Profit

Profit, according to the Cambridge dictionary, is “the good result or advantage that can be achieved by a particular action of activity.” In terms of fashion business, profit concerts money that is earned, as fashion is a consumerist industry, which is essentially focused on striving for financial success. This is because the current state of society is a capitalist economy, an “economic system that which uses ‘capital’: financial, human, and planetary (land) resources to produce goods and services to supply the demand of consumers.” (Buchan, 2022). However, in the future, the success of businesses should no longer be measured solely by traditional financial metrics, but by also taking into account the planet and the well-being of employees.

What is the size of the fashion industry?

The size fashion industry is monumental, and if it were to be “ranked alongside individual countries’ GDP the global fashion industry would represent the seventh-largest economy in the world,” (McKinsey, 2017). This shows the vast extent of the fashion and textile industry is a significant driver of the global economy, and is worth £2tn ($1.5tn) and, in the UK alone, brings more than £30bn a year in revenues.

The graph below shows the vast amount of financial income from some of the biggest brands, showing the large extent of money just one fashion company can produce in a year.

How are the various sectors of the industry performing?

All industries can be divided into four sectors; primary, secondary, tertiary and quaternary. In the fashion industry, the primary sector is concerned with the extraction of raw materials and natural resources, the secondary sector concerns design and production, the tertiary sector includes any services for other people post-production, such as retail and marketing, and the final sector, the quaternary sector consists of research and development.

The primary and secondary sectors of fashion are currently focused on the rapid extraction and accelerated production of clothing, to keep up with the speed of fast fashion cycles. Although fast fashion has a huge economic impact, as it is “responsible for the recent growth (on average 4.78%) and future growth (5.91% in the next three years) of the apparel industry.” (Assoune, 2021)

Currently, the tertiary sector of the fashion industry, retail, is making major changes and the surge of “social shopping” and e-commerce has begun. This is seen as in the State of Fashion 2022 it was found that “in the US alone, annual sales through social commerce are expected to surge from approximately $37 billion in 2021 to $56 billion in 2023” (McKinsey, 2021)

The research and development sector of the fashion industry is making unbelievable advantages concerning sustainability, triggered by the sense of urgency to make changes seen at COP26. One example of these scientific findings is the Adidas X Stella McCartney bio fabric tennis dress created with vegan spider-style silk from Bolt Threads which is fully biodegradable. These advances in fashion technology are why “60% of fashion executives have already invested or plan to invest in closed-loop recycling next year” (McKinsey, 2022)

How can a brand remain competitive in uncertain economic times?

Fashion brands can remain competitive through the effective use of social media platforms as successful marketing to capture their consumers’ attention.

With social media, the speed of information is now immediate. Consumers can instantly watch live streams, listen to commentary and get updates from recent shows and trends. This increased exposure allows brands to create more trend cycles per year and sell more clothing, increasing profit.

As previously mentioned the primary consumer base for fashion concerns Gen-Z and millennials, these consumer groups are focused on ethical fashion, so companies can use their social media platforms to promote sustainibility on their platform to attract these consumers. This effect is seen in a 2011 Pew survey it was found that millennials are more likely to pay more money for “responsibly made products.” (Pew, 2011), resulting in more profit.

How do creative directors bridge the gap between creativity and commerce?

Fashion can be seen as an art form, and as an industry that is constantly undergoing artification. A prominent bridge between creativity and commerce is runway shows. Runway shows have changed from pure garment presentations to immersive art installations that show pure creativity. This is seen in Balenciaga’s Spring 2023 Ready-to-Wear collection runway which included a 4D experience including models walking through mud, unsettling music and all guests being sprayed with a bad scent. It can be interpreted that the “post-apocalyptic show” (Phelps, 2022) was to display themes concerning “Rising inequality, the return of fascism, the very real threat of nuclear war” and “to shake us awake”. (Phelps, 2022). This displays that runways are not only to display clothing for commerce but to be controversial and raise awareness for current world circumstances, which is commonly seen in the art world.

Fashion can also be linked to music, many musical artists have clothing brands to help create an atmosphere for their music. This is seen at Loyle Carner’s pop-up shop in London on the 22nd of October 2022, where exclusive merchandise was being sold and he was singing to raise hype in both the music and the art world (add my images when doing portfolio).

Russon, M.-A. (2020). Global fashion industry facing a ‘nightmare’. BBC News . [online] 14 Feb. Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-51500682.

Fashion United (2022). Global Fashion Industry Statistics . [online] fashionunited.com. Available at: https://fashionunited.com/global-fashion-industry-statistics.

BBC Bitesize. (n.d.). Sectors of economy – Role of business in society – Higher Business management Revision . [online] Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/guides/zmx47nb/revision/3.

Assoune, A. (2020). How Does Fast Fashion Affect The Economy . [online] Panaprium. Available at: https://www.panaprium.com/blogs/i/how-does-fast-fashion-affect-the-economy.

Block, I. (2019). Lab-grown spider silk used for Adidas x Stella McCartney biodegradable dress . [online] Dezeen. Available at: https://www.dezeen.com/2019/07/31/biofabric-tennis-dress-adidas-stella-mccartney-bolt-threads-microsilk/.

Hethorn, J., & Ulasewicz, C. (Eds.). (2015). Chapter 4-social media as a tool for social change Pages: 76–99 Kaplan, A. & Haenlein, M. (2010). Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of Social Media. Business Horizons

Hethorn, J., & Ulasewicz, C. (Eds.). (2015). Chapter 9-Economic impact of textile and clothing recycling Pages: 204–230

Rocamora, A. & Entwistle, J. (2006) “The Field of Fashion Materialised: A Study of London Fashion Week” in Sociology Volume 40(4): 735–751

Nast, C. (2022). Balenciaga Spring 2023 Ready-to-Wear Collection . [online] Vogue. Available at: https://www.vogue.com/fashion-shows/spring-2023-ready-to-wear/balenciaga.

www.youtube.com. (n.d.). Balenciaga Spring/Summer 2023 Paris. [online] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SY_SSqXQVDQ [Accessed 23 Oct. 2022].