THE POLARITY PARADOX

Polarity Paradox is simply a coping mechanism for recession consumers who have suffered and therefore looking for an escape route. It is about the obsession for everything, but dedication for nothing; the extreme state of memorable experiences is what this group of people want, they want to have a range of new services are available, but there is no line between saving and spending, light and dark, there is a need for everything new. Marathon Media, Netflix has now recognised that people are watching entire box sets in one sitting is a lot more desirable and realistic for those with a busy lifestyle rather than the one-programme-a-week; a survey by Netflix said that 61% binge-watch TV regularly due to the accessibility of it. For example:

‘Gym memberships have increased in the UK, however the country is in danger of surpassing the 2007 prediction that 50% of the nation will be obese by 2050’ According to the National Obesity Forum.

We are now living in an era which is categorised by paradox; music, food, fashion and even business. This change and shift has caused our opinions to become manipulated by what we think is right, attitudes by the public are changing so quickly which means industries and businesses are constantly having to change too. There has been a drastically widespread amount of unemployment, which has  cut the level of disposable income consumers, which therefore leads to a more stable lifestyle for many.

THE NEW VALUE ECONOMY

There has recently been a high shift towards access rather than ownership of products; meaning that within the industry we now share, rent and borrow products instead of individually purchasing. This therefore creates a large impact on the reputation, trust and how we value the market. Because of this sudden shift of ownership, it has now effected the way that the younger consumers now curate their identities, as well as valuing products. 

There is now an element of fashion which is called the Sharing Economy; Consumers no longer therefore have the same relationship with goods and particular services. Meaning that with the rise of technologies such as Instagram and Vine, the younger generation are now able to craft their own images. Also, as there has been such a push with technology over the years there is no difference from Work and Home life, as we are all on smart phones, there is no definitive line of which stops when and where the other starts – meaning there is no down time. The new element of online stores and the combination of web magazines is due to the relationship with the younger generation and the way they communicate with brands – is it always accessible to shop online but not aways in person, meaning the face to face confrontation is becoming minimal.

‘In this World, in which we are constantly on Instagram on Twitter, on Facebook…it creates even more demand to wear aspirational clothing, to wear designer brands, to show up at cool places around the world – it fuels the experience economy.’

Consumers are now challenging the value of luxury goods, as copies and fakes are now so accessible – meaning that a negative link with luxury has therefore been formed. The new platforms that we have now, causes designers to move forward all of the time due to the fast moving market and the push from the audience – new materials are constantly being pushed, technology fashion.

High end designers area also approaching this playful approach, using new and fresh materials when creating to make the good more interesting and high end. Physical products have decreased in recent years, as smartphones have had such an impact in the way the shopping experience now occurs. It is now seen that owning a product is a burden, instead you want a temporary arrangement to constantly have the best up and coming, unique product or experience available. 

DESIGNER CLUSTERING

Despite the wet and windy weather on Monday, I headed out at 9am to gain a true understanding on where shops are placed within central London; looking and individual brands and their key locations. How fashion brands create a visual presence on the hughstreet and the shopping districts; creating a strong and well developed awareness of the market level clusterings. In particular, I was focusing on Dior and the way the company had presented themselves to the audiences, and how they enticed their target market in competition with other big brands. 

To start the exercise off, I started at Oxford Circus, making my way to Conduit St, which is where a lot of luxury brands are found – Vivienne Westwood, Donna Karan, Moschino, and most importantly Sketch – which is the original show room in London that Dior used to use; a lot of presence of the Dior company still lies there, and the feel of the brand is very much still present. Down this hughstreet is one of many Dior stores; this one predominately selling shoes and bags – which allowed me to explore the new Diorissimo bags for the first time. Then onto Saville Row – the home of tailoring in London, and where Henry Poole & Co and Norton & Sons can be found; all lined up offering something different with their tailoring. Each and every store looked sophisticated and well thought out – which is vital in that particular section of the fashion market. What was also very interesting is that I was able to watch a lot of adjustments and actual tailoring take place, as the lower level of the shop was visible from the street; letting the customers have a more personal experience with the individual store. 

With this close knit shopping sector, there are many different classes of shops; Haute Couture all the way to Economy, which was very interesting to look at the precise grouping and classes and where each shop was placed within the market. Stella McCartney is several doors down from the famous Hartnell Gallery, which sat right next to Matthew Williamson; this close connection between the shops is a clear grouping of the Brand Diffusion market. The hierarchy of fashion is something that is taken very seriously, and walking along Bond Street, Mayfair, Oxford street and even Conduit Street, it is very easy to identify the target audience for that particular street – a very in-depth and personal shopping experience.

Economic values of Dior

As Dior is a well known, well developed designer with nearly 70 years experience in the fashion industry, they have become one of the moat economically aware fashion companies in the business. The fashion industry itself is worth 26 billion to the UK economy. However there isn’t only a lot of money coming in that is positive, money such as advertising and promotion is a positive spend for the brand. For a large brand like Dior, there is a lot of money which has to be spent regarding adverts, magazine articles, as well as build boards and other publicity platforms. To make money in such a large industry, you have to start off spending a lot of money, to then increase the amount of income. 

