Profit

Fashion is responsible for no less that 2% of the worlds GDP (Vilaça, 2021), being one of the most influential industries in global economy. Seeing that, it is no surprise that “profit” is one of the pillars that the UNEP proposed as the mainstays of sustainability. This pillar is often interpreted as the careful, respectful and ameliorative management of capital and contributors within a business, but is it only that?

In an economy that is solely based in capitalism and its money retrieving, spending and accumulating ethos, of course the capital meaning is an essential part. Fashion, as one of the main contributors to this concept of market, is responsible for many of the consequences it has on our environment and lives. The process of fashion production is divided into sectors; textile design and production, fashion design and manufacturing, fashion retailing, marketing and merchandising, and media and marketing (bfashionacademy, 2021)(Fig.1). It is frequent for fashion houses and labels to outsource some of the sectors, creating an uncertainty about the value of the garment, and therefore creating a big difference between its cost and selling price. Margins between 65 and 70% (Hethorn and Ulasewicz, 2015) are found in almost every sale. This price gap is not really felt in the first world, but is a major agent for the economic injustice in some of the second and third world countries. 

Hence, the outsourcing of these sectors are common equally in the fast-fashion and  luxury fashion market, with them both using the same manufacturers and materials (Corner, 2016). It is a very discreet fact, but for the consumer this means that the promise of higher quality and sustainability is not true, and without that advantage, why are those labels still considered “better” or “luxury”?

This explains why the perception of fashion as any other purchase is wrong, as a very influential artistic and self expressive matter takes part on it. The discussion of whether fashion is an art or a craft has been going for a very long time (Corner, 2016), and it is thanks to designers such as Yohji Yamamoto, Elsa Schiaparelli or Mark Duchamp that we have found a bridge between both (English, 2018). These designers collaborated with some of the best and most avant-garde artists (Fig. 2) to create a fashion that not only consists in clothes, but also in sensations, emotions and imagination. And that is also part of our “profit” pillar. 

Kaya, O. (1949) ”Elsa Schiaparelli dressed as a raddish” (right) and her collaboration with Dalí for her ”Lobster Dress”

Profit is creating something new, it is learning and teaching and it is appreciating what has been done. Profit doesn’t only mean Company shares increasing their value, it also means innovation, sustainability, growth, beauty and art. And also does fashion design. 

SOURCES:

bfashionacademy. (2021). What is Fashion Industry and it’s key factors of Fashion Industry? [online] Available at: https://bfashionacademy.com/key-sectors-of-fashion-industry/.

‌Corner, F. (2016). Why fashion matters. London: Thames & Hudson.

‌English, B. (2018). CULTURAL HISTORY OF FASHION IN THE 20TH AND 21ST CENTURIES : from catwalk to sidewalk. bloomsbury.

Hethorn, J. and Ulasewicz, C. (2015). Sustainable fashion : what’s next? : a conversation about issues, practices and possibilities. New York: Bloomsbury, Fairchild Books, An Imprint Of Bloomsbury Publishing Inc.

Kaya, O. (1949). Elsa Schiaparelli dressed as a Radish. Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/figure/a-Elsa-Schiaparelli-Surrealism-b-Salvador-Dali-Elsa-Schiaparelli-a-Left-Womans-Dress_fig1_352555193 [Accessed 20 Oct. 2022].

mmode.ca. (n.d.). Montreal and Québec Fashion Designers and Businesses | mmode. [online] Available at: https://mmode.ca/en/industry/players/ [Accessed 23 Oct. 2022].

‌Vilaça, J. (2021). Fashion Industry Statistics: The 4th Biggest Sector Is More Than Clothing. [online] Fashinnovation. Available at: https://fashinnovation.nyc/fashion-industry-statistics/.

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Profit is one of the pillars that cannot be ignored as the fashion industry needs to ensure maximum profit without damaging people, animals and the environment.

The fashion industry as a mass and colourful industry is continuing to grow with an upward trend in sales. Statista (2022) provides compelling data which suggests that as life is returning to normal after 2020, clothing consumption is expected to rise steadily to reach 197,316 million pieces. However, the development of savings in the fashion industry has offered a negative impact. According to McKinsey, the fashion industry contributed more than 4% of global CO2 emissions during that period. Additionally, 84% of them were released from supply chains, following a report by the World Resources Institute and the Garment Impact Institute. Almost 1 billion tonnes are totally produced each year. (Moran, 2022)

The fashion industry is undoubtedly complex. Thus, there are various sectors in the fashion industry. Initially, the understanding is necessarily held by the marketing sectors, both current fashion trends and consumer purchase habits. Followed by fashion designers make good use of skills to design, select the colours, fabrics and measure the sizes. The clothes are then made by the manufacturers. It is delivered to different stockists and retailers in various locations to ensure that the majority can buy in multiple areas such as offline flagship shops, online shops and select shops.

Due to the dramatic development of social media, it has become an integral part of the lives of the younger generation. (Hethorn and Ulasewicz, 2015) As social media has become an effective way to be competitive in an uncertain economy, 50% of social network users nowadays share or retweet news stories. 46% of them discuss news topics or events on the Internet. Thus, it can obviously connect unrelated people from different countries (Hethorn and Ulasewicz, 2015). It also provides an effective opportunity for brands to construct a bridge with consumers regularly, enabling them to acquire consumer preferences and behaviours to engage with more potential. As a result of this change in consumer behaviour, more brands have taken successful action to create their social media creation. For instance, fast fashion brands like H&M were followed by hundreds or even thousands of users, communicating frequently and effectively with their consumers and encouraging them to wear by posting on official social media accounts. Brand’s followers are constantly influenced by this marketing strategy, which will stimulate their desire. Brand could clearly catch the fresh trends. Thus, H&M, grew by 13%, while other retailers only increased by 2% during the same period (Mau, 2012).

Brands could hold various people from a wide range of professional people managing brand departments. Diverse talents work on the brand in order to keep genuine and maximise the brand’s profit. Therefore, the commercial section can master the current consumer habits and communicate in depth with the creative director so that they can clearly understand the current brand in terms of marketing to maximize creativity without violating the brand concept and consumer style. This enables the design to be as creative as possible and at the same time appeal to the consumer.

Text Reference

Apparent consumption of apparel worldwide from 2013 to 2026 (2022) Statista.com . Statista. Available at: https://www-statista-com.arts.idm.oclc.org/forecasts/1307850/worldwide-consumption-of-clothing-items (Accessed: October 21, 2022). 

Hethorn, J. and Ulasewicz, C. (2015) Sustainable fashion what’s next?: A conversation about issues, practices and possibilities. New York: Fairchild Books, An imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing Inc. 

Mau, D. (2012). NYC releases fashion report: Fashion Week, fast fashion see biggest growth. Retrieved September 25, 2014, from http://fashionista.com/2012/04/nyc-releases-fashion-report-fashion-week-fast-fashion-see-biggest-growth. [Accessed 20 October 2022].

Moran, G., 2022. Collaborating for Change: Sustainability Report 2022 – Drapers. [online] Drapers. Available at: <https://www.drapersonline.com/guides/collaborating-for-change-sustainability-report-2022> [Accessed 20 October 2022].

Photots Text

Apparent consumption of apparel worldwide from 2013 to 2026 (2022) Statista.com . Statista. Available at: https://www-statista-com.arts.idm.oclc.org/forecasts/1307850/worldwide-consumption-of-clothing-items (Accessed: October 21, 2022). 

Week 4 – Please upload your 3^rd Blog post- Profit by the 23rd October.