UNIT B EVOLUTION AND MOVEMENT OF FASHION

1. UNIT BEVOLUTION AND MOVEMENT OF FASHION 2.02 Summarize the movement and acceptance of fashion.

2. Fashion movement: Ongoing change in what is fashionable. Fashion: Styles that are accepted and used by people at a given time.

3. Theories of fashion movement • Trickle-down theory • Trickle-up theory • Trickle-across theory

4. Trickle-down theory: Trends start among the upper class or fashion leaders and move down to the masses or fashion followers.

5. Trickle-down theory • World’s oldest and most accepted theory • Says fashions are accepted by lower income levels only after they have been worn by upper income levels • These styles are seen on high-fashion runways. • Jackie Kennedy’s pillbox hat , Barbara Bush’s pearls, Nancy Reagan’s red, Hillary Clinton’s pantsuits in the office

6. Trickle Down Theory

7. Trickle-up theory: Trends start among the young or lower income groups and move upward to older or higher income groups.

8. Trickle-up theory • Style originates with the lower class and gains approval by upper class or the fashion elite. • Ripped jeans, leather jackets

9. Trickle-across theory: Fashion moves horizontally through groups at similar social levels from fashion leaders to followers.

10. Trickle-across theory • Members of each social group look at the leaders of their own group for fashion trends. • A leader within each class influences peers.

11. The fashion cycle • Fashion cycle: The ongoing introduction, rise, peak, decline, and obsolescence in popularity of specific styles or shapes. • All styles that come into fashion rotate through the fashion cycle. • Fashion acceptance can be illustrated using a bell-shaped curve.

12. The fashion cycle (cont.) • The exceptions to the bell-shaped curve. • Flops: Fashions that are introduced and expected to sell but don’t. • Fads: Temporary, passing fashions that have great appeal to many people for a short period of time; styles that gain and lose popularity quickly. Ex. Go-Go Boots, Nehru Jackets, Leg warmers

13. Exceptions continued….. • Classics: Styles that continue to be popular over an extended period of time even though fashion changes; styles that remain in fashion year after year. Ex. Jeans, blazers

14. Stages of the fashion cycle • Introduction • Rise • Peak • Decline • Obsolescence

15. Stages of the fashion cycle (cont.) Introduction: The first stage when new styles, colors, textures, and fabrics are introduced. • Accepted by fashion leaders. • Promotional activities include fashion shows and advertising in high fashion magazines. • Fashions are produced in small quantities at high prices. • Retail buyers purchase limited numbers to see if the style will be accepted.

16. Stages of the fashion cycle (cont.) Rise: The second stage when consumer interest grows and the fashion becomes more readily accepted by consumers. • Mass production brings down the price, which results in more sales. • Styles are manufactured in less expensive materials and in lower quality construction. • Promotional efforts are increased in high fashion magazines to heighten consumer awareness. • Retail buyers order items in quantity.

17. Stages of the fashion cycle (cont.) Peak: The third stage during which a style is at its height of popularity. • The fashion is demanded by almost everyone because it is within price range of most consumers and is mass produced in many variations. • Each retailer tries to persuade customers that its version of the style is the best.

18. Stages of the fashion cycle (cont.)Peak • The style may have a long or short stay at this stage. • Short-run fashions: Styles that are popular for a brief period of time. • Fads, usually lasting only one season • Accepted and rejected quickly • Teenagers’ fashions change the fastest and have the most trends. • Styles are easy for the manufacturer to produce and are relatively inexpensive to the consumer. • Styles typically have more details than seen in classics.

19. Stages of the fashion cycle (cont.)Peak (Culmination stage) • Long-run fashions: Styles that take a long time to complete the fashion cycle. • Classics, basics, and/or staple fashions • Slow introduction, long peak, slow decline • Styles have simple lines, minimal detail.

20. Stages of the fashion cycle (cont.) Decline: The fourth stage when the market is saturated and popularity decreases. • The fashion is overused and becomes dull and boring. • Retailers mark down their prices. • Promotions center around major clearance or closeout sales.

21. Stages of the fashion cycle (cont.) Obsolescence: The fifth stage when the style is rejected, is undesirable at any price, is no longer worn, and is no longer produced.

22. Lengths of fashion cycles • Cycles have no specific lengths. • Recurring fashions: Styles which have been in fashion at one time, gone out of fashion, and come back in fashion again. • Fashion trends seem to recur about every generation or every 20 to 30 years. • Fashion cycles are less distinct now than in the past.

23. Fashion leaders and followers • Fashion leaders: Trendsetters who have the credibility and confidence to wear new fashions and influence the acceptance of new trends. • The first to purchase new styles • Desire distinctiveness and uniqueness • May be innovators and/or influencers. • Royal families, first families, movie stars, television personalities, athletes, singers, musicians

24. Fashion leaders and followers (cont.) • Fashion followers: Those who accept and wear a fashion only after it becomes acceptable to the majority.

25. Basic principles of fashion movement • Consumer acceptance or rejection establishes fashion. • Price does not determine fashion acceptance. (knockoffs) • Sales promotion does not determine fashion.

26. Factors that accelerate fashion movement • Communications and mass media • Good economic conditions • Increased competition • Technological advances • Social and physical mobility • More leisure time • Higher levels of education • Changing roles of women • Seasonal changes

27. Factors that decelerate fashion movement • Bad economic conditions • Cultural and religious customs • Laws or other governmental regulations • Disruptive world events