2012

Fashion Trends
Literature Review

Rafay Salman Mazhar BBA/BSC-1 Section L 2/2/2012

The Economics of Fashion Demand

This article has been written by Dwight E. Robinson. Source: The quarterly journal of economics vol.75,No.3 (Aug 1961) P.P 376-398, Dwight E. Robinson states. Fashion by definition is a popular style of clothing, footwear or accessories. Fashion references to anything that is the current trend in look and dress up of a person. The prevailing style in behavior as well. The economics of fashion basically refers to spending habits of people spending money on buying fashionable clothes, footwear, accessories in times of recession,booms,slumps other phases of the economy. The author fails to draw any link of spending by people on fashion belonging to different parts of the world, since it is not in accordance with their income bracket, the economys circumstances at that moment. Moreover, he fails to draw any link of spending linked to fashion by third world countries such as India,Bangladesh,Nepal where per capita incomes are low while a high proportion if their incomes and savings in spent on buying fashionable accessories ,clothes, foot wear and events. U.S when faced a major recession all Industries only the cosmetic industry showed signs of growth. Moreover, No matter how high the levels of inflation are, peoples demand for fashionable accessories continues of rise. The hub of western fashion is considered to be Paris. Fashionable accessories are exempted from all rules of market and economics. They can be categorized as giffen goods o snob goods. An Economys spending on fashionable accessories is influenced not by their pocketBut becomes a status symbol-a matter of prestige sometimes influenced by traditions in the society or these goods are bought in competition from others. Fashion Author: Beatrice Judelle Source: Challenge, Vol.5 No.4 (January 1957) pp. 61-64

Beatrice Judele in this article talks about men and women who are deeply influenced by changing fashion trends. The author refers to these people as slaves of fashion- by

which She mean these peoples life begins and ends on the world of fashion. On their things to do list on the top is Following the latest trends. These people spend time going through the latest fashion articles from Paris in magazines. Paris being one of the fashion capitals of the world, everyone wants to dress up according to the latest fashion trends originating from Paris. Parris is however over rated as the fashion capital. In the authors point of view one should make his/her own fashion statement and adapt to their own culture or traditional clothing rather than following others fashion trends. People change cars, even though they can drive a car more, change furniture which has not filled its useful life-just to follow the latest fashion trends. They feel out dated, left out or cornered if they dont do what other are doing. According to the author they go with the wind. These people are also referred to as followers of the world who gain pleasures only through the materialistic approach. Sometimes they even forget what suits them. Such as replacing old furniture in an old home without keeping in mind the aesthetics. Wearing odd colors, clothing that doesnt suit them, there culture, complexion or bodies physique. For industrialists operating in the fashion industry-its an evergreen business of stitching, fabrics since they are immune to all economic circumstances. Men dont wear velvet you know! Fashionable gay masculinity and the shopping experience London 1950-1970 Clare Lomas Oral History vol.35 No.1, war and masculinities (spring, 2000) pp.82-90 Clare Lomas in this article talks about the evolving fashion in the world of me. Those clothing styles, fabrics which were once thought to be feminist are worn by men and thought to be a sign of fashion or represent a certain social class. This fashion includes men who wear velvet, Satan and other shiny fabrics just in order to show their wealth or intellect and to show how much they are in touch with the latest trends. Tight fitting to clothes and thin fabrics to show their inner bodies has become another fashion symbol. The author considers these people who follow these fashion trends as desperate people who are trying to gain attention following such cheap fashion trends. In the earlier times this type of fashion was followed by gay or impotent men. The author at the same time establishes another point the reason why such fashions have taken birth and

