Sezen Bahceci

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PROFIT

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Profit is the epicentre of all industries but is largely prominent in the fashion industry as it has a domino effect on the global economy. There is significant uncertainty within the fashion economy due to its changing nature of trends but also due to environmental and social factors, such as inflation and political tensions. Examples of recent social problems that have impacted fashion would be the coronavirus pandemic, this has caused much turmoil socially as well as economically. The aftermath of the outbreak changed the mentality of consumers and shoppers as they are now more wary of their purchases due to unstable economic circumstances (McKinsey & Company, 2023). As well as this, in the recent years inflation has been at an all-time high, with the GDP being predicted to grow 1.5% in 2023 (McKinsey & Company, 2023). This, among other factors, causes an impact on consumer behaviour as people will be reluctant to engage in fashion due to the rising costs as well as environmental concerns. Becoming a rising cause for concern, climate change is currently a focal point of consumers, as they are starting to shop less at fast fashion brands and opting for second hand alternatives via charity shops. In order to keep up with the gen Z ideology of accountability and emphasis on being environmentally friendly, companies and brands have to adapt their products and marketing approaches in order to attract the newer generations, to keep their companies alive and thriving. It would be highly unlikely for brands to sustain themselves without constantly changing and adapting in order to successfully reach their target audience, there have been cases of companies resorting to closure as their products were not reflective of the demands of their customers, therefore leading to minimal profit and massive overproduction. An example of this would be the closure of Topman, where the combination rise of rival brands as well as refusal to deliver products that were relevant to their consumers, led to their ultimate shutdown in-stores (Drapers, 2020). Another way brands can approach the idea of profit is through collaborations with the creative industry, such as artists or designers. This has proven to be successful for bringing together two different audiences to create larger profit, which can be seen by the Louis Vuitton x Steven Sprouse collaboration to create graffiti-style bags from 2001 onwards, and is still a massive success to this day, even having a re-vamp in 2009. 

References:

The state of fashion 2023: Holding onto growth as global clouds gather (2022) McKinsey & Company. https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/retail/our-insights/state-of-fashion

Sutherland, E. (2020) Drapers, The factors behind Arcadia’s collapse https://www.drapersonline.com/insight/analysis/the-factors-behind-arcadias-collapse

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PEOPLE

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To live is to continuously meet new people of all ages and backgrounds. This means we are constantly developing as individuals, as we continue to expand our knowledge of different cultures and generations, this development also directly applies to fashion. With the introduction of each generation, it entails the progression of fashion trends and ideologies. Most recently and notably, Gen Z has brought more sustainable and individualistic ideas forward in the industry, urging companies to bring attention to 3 core ideas ‘consumption as access rather than possession, consumption as an expression of individual identity, and consumption as a matter of ethical concern.’ (McKinsey & Company, 2018). Examples of developments brought forth from gen z ideologies would be the rise of second-hand fashion, with the creation of brands such as Vinted and Depop. Brands are required to follow the changing standards of fashion; this can be achieved through being transparent about the goals of their company and using social media as a form of marketing to attract Gen Z consumers. Another main idea that Gen Z advocates for within fashion is diversity, this is a core factor that determines wether they will abandon a purchase or not. For example, roughly 46.8% of Gen Z members have refrained from making a purchase that contradicted their values and a majority think that it is fairly important that a brand is pro-diversity and pro-equality (Drapers, 2022).

(Drapers, 2022). This notion has had an influence on the fashion industry, most recent and notably with the 2023 Victoria Secret runway show which included many different races and sizes of models, promoting diversity. However, in this case, rather than being progressive, it may be seen as a controversial choice due to the hesitation in past years to include diversity in their shows. For a brand to be able to approach progressive ideas, they need to have people skills, this refers to qualities such as being able to communicate with your target consumers by listening and having empathy. These skills are key with the coming times as Gen Z are more involved and critical consumers, therefore developing these skills is crucial to be able to attract the new generations. A brand who uses people skills to attract a Gen Z audience would be Jaded London, they use social media, specifically TikTok, to communicate with their customers and it has proved to be successful as they gained major popularity and traction from TikTok advertising alone. 

References:

Moran, G. (2022) Drapers, Gen Z and Millennials 2022 

https://www.drapersonline.com/guides/gen-z-and-millennials-2022 (Accessed: 14/10/23)

Francis, T. and Hoefel, F., 2018. True Gen’: Generation Z and its implications for companies. McKinsey & Company, 12.

 https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/consumer-packaged-goods/our-insights/true-gen- generation-z-and-its-implications-for-companies (Accessed: 11/10/23)

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PLANET

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Our planet is a staple in our lives, an essential part of our existence that we have never questioned. Similarly to the relationship of fashion and humans, we’ve been using textiles since the late Stone age, but now the production of textiles and the fashion industry have become the number 2 pollutant to earth, the place we call our home. We strive for sustainability, but we cannot call ourselves truly sustainable as we are collectively destroying our planet. Something as simple as buying a t-shirt causes significant damage, 2700L of water being used to a make a single shirt, which is enough for a person to drink for 900 days (Taylor Mogavero, 2020). The fashion industry is responsible for up to 10% of all carbon emissions, surpassing all international flights and maritime shipping combined (UNEP, 2018). It brings us to question topics such as morality and how we can improve our destructive processes that we are so accustomed to. 

The UN has dominated the subject of sustainability with the introduction of the 17 SDGs, made to tackle world problems such as climate change and world hunger. One SDG that has had an impact on the fashion industry would be responsible consumption and production. Rising concerns for practices of the fashion industry are leading companies to operate in more sustainable ways and using less harmful production practices. An example of a brand that is more sustainable would be Levis, as their materials are ethically sourced, their water usage reduced and no use of child labour. Brands like Levis are considered ‘slow fashion’ as they put more thought into sustainable practices and using ethical materials and means of production. Major luxury brand Burberry is also putting sustainable practices into effect as they ‘refinanced its £300m revolving credit facility with Lloyds Bank, linking its terms to the achievement of key environmental, social and governance (ESG) targets. These include reducing emissions by 46% by 2030 and becoming net zero by 2040.’ (Drapers, 2022).

A concept that promotes sustainability within fashion named the circular economy’ is becoming a topic of discussion for future plans to preserve our planet with 3 main goals in mind. These are the elimination of waste and pollution, circulation of materials, and regenerating nature. This concept also has impacted companies to implement ‘circular design’ framework, for example Zalando has applied this to their 5,800 brand partners as they recognise the tremendous environmental impacts in manufacturing fashion (Drapers, 2022). By slowly implementing sustainable ways, we can lessen the burden on our planet and live more comfortably.

References:

Taylor Mogavero ‘Clothed in Conservation: Fashion & Water’ (2020)

https://sustainablecampus.fsu.edu/blog/clothed-conservation-fashion-water

Moran, G. (2022) Drapers, Collaborating for Change: Sustainability Report 2022 

https://www.drapersonline.com/guides/collaborating-for-change-sustainability-report-2022

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