Within the last 6 months, Dior has publicised 3 main adverts, J’adore alone cost £10 – £12 thousand pounds to make, however the amount of views and the amount go publicity for Dior would have made a large income for the business. Therefore the Economic values of a business are very varied, meaning that money is constantly changing, increasing and decreasing. This means that fashion itself is a very unstable market for someone to enter, as shops are constantly being closed down because of the competition and lack of need for that certain product. 

The FASHION HIERARCHY

This diagram displays the definition between sectors within the fashion industry.

Economy

Economy fashion is fast moving fashion, but not all fast fashion is economical; meaning that some high end styles and catwalk looks can be sold on at a much cheaper price with economy fashion – such as Primark and H&M, they are constantly watching and keeping up to date with the fashion world, yet they aren’t in the same price bracket as the luxury brands. Economy fashion is for those who want an on trend garment at an affordable price, meaning full value for money is gained; it targets everyone, however within sub sections within stores they target different markets. Meaning that the entry price for this sector is £7, which is such a comparison to the 6 figure price tags found on certain Couture garments. The first sweatshop was apparent in the 20th century, after World War One, where there was such a large mechanical mass production for economical reasons, a lot of clothes were needed to be produced but at a much lower rate than previously – there was therefore a large gap int eh market for this. However, because it is such fast moving fashion, most garments make a ‘sell by date’ of 2 weeks, in comparison to months, if not years in the luxury and couture ranges.

Brand Diffusion

Brand Diffusion is a label which is a low-budget line, which is targeted at incurable label addicts who have the desire to shop at upper market labels but don’t have the money to to spend on the real designer brands. It sits below luxury fashion, but just above the high street, however, many do get mixed up with Brand Diffusion and high street. Labels such as DKNY, Miu Miu, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Alexander McQueen and Moschino – this is therefore controlled by the professional body within the market, decided by the fashion houses, depending on the retail prices they want to set. For this section of the fashion market, the entry price ranges between £40 – £400 due to the specific brands, as they are commonly priced 30% less than the catwalk prices, which in turn makes the brands a lot more affordable for the target audience, and allows a sense of luxury and designer into our lives. Diffusion lines are bulk produced stock that sells a large variety of the original luxury brand’s stock, which can include fragrances, accessories and clothing, however this is distinguished by the fashion houses instead or the original brand as they don’t want to devalue their brand. Due to this, it attracts a younger market, and has enticed a new target audience, enamelling the younger generation to afford the more mature and higher end products and garments. This is therefore a positive thing as it enables a large client base, it diffuses the audience and makes certain products a lot more accessible for all. However, for the brand itself, it makes some people question the wholes brands quality – which can over time have a negative effect on their target market.

Luxury Fashion

Luxury brands offer a range of products which are priced just high enough so everyone can feel that they are a part of the elite fashion market, yet the pieces they’re paying are more affordable. The luxury brand has been around since the 19th Century, therefore it is new to the world of fashion. The luxury market is run by many different groups, LVMH, Kering and Richemont; these allow the groups to distinguish the level of luxury which the brand is offering. Unlike Couture, there is such a range in the entry level, that it really cant be distinguished; from brands like Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Prada, Burberry and Hermes, there is such a range in their individual entry levels and prices. The target audience for luxury products is aimed at the younger generation to attract them into the market, however 76% of the buyers are aged 35-54, who can be found in social class A, which the majority will earn over 100,00o per year. Within the luxury market, China is the largest consumer of goods. On the other hand, 99% of Louis Vuitton’s products are fake throughout the world, meaning that at the end of the year, he burns all of the leftovers to make sure that the desire for his work doesn’t loose the luxury value to it.

Haute Couture

Haute Couture is the King of the fashion world; it is the leading fashion house, with includes the most expensive sophisticated and off of pieces within the fashion industry. It is what is desired by all in the fashion world, each garments made to measure by hand, and rare fabrics and priceless embellishments are therefore added. This entails flawless, unique garments being produced. Some piece can take up to 700 hours to create in total, with over 2000 seamstresses working on one piece. Because these pieces are so incredible in creation, the entry level for a garment starts at £16,000 – which can range to 6 digit number. Due to this, there is a very direct and specific target audience as many are unable to fit into that price range. Couture originates from the King of couture, by Charles Frederick Worth, in the mid 19th century, as he wanted to make it possible for ladies to turn up at a ball or event, and not have the same dress as someone else, which is where the original idea came for Haute Couture. For a brand to become a couture house brand, it has to reach the requirements of ‘The French Ministry of Industry’. Nowadays, designers such as Christian Dior, Chanel, Jean-Paul Gautier and Valentino Guest. Also because couture has become so known about and desired, there are two catwalk shows now displaying the beautiful gowns so that not only the buyers can admire them, but people who have a strong interest in fashion too.

Fashion Stats

This demonstrates the rates at which certain aspects of the fashion industry are changing and manipulating.