destroyed the decent art of dressing. The first reason he describes is pop stars such as Michael Jackson, Elvis Presley who wear a shiny clothes to their concert leads the fans to follow them and wear the same. Some clothing brands have leaded to establish such trends by promoting such clothes. Now the old saying-Mein dont wear velvet is not taken into account anywhere. In fact all colors such as pink, red which were once thought to be feminist are worn by men. They dont take into account what impression these colors would leave about them on others mind, whether it makes them look bisexual or gay its fashion for them. A market research carried by the author says 67% of teen age boys are now much into wearing feminist clothing. The author considers its high time for us to restore the mens fashion in the way it was once supposed to be. Cars and Clothing: Understanding Fashion Trends William H. Reynolds The Journal of Marketing,Vol.32 No.3 (July, 1968, pp44-49) William H Reynolds talks about fashion products life cycle in the market. Firstly, the life cycle is described as the useful life of a product in the market-in relation to the sales. Defining the term market- has been quite difficult for the author. In short a market can be defined as a place where buyers and seller get together for the purpose of buying or selling of commodities. The author makes use of televisions as an example as new technological development with the invent of color televisions badly affected the market for black and white televisions. The life cycle for fashion industry cannot be determined, how long it will stay-its cash flows and the impact on the market since it is entirely dependent on the tastes and choice of people or population. In 1960s long skirts for high school girls were thought to be a fashion statement while in the mid 1960s these long skirts became shorter and shorter. It became difficult for manufacturers to determine what was next?they became more curious for upcoming fashion trends at the same time they realized how vulnerable there sales were to changes in peoples tastes and habits. The author concludes it is impossible to forecast fashion sales, rather draw a trend line since its too uncertain. In solution firms in the fashion industry have tried other ways to become fashion leaders-by establishing their own fashion statement. This is being done by excessive

advertisements publishing model photo shoots. Many firms have adapted to bad practices by trying to leak information regarding what their competitors are making. Some firms however leak there information deliberately in hope their competitors will follow-this would lead the whole market to make the same products-this market will run through its market lead approach rather than to be lead by the consumer. The consumer in the fashion industry by the author has been considered to be immature. T-Shirts help to create positive images Barbara D. Parks-Lee The English Journal, Vol. 84, No. 5 (Sep., 1995), pp. 104-105

Barbara D. in this article suggests t-shirts were once thought to be an inferior form of clothing thought to be worn by the homeless or the poor. However in the decade they are used to establish ones statement. By ones statement the author does NOT mean fashion statement-it means to establish ones own point of view on some issue or some person that is printed on t shirts. TShirts are also used today in order to support a specific cause or a movement. A persons own point of view-his character can be judged by the type of print on their tshirts. T-shirts are now not considered to be something for the lower class. Many tshirt companies have now minted money out of this expressive t-shirt business. The fitting of t shirts also suggests the persons inner self. This article considers a type of material artifact that circulates ideas about regional speech in the United States: T-shirts bearing words and phrases thought to be unique to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. I argue that Pittsburghers shirts, seen for themselves and in the context of their production, distribution, and consumption, are part of a process leading to the creation and focusing of the idea that there is a Pittsburgh dialect. If on a muscular body tight fitted tee, means its a strong tough man.

Waste Couture: Environmental Impact of the Clothing Industry Luz Claudio Environmental Health Perspectives, Vol. 115, No. 9 (Sep., 2007), pp. A448-A454

In her book Waste and Want: A Social History of Trash, Luz Claudio a professor of history at the University of Delaware, traces the progressive obsolescence of clothing and other consumer goods to the 1920s. Before then, and especially during World War I, most clothing was repaired, mended, or tailored to fit other family members, or recycled within the home as rags or quilts. During the war, clothing manufacturers reduced the varieties, sizes, and colors of their productions and even urged designers to create styles that would use less fabric and avoid needless decoration. The governments conservation campaign used slogans such as Make economy fashionable lest it become obligatory and resulted in an approximate 10% reduction in the production of trash. However, the spirit of conservation did not last long; by the mid-1920s consumerism was back in style. Industrialization grew in the twentieth century, providing the means of increased production of all consumer goods. During World War II, consumption rose with increased employment as the United States mobilized for the war. The production and consumption of many household goods, including clothing, grew by 1015% even in the middle of the war and continues to expand to this day.

A Ready-Made Business: The Birth of the Clothing Industry in America Michael Zakim The Business History Review, Vol. 73, No. 1 (Spring, 1999), pp. 61-90

During the early eighteenth century, Great Britain was determined to dominate the textile industry. Laws forbade the export of English textile machinery, drawings of the machinery, and written specifications of the machines that would allow them to be constructed in other countries. Britain had the power loom, a steam-powered, mechanically-operated version of a regular loom for weaving. Britain also had the spinning frame that could produce stronger threads for yarns at a faster rate. Meanwhile the stories of what these machines could do excited envy in other countries. Americans were struggling to improve the old hand loom, found in every house, and to make some sort of a spinning machine to replace the spinning wheel by which one thread at a time was laboriously spun. In 1786, in Massachusetts, two Scotch immigrants, who claimed to be familiar with Richard Arkwright's British-made spinning frame, were employed to design and build

