HM
MY JOURNey...
Introduction
The focus on this book is to demonstrate the journey I have taken from my first Brand Me module to my final major project. I will exhibit what has influenced me and what I have taken forward from my Brand Me module and how I have executed this for my brand management module. I will discuss the key areas that I have developed further, such as my consumer and my research into the future of the luxury streetwear market. Both my Brand Me module (Concept Direction and Development) and my current Brand Management module has required lots of research that has helped influence and shape my brand concepts, and my aim for my final major project’s visual campaign.
Brand ME My brand me module helped me have a clear understanding of what has influenced my life and what I stand for. I discovered that my childhood played a huge part in what has influenced me to become the person that I am today which I wanted to transfer to my brand, creating a personal approach and include the element of culture. I come from a large family and rely heavily on the supportive community that I have around me which reflects the importance of my concept of community for my final major project.
I presented my ‘Brand Me’ research through multiple sketchbooks that enabled me to visually communicate as well as verbally communicate what and why I researched the designers/brands/market level that I did. The message that really stood out from my brand me research was acceptance. I am a very accepting person and always aim to treat people equally which is the message I decided to incorporate and stand by for my 360 campaign.
This stage of my research also enabled me to really find my aesthetic in terms of colours, themes and fonts that stood out to me. Through this research I developed the understanding that I am drawn towards a more minimalistic approach and use grey tones throughout my work that coincide with the structured simple font that I use throughout my work. The second research sketchbook was based on more of a secondary research approach where I explored different designers from a range of market levels and different creatives that stood out to me. I researched into brands from Misguided to Louis Vuitton as well as Art School London. I was able to determine what brands stood out to me which helped understand what market level I sit at. First of all, I do not agree with the online fast fashion retailers such as Missguided. From my research I am aware that Generation Z are becoming more aware of the effects that fast fashion brands have on the environment, which is a reason that I personally will not buy from such brands. I watched the Missguided documentary and found that there was a lack of creativity within the brand and how they rely on replicating celebrities’ outfits from luxury brands collections which is evident of the trickle-down effect. Louis Vuitton is a brand I have always admired, in my research I looked particularly at the Fall/Winter 2020 collection that was directed by Virgil Abloh and photographed by Tim Walker. I found that the storytelling behind the collection really appealed to me and the element of story-telling is something that I wanted to include in my visual campaign, as I want to visually express the concepts behind my brand. I also found it very interesting how Virgil Abloh, who is known as a streetwear designer, is now the creative director of Louis Vuitton and can have his own take on the brand by including elements of streetwear combined with luxury clothing Art School London also appealed to me. The reason in particular is their use and range of models. In their collections and shows, they use models from all ages, genders and abilities, which is very empowering and a really positive approach for their brand to demonstrate how they cater to everyone as a genderless brand. From this research I learned that the luxury market is what I am drawn to the most. After this research and my realisation that it is the luxury market level that I am drawn to and specifically menswear, I wanted to determine exactly what about the luxury market attracts me, and what brands influence me.
LUXURY MARKET
I picked four brands that I found very influential and appealing. The brands I chose were A Cold Wall, Craig Green, Louis Vuitton and Dior. Craig Green and A Cold Wall have similar connections, founders Samuel Ross and Craig Green both come from a working class backgrounds which has influenced their brand concepts. They are both collaborative designers and have a sense of community within each of their brands which is an element that appeals to me. There were similar links to my findings from ‘Brand Me’ and my realisation that the community I have around me is a big influence. They both represented a sense of culture and purpose in their brands which I found appealing. I was aware that A Cold Wall and Craig Green are different compared to the well-established, larger fashion houses such as Louis Vuitton and Dior however I wanted to see if there were connections ’s between each brand. Dior is a brand that I have always aspired to buy from, I was aware that creative director Kim Jones is a very collaborative designer and successfully combines luxury fashion with other styles/artists/ brands. This is an example of the similarity between Dior, A Cold Wall and Craig Green that I had discovered. Kim Jones, creative director of Dior, has successfully collaborated with designers/artists that has enabled the influence of culture to be combined with luxury fashion. An example of this is the collaboration between Dior and streetwear artist Kaws and lifestyle brand Nike. Louis Vuitton also adopted this same approach in their previous collaboration with luxury streetwear brand Supreme in 2017. From this research I discovered that it is luxury menswear that I am drawn to. I realised it is the element of culture that appealed to me through these brands which helped me come to the final conclusion that I sit at is the luxury streetwear market. A Cold Wall and Craig Green were both designers that really influenced me and my vision at the beginning of my journey. I researched heavily into both brands and designers to understand their brand philosophy, what influences them and their consumers. I was then able to find a gap in the market that I wanted to pursue which was to shine a new light on luxury streetwear through cultural commentary.
Influences
My 360 campaign book, demonstrated the research I had undertaken to discover my solution and aim of shining a new light on luxury streetwear through cultural commentary. There were specific areas that I wanted to focus on the most which helped shape my 3 brand concepts. I explored how designers can combine their culture within their brand, issues within society such as racial discrimination and the representations of men within the media, and ways in which designers can be more sustainable/design conscious. I focused my brand concepts on this research which are: social consciousness, community and protection.
