28.2.10

The Sartorialist and Garance Dore Discuss Fashion

Lume Creative, advertising agency based in New York, hosted the very private and low key conference to discuss Socia Media in Fashion. The hosts were Scott Schurman of TheSartorialist.com and Garance Dore of GaranceDore.fr.
Garance Dore

Scott Schuman

Notes on the conference can be found at psfk.com

One of the most interesting and important issues raised that I have not seen discussed or noted on anywhere else is that brands need to be wary of handing over its brand identity control. The duo used the launch of Burberry's Art of the Trench, an online space that Burberry created so that its customers can feel part of a community where they can upload photographs of themselves wearing the new internationally famous Burberry trench coat, Scottt and Garance noted that although it comes across as an individual and honestly cheap way to connect with customer handing over control to consumers can be hard to gain back.

Other great insights I found very interesting:

Buying Into a Personality

"While they stated from personal experience that the key to a successful site is total creative control, they’ve also noted that there needs to be genuine communication at foot – a real connection with your audience in a voice which speaks to them" - psfk.com

Making a Blog Profitable

"Though the discussion centered on many important trends within the world of new media and fashion, one of the most interesting centered around how to make a blog profitable and how it can interact with brands for a mutually beneficial end. One of the suggestions the pair had was brand sponsorship of certain sites by companies who shared a similar aesthetic and vision. One of the key companies who seem to understand the dynamic between the advertiser and the medium is American Apparel, who even before the world of blogs had staked a permanent claim on the back covers of Vice Magazine" - psfk.com

At the Conference

We Are All Couture Stylists...

....with couturious.com! A fun, very easy to use website that allows us all to become stylists and choose outfits from the very best couture pieces and designer wear. Just like the paper dolls when dressed as young girls, this is just as fun but online and with much, much better clothes to choose from, the site is already inspiring other deigners to "sell" their clothes onto the site and allow their users and admirers to create new looks online and share them with others on the site for feedback. Styles include "classic", "casual chic", personal favourite "boho", "street", "romantic", "edgy" and "basics".




22.2.10

Fashionista Interviews Pascaline Wilhelm

Premier Vision is bi-annual trend forecasting conference that predicts what styles, colours and fabrics will be shown on next years catwalks. It is a must-go-to for any fashion brand or anyone with a keen interest.

Fashion blog Fashionista.com recently interview Pascaline Wilhelm, Premier Vision's Director of Fashion for her views and predictions. Here are a few quotes ...

So – what’s awaiting us in 2011-2012? And what are we definitely leaving behind?

Pascaline Wilhelm: We’re going to be less dirty, we’ll stop rolling around in the mud, no more punk nonsense! We will want to be chic, but without trying to hard, and be comfortable.
 
And what are the silhouettes of the future?

There’s going to be a definite interest in new, bold shapes and intricate silhouettes. The week, curve-inducing materials have been popular: no more skinny, uniform bodies. Instead there is going to be more complex shapes, and an increasing boredom with the basic ‘loose top and tight bottoms’ combination.

There will be new trouser shapes–hybrids that we don’t know how to name yet, like new versions of harem pants and tulip skirts. Shapes will get more sophisticated, in part because of an increase in what kind of fabric is available.




Pascaline Wilhelm

Photographs Are Coming to Life

Photographer Michael Fivis has captured the energy and atmosphere at fashion shows by producing 3D moving images that bring it all to life.

"Since it was my first runway show I really wanted to use a photographer who could capture all the excitement backstage. I love Michael's unique raw style, it is like a moving polarois....it went hand in hand with my collection's inspiration." Desigher Prabal Gurung


Michael Fivis's work

Is this the end for bloggers?

There was definitely something fun about inviting a 13 year old girl, now globally known as just "Tavi", to come along to catwalk shows, designers dressing her head to toe in their current collection and letting advice and inform millions about her views on the latest catwalk show. Many (mostly journalists) agrued that Tavi is too young and not experienced anough to form a well constaructed opinion on any fashion show at all, this is something that is quite hard to argue. But as a marketing point of view for brands, Tavi and all  the other bloggers blogging about fashion around the world are saving them thousands.

The Telegraph is already saying its goodbyes to bloggers and saying hey there to the new digital technology of 3D LIVE. Viewers are now the new journalists (or buyers, or celebrities or whoever they want to be!) and will be able to view the collection live and also in 3D! Nomore waiting for the paper to form its opinions and share them with us, very soon we will be able to form our own opinions and see things first hand too, so noone is left behind.
Alexander McQueen started live streaming trend


soon the public will also be front row

17.2.10

Chanel finaly to sell online!

Chanel had always believed it would never have to sell its own luxury and desirable products online as people would "always prefer our store experience", however after a 3rd year running of low profit and decline in sales Chanel is opening a further distrubution channel online, In recent years many brands have been quite literally saved by starting this modern and now standard approach in selling merchandise. Although Chanel claims that "its will only sell eyewear and fragrance online", (see the article on marketingmagazine.co.uk), I believe it only a matter of time until Chanel expand the range.

CHANEL 2010 collection






15.2.10

New York Fashion Week Goes Live

After the success of fashion shows being shown live- millions of viewers logged on- Alexander Wang and also Rodarte will be showcasing their shows live during New York Fashion Week!! No more waiting for the papers or photos of the shows to appear on Vogue online, people want the shows in real-time and thankfully the fashion world is listening, just another great way for brands to build on that customer loyalty and demand. We are thankful for Burberry and Dolce&Gabbana for trying this marketing strategy out and of course everyone wants a sneaky view into the fashion world and its bound to just get better!

Oh and it just gets better Norma Kamali will be showing her fall 2010 collection at her flagship store AND its open to the public! Its all getting very personal now.