spinning machines for the mass production of yarn. The inventors were encouraged by the U.S. government and assisted with grants of money. The resulting machines, operated by horse power, were crude, and the textiles produced irregular and unsatisfactory. In Providence, Rhode Island another company tried to build spinning machines with thirty-two spindles. They worked badly and all attempts to run them by water-power failed. In 1790, the faulty machines were sold to Moses Brown of Pawtucket. Brown and his partner, William Almy, employed enough hand-loom weavers to produce eight thousand yards of cloth a year by hand. Brown needed working spinning machinery, to provide his weavers with more yarn, however the machines he bought were lemons. In 1790, there was not a single successful power-spinner in the United States. Used-Clothing Donations and Apparel Production in Africa Garth Frazer The Economic Journal Vol. 118, No. 532 (Oct., 2008), pp. 1764-1784 Garth Frazer in the article states If East Asia has been the international success story over the last 30 years in terms of economic growth, trade and human development, Africa has been a story of failure. Taiwan, Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong, and now China have moved from exports of textiles and apparel to increasingly sophisticated electronic and industrial goods as their economies have grown, and the fruits of that growth have been broadly shared. In contrast, Africa has stagnated. In particular, onlookers are puzzled by the inability of Africa, despite its low unskilled wage levels and strong supplies of cotton, to produce and export textiles and apparel. On the one hand, African governments have been criticized for a variety of policies that have inhibited growth in general, and some would argue that these policies are responsible for the specic failure in textiles and apparel, as well as the overall failure. On the other hand, African governments have charged that imports of used clothing, in the form of cast-o donations from industrialized countries, have harmed the textile and apparel sectors in Africa. This paper will not provide an evaluation of the rst causerestrictive or misaligned African

policies. It will examine the second causenamely, whether the used-clothing imports have restricted textile and apparel production in African countries. There has been a dramatic increase in the donation of used clothing to charities in developed countries over the last 20 years. Unable to sell even the majority of this clothing domestically, charities typically sell the used clothing to exporters who send it at a very low cost to developing countries, particularly in Africa (Hansen, 2000). The Merchandising Decision under Uncertainty Charles B. Riter The Journal of Marketing, Vol. 31, No. 1 (Jan., 1967), pp. 44-47
Charles B. Riter states fashion merchandising is the combination of the processes that a new fashion item must go through to be available in mass quantities to the consumer after it is left the hands of the designer. Fashion merchandising often gets confused with fashion marketing and although they work together, they are two very different things. To understand fashion merchandising completely, it is important to examine the role that fashion merchandising plays in manufacturing, buying, promoting and selling fashion items. In regards to manufacturing, a fashion merchandiser will have significant input on the types of fabrics used to make a piece of clothing. Having a strong historical and socio-cultural understanding of the fabrics, help change a designers vision into reality. By applying their knowledge about fabric and clothing construction, a fashion merchandiser will take a designers piece and find the best way to manufacture the item while taking things like price and target market into consideration. Buying becomes part of fashion merchandising when a merchandiser buys fashion items to be presented in a store. A fashion merchandiser must be aware of the target market for thefashion item and also very well-versed in fashion trend analysis and forecasting. This allows for more accurate ordering. A fashion merchandiser working with a designer will once again offer expertise to the designer on textiles and fabrics. In the event that a fashion merchandiser is working for the designer, promoting the designers product to stores that may want to buy large quantities is a number one priority. Not only is a fashion merchandiser required to have a creative mind and strong visual merchandising skills, production skills must be sharp as well. Fashion merchandising promotes a designers items through the use of fashion shows where creativity and visual effects must run wild to capture the attention of potential buyers. Additionally, fashion merchandisers seek out the target market for a designers clothing, such as childrens clothing stores, department stores or discount retailers.