Social consciousness is the concept of being socially aware of those around us and to consider the issues within society based on racial discrimination and inequality. Protection is the concept of men protecting their mental health and protecting each other as well as the environment by being a conscious consumer.
Community is the concept of creating a positive community around my visual campaign and brand with members from all social classes and backgrounds. I will demonstrate this through my fashion film, digital zine and look book, as well as creating a social media campaign where men can follow and support each other and share their personal stories related to their cultural backgrounds. This is with the aim to gain a personable approach and to enable my “consumers to have a connection and relationship” with my brand, which from my research I learned that Generation Z aim to have the same with clothing brands that they buy into (DeAcetis, 2019)
At this stage of my project, I created a 20 x 20 mood board and listed words that I thought related well to my brand. This helped me as I was able to find a name that I could call my 360 campaign. Due to the personable approach to my brand, I thought the name ‘Resonate’ would be fitting with my campaign. I want my 360 campaign to be a positive and accepting campaign that would inevitably resonate with the consumers. Over the Christmas break I had completed my 360 Campaign Book, Brand Me book as well as the 4 research development booklets that I had completed. I felt that my work really showed my aesthetic and demonstrated clearly the direction that I aimed towards and my development from my Brand Me research to my 360 Campaign. I had really defined myself and my influences and what I wanted for my visual campaign. My visual campaign is going to shine a new light on streetwear through cultural commentary by expressing culture and men in a positive yet unconventional way. I want to demonstrate my creative, strategic and tactical skills for the duration of my campaign and showcase my skills.
Styling I think the styling that I created in my 360 campaign book, represented my brand concepts well and had elements of culture, class structure, protection and streetwear. I collected items that were conventional within the streetwear market such as trainers, a hoodie and t-shirt and a chain. I wanted to include the community concept of my brand and the influence that I had got from Craig Green and A Cold Wall which was their utility style. I used a boiler suit to represent the uniform and class structure elements within my concept of community which I thought worked well. I was happy with the outcome of my styling, but I have continued to explore different ways that I could really push the boundaries and express my message and concepts to their full potential and develop how I can represent males within my campaign. As part of my research and development journey since my 360 campaign book, I tested and developed my styling further. I wanted to incorporate my brands concepts and explore how I can create hidden codes and messages within my styling that backed up each of my brand concepts.
Styling Development
NIcholas Daley
During the development of my work, I have discovered other brands that have combined culture with luxury wear such as Hed Mayner, Grace Wales Bonner, Nicholas Daley and luxury fashion brand Botter. Nicholas Daley is a designer who stood out to me as he follows the same process as A Cold Wall does by clashing cultures. Nicholas Daley combines his Scottish and Jamaican heritage within his designs in a really positive and exiting way. He uses multicultural models in all his shows and combines traditional elements of both Jamaican heritage and Scottish heritage within his designs through colours and prints.
Botter
Botter is another brand that has influenced my journey, their aim is to blend elements of streetwear with traces of their Caribbean heritage. What stood out to me from this brand was how they represent men in a powerful and positive way that is unconventional to what we would typically expect from a streetwear brand. Botter is inspired by Caribbean power dressing and often use bright colours and prints within their designs, an image of theirs that really stood out to me was a male in a full white floral suit. The male remains powerful and masculine even though he is wearing a floral suit which helped inspire me to want to represent men in a more sensitive yet positive way. These brands successfully combined culture with luxury wear that helps create a story behind each brand. It was the element of the hidden meanings and messages from each brand that really inspired me and is something that I wanted to take forward with my brand.
Luxury Streetwear Throughout the process of developing my styling I explored luxury streetwear brands such as Supreme, Palace, Noah and Vetements. I was inspired by the meanings they had behind their brand/collections and how they position their brand name on their garments as I felt like I needed to make the signs/messages that I attached to my garments as part of my testing bigger and more visible. I looked into these 4 streetwear brands because I knew from being an active consumer of Supreme and Palace that they use their logo on slogan t-shirts which is conventional of a streetwear brand. I felt like once I had tested using my brand name across a t-shirt it enabled my styling to conform to streetwear conventions and helped push my aim of shinning a new light on cultural commentary through luxury streetwear. I tested creating many digital styling croquis and was happy with the development of my styling, but I still felt that it needed a last push and after having a conversation with my lecturer Tracey she agreed and suggested that I add more colour to my styling. At this point of my styling development, I had constantly used muted tones of blue, white and grey. I was really happy with the garments that I had used but I agreed that to help represent the positive and accepting message that I aimed to create for my brand, then more colour needs to be added to help create that positive and expressive message.
