problem)

(Rimarcikova, 2023, Planet earth and fashion Lecture)

(Ellen Macarthur, https://ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/)

My favourite fashion brand to name one is Zara, originated as a family business in north Spain. What I love most about Zara is there balance between simplicity yet striking pieces which are retailed at an affordable price. Zara aim to target all ages with the intent to mirror the luxury and comfort of clothes from higher end brands. The silhouettes that the designers from Zara create are ones that in my opinion both suit and allow people to feel comfortable in there everyday fashion. Whilst Zara are hot to keep up with the latest fashion ‘trends’ and have a rapid turn over there pieces are known to be ‘wardrobe staples’. The timeless products Zara have on the hangers are those of which are sold continuously each year however sometimes adapted slightly to keep consumers eyes peeled on what’s new. 

Although I’m pulled in by the high quality of the Zara products I am also compelled to the brand due to there modern and unique marketing. The Zara website for example is one that stands out from any other fashion brand with there models showcasing clothes with what wouldn’t be your ‘typical’ pose . Although some may say that due to this it is ‘hard to shop on the website’, I love the idea that Zara style all there pieces even down to the smallest accessory, breaking the norms and elevating fashion . I also love the inclusion at Zara with both the models and pieces encompassing diversity.