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FMAD 1110: Fashion Fundamentals Textbook: 2.6 Factors Impacting Trends

Factors Impacting Trends

Factor Impacting Trends

There are three factors that influence fashion trends which include:

  • Accelerating- Speeds up the fashion life cycle due to good economy (more money to spend), seasonal changes, promotional sales, increased leisure time, technological advancement (latest iPhone craze), etc.
    • Example: Tech, promos, and ecommerce are involved when web-subscribers sign up for monthly subscription deliveries for clothing, makeup, and more!
    • Thinking Point: What has been your experience with accelerating fashions or subscription boxes? Do you like them or dislike them, and why?

Subscription boxes

Image Source: "I'm already about 5 behind on my subscription box reviews, and then today's mail arrived..." by fantabandfrugal is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.

  • Delaying- Slows down the fashion life cycle due to religious codes of dress preventing styles from changing, habits or customs (traditional attire for country's festivals, etc.), and sumptuary laws.
    • Example: School uniform requirements in length of dress, neckline, etc.
    • Thinking Point: Think of a time where a particular fashion trend, like school uniforms, seemed to slow down the fashion life cycle. What was the trend and how did this make you feel?

School uniforms

Image Source: "school uniforms" by mathias-erhart is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.

  • Recurring- Reduces buying power due to recessions (poor economy which reduces spending), strikes, taxes, inflation, etc.
    • Example: T-shirts have been around since the 1940s.
    • Thinking Point: Do you think recurring fashions are good or not, and why?

tshirts

Image Source: "My Seven T-shirts" by swan-t is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0.

Article & Video

Fashions that have made a come back can be found in this article The Comeback Story about fashion that have come back around.

Thinking Point: Do you agree or disagree with these recurring fashions? Why or why not? Can you think of other fashions that weren't mentioned that are recurring? What are they and why do you think they have resurfaced?