Review of Fashion and Consumption.
Lars Svendsen, 2006. Fashion: A Philosophy. Edition. Reaktion Books.
Society is in constant evolution but is that evolution for the better? The author Lars Svendsen makes a philosophical approach to fashion consumption nowadays.
Basically by comparing the Earlier Modern Society or Producer Society (think back in the late 1800’s and beginning of the 1900’s where the Arts & Crafts Movement was flourishing and consumption was driven by necessity and people were keen on manufacturing) vs. the Post Modern Society or Consumer Society (something that slowly started after the Industrialization and that was catalyzed during the past decade thanks to the globalization and Internet) the author draws a clear black and white image.
Our Post-Modern society is savvy in consuming as a result of the fast pace lifestyle; we are bombarded with advertisement every day; traveling to dreamed destinations is not a pleasure for the happy few anymore; knowing about the latest trend in fashion is not reserved for an elite since any teenager with a computer or a smart-phone can have access to the myriad of fashion bloggers in the world, fashion magazines, etc.; even parading a luxury bag while having dinner at a chic restaurant is available to almost everybody (whether it is a real or a good counterfeit brands are to the reach of most of us). But what are the implications of this new trend? In summary societies are drenched in consumerism in order to create an identity. People buy in order to fulfill the needs to be different, to be special. We can evidence this, especially in emerging economies where luxury brands have found the new “pot of gold”. For emerging markets it is a way to show status, to be different and at the same time to belong to this elite group.
Though it is not all about luxury nowadays brands encourage consumerism in order to hit the sales projection no matter the target market; the best way to illustrate this concept is ZARA with its 2-week deliveries that drive customers to stores twice a month! Or H&M with the countless Designer collaboration starting with Karl Lagerfeld back in 2004 and promoting the “democratization of fashion” up to date, deriving in huge line ups each opening day in order to get a “Stella McCartney”, a “Comme des Garcons”, or a “Maison Martin Margiela”.
Brands are no longer selling products; they are massively selling dreams raising the bar on people’s expectations. Same as drugs, fashion creates an addiction and consequently tolerance.
Let me explain this more in detail:
* Addiction: in the quest of being different by being dressed to the latest fashion trends, the consumer keeps a constant searching that cannot stop.
* Tolerance: as an informed consumer that has seeing everything and anything through different communication channels, nothing really excites him/her anymore for a long time putting the brands in a faster pace in order to feed the fashion hunger. Could we expect in the future not 2-week-in-store deliveries but daily deliveries?! Anyone in the product development business will agree that is totally impossible.
Same as with drugs, the overexposure will drive consumers to always ask for more, something better, something stronger fomenting a vicious circle that the industry is generating but if the rhythm progresses at the same pace, it will be soon out of control and might bite back to the industry itself. Think of Marx when saying the religion is the opium of the people; this is not a pejorative sentence if we think that drugs used under supervision and adequate dosage can heal the pain, but the abuse would create an uncontrollable addiction and losing of clarity; is fashion the new drug for the people? could be; if used wisely can provide confidence, cheer someone up, etc... but when done in more than 2-week-deliveries it will just become out of control!
Communication is key on this new behavior but also is technology (nowadays everything can be replicated to an exact clone making brands, styles and designs available to masses at all budgets). New Business models utilized by the brands in order to gain a bigger pie share are also making its contribution into promoting consumption (licensing and franchising). The knowledge of brands get to a point that even children with their limited vocabulary can recognize the most popular brands worldwide. The consumer craziness is endless and the point is what the future would be for the industry. Creating more desires (not needs anymore) is also creating a non stoppable spinning wheel that will only go faster and faster until it breaks.
I believe this is the point to ponder for all of us working in the industry, and we all know it is not an easy decision to make. Everybody wants to lead his/her company to the top but what are the implications and ethical behavior involved, what is the responsible way to lead a company to the top?
My review in this case would be an open discussion to hear your thoughts about how to make the wheel still spin at a velocity that will produce profitable margins but keeping a balance in what we need and desire. I remember the dean at the college where I did my undergraduate on her first speech to the Design Program students making everybody aware of the big responsibility that as future designers we would have with society; I might not quote the exact words but it went something like: “you are the responsible of bringing the best ideas to the world, or the worst garbage. It’s a big responsibility”. I think this thought is extensive to anyone working in the fashion industry. We are responsible of driving the society in a restless consumerism where quality is not important anymore or to find the policies, the ethics and values that will keep the industry working and generating work places and profits but staying true to the human well being.
As a breath of fresh air, I would like to illustrate this review with some pictures taken in Florence at the Artigianato Palazzo held last summer. Let's have a flash back to a time where things were simpler to think about the responsibility we have of finding the midpoint between the Producer Society and the Consumer Society.
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Roger Artiga