Vertical Integration and Rapid Response in Fashion Apparel James Richardson Organization Science, Vol. 7, No. 4 (Jul. - Aug., 1996), pp. 400-412

The degree to which a firm owns its upstream suppliers and its downstream buyers is referred to as vertical integration. It is also referred to as an approach for increasing or d e c r e a s i n g t h e l e v e l o f c o n t r o l w h i c h a f i r m h a s o v e r i t s i n p u t s a n d d i s t r i b u t i o n o f outputs. Vertical integration is of two types: backward integration and forward integration. Afirms control of its inputs or supplies is known as: backward integration. A firms control of its distribution is known as: forward integration.The strategic reasons for opting for a vertical integration strategy have changed over theyears. During the 19th century, firms used vertical integration to achieve economies of scale. During the middle of the 20th century, vertical integration was used to assure a steady supply of vital inputs. In some cases, the theory of transaction cost economics wasapplied to backward integration or forward integration, as a means to total cost reduction.That is, it was cheaper for a firm to perform the role of suppliers and distributors than tos p e n d t i m e a n d m o n e y t o i n t e r a c t w i t h s u c h p a r t i e s . S u b s e q u e n t l y , i n t h e l a t e 2 0 t h century, competition intensified in most industries. Corporate restructuring resulted in vertical disintegration by reducing the levels of vertical integration in large corporations. Multiple factors contribute to the establishment and continued existe nce of largeintegrated firms despite inherent inefficiencies. These c a n b e d e s c r i b e d i n t e r m s o f reduced costs, weak supply networks, increased market power, and government policy. These factors are important during the early stages of an industry. Integrated firms have a cost advantage over smaller firms by avoiding transaction costs in imperfect markets, particularly during early stages of market development. Transaction cost includes the cost of measuring output in all of its dimensions and the consequence of not measuring it perfectly.

Conclusion:
From the research papers above it can we conclude four basic points.

1) Fashion trends have been un predictable after the 1960s when skirts became shorter and shiny clothes became in fashion. 2) There is nothing known as womens casual wear and mens casual wear all clothes are to be uni sex. 3) Merchandisers lay an important role for development of new fashions and achieve best quality with existing fashions.

4) As the market is un predictable it is best to practice vertical integration from both ends. Firms in fashion industry, that wish to gain a leading position need to become fashion followers before having an influence on the market as a whole. A lot of capital needs to be invested at first on order to become a trend setter in the market. Rather firms should follow what going in the market-learn its tactics and then become a trend setter in the market. The only way to become a trend setter is either to establish a prestigoiys brand image or by excessive advertisement through print media. If a firm wishes to follow the trends it should go through international fashion magazines. Vertical integration always has a positive response on the profitability of the business since all commissions and over head charges of middle men are absorbed. If a firm markets its own product it can get direct feedback by customers, there opinion on designs, quality and prices. For this a huge amount of capital is needed. Merchandising can be described as the job of developing new fashions and technical help to improve quality of existing fashion wear. Merchandisers lay an important role to make sure the quality of garments does justice to the price and helps the brand to gain a standing in the market. Merchainsers at the same time need to make sure the right yarn,fabric,dyes are purchases meeting all quality and safety standards. Garments are produced within the specific time-are in style (according to the latest trends) and overcome all production hurdles in shortest time and control any overhead costs.

References
The Economics of Fashion Demand This article has been written by Dwight E. Robinson. Source: The quarterly journal of economics vol.75,No.3 (Aug 1961) P.P 376-398, Fashion Author: Beatrice Judelle Source: Challenge, Vol.5 No.4 (January 1957) pp. 61-64 Men dont wear velvet you know! Fashionable gay masculinity and the shopping experience London 1950-1970 Clare Lomas Oral History vol.35 No.1, war and masculinities (spring, 2000) pp.82-90 Cars and Clothing: Understanding Fashion Trends William H. Reynolds The Journal of Marketing,Vol.32 No.3 (July, 1968, pp44-49)

T-Shirts help to create positive images Barbara D. Parks-Lee The English Journal, Vol. 84, No. 5 (Sep., 1995), pp. 104-105

Waste Couture: Environmental Impact of the Clothing Industry

Luz Claudio Environmental Health Perspectives, Vol. 115, No. 9 (Sep., 2007), pp. A448-A454 A Ready-Made Business: The Birth of the Clothing Industry in America Michael Zakim The Business History Review, Vol. 73, No. 1 (Spring, 1999), pp. 61-90

Used-Clothing Donations and Apparel Production in Africa Garth Frazer The Economic Journal Vol. 118, No. 532 (Oct., 2008), pp. 1764-1784

The Merchandising Decision under Uncertainty Charles B. Riter The Journal of Marketing, Vol. 31, No. 1 (Jan., 1967), pp. 44-47

Vertical Integration and Rapid Response in Fashion Apparel James Richardson Organization Science, Vol. 7, No. 4 (Jul. - Aug., 1996), pp. 400-412