Bethany Williams
I decided to research into designer Bethany Williams who uses a lot of colour within her work. I found an image of a male wearing her garments and styled them with streetstyle pieces. He wore a blue bomber jacket and an orange beanie hat and also had the colour orange on his trousers. I loved the colour contrast between the blue colour and the orange, it really stood out to me as I found that both colours worked well styled together. I reflected on the colour orange against my brand and it made me think about the elements that I have included within my brand concept of social consciousness and the racial discrimination elements. It reminded me of prison uniform and the issues against police brutality that many countries face especially in America, which is a topic I have researched into. This was a light bulb moment within the development of my styling as I knew it would help creates those hidden codes within my styling that would back up my brand concepts. I tested using an orange boiler suit and styled it similarly to the blue boiler suit I had previously used. Not only did the orange boiler suit help add colour to my styling but it also successfully referenced the BLM movement that I have throughout my brand and referenced the utilitarian and class structure elements that I had previously tested. Throughout the process of developing my styling I also paid close attention to stylists and photographers such as Ib Kamara, Rafael Pavarotti, Nina Zimmolong and Oghale Alex to see how they pieced garments together and positioned their models.
representation of men
Another development that I focused on is the representation of men and how I want to represent my male models in my fashion film and look-book. I want to represent men in a positive and unconventional way which will add to my brand message of acceptance. To help determine how I could achieve this and develop my vision, I created mood-boards using pictures from magazines aimed at men like GQ. I found it interesting how the majority of the streetwear pictures used were stereotypically in racing cars or pictured in a gang. This helped back up the reasoning behind my brand and how there is a gap in the market for shinning a new light on luxury streetwear through cultural commentary.
A picture by Rafael Pavarotti for Dior’s S/S21 campaign stood out to me. He styled men pictured holding a flower with bold colours in the background which in my opinion worked really well as the males in the campaign had a bold, strong and confident stance which was contradicted by them holding a small and delicate flower. I liked this approach and did test the use of the flower against my model and styling but felt like it was too obvious and had been done many times. I had to consider other ways that I could bring that level of sensitivity within my brand aesthetic.
Juxtaposition
This was the stage that I began to consider using elements of my brand and taking them out of context to create the element of juxtaposition to help create the sensitivity and vulnerability aspects that I wanted. I tested this by creating graffitied protest boards and photographed them in a field that had flowers in it. I thought this worked well and I was pleased with my outcome. This was a crucial point of my journey, it helped shape my whole vision and made me realise that I want to bring the element of juxtaposition to my shoot and shoot in a location that is unconventional for luxury streetwear.
I considered the possible locations that could help showcase the juxtaposition within my brand and decided to do a test shoot outside of a country house. I was really pleased with the outcome and how it effectively created the juxtaposition that I wanted to achieve against the luxury streetwear styling. Therefore, I decided to use the same location for my final shoot.
Test Shoot
Story Telling
To develop my storytelling, I considered what had stood out to me at the very beginning of my ‘Brand Me’ journey which was Tim Walker’s methodology. I was first inspired by his methodology when I visited his exhibition at the Victorian Albert Museum. His creative and playful methods of photography and how he experiments with different concepts really inspires me as he creates a story within each piece of his work. He recently photographed Louis Vuitton’s FW20 collection called “Heaven on Earth”, which included a room that had been painted like the sky full of clouds that helped create a fantasy aesthetic.
The story telling behind this campaign was to draw the connections between heaven and earth and to add to Virgil Abloh’s vision of “boyhood and the freedom of youth” (Brain, 2020). This shoot included traditional old frames that had been taken out of context and displayed in the cloud painted room. I thought the combination of the traditional gold frames positioned within the sky painted room was effective and created that juxtaposition between the two.
I decided to test using the gold frames and created some visuals to see if it would add to the juxtaposition that I was intending to create. I was really happy with how it looked, I tested many different ways of using gold frames within my work and added pictures of my test shoot within the frames as well as styling the gold frames around my digital croquis. I tested changing the colour of the frames and adding paint splatters and graffiti font over them that added the streetstyle aesthetic. This was another point within my journey that helped create my whole vision and add to my aesthetic, it was definitely something that I wanted to take forward.
photographers
Another element that helped shape the narrative around my brand was the influence I had taken from photographers Oghale Alex and Nina Zimmolong. Both photographers really focus on the relationship between models. As one of my brand concepts is protection I wanted to physically show the elements of my models protecting one another within my shoot and fashion film. I used pose’s that both photographers had previously used to help shape the narrative of male’s protecting one another and protecting their mental health.
Fashion Film Ohglae Alex was the main photographer that really stood out to me, he is the photographer for the brand A Cold Laundry which is a brand I have paid close attention to during my journey. I watched the fashion film that he directed for A Cold Laundry which was called ‘Escaping the Noise’ and was really inspired by the way he created the sense of freedom and escapism. The elements of freedom and escapism created within this fashion film and the type of shots he used throughout the film is something that I wanted to adopt and bring forward for my fashion film. I analysed all elements within this fashion film and discussed what I wanted to take forward with the videographer that I collaborated with.
A Cold Laundry
Another fashion film that I was inspired by was Grace Wales Bonner’s A/W21 film called ‘The Light of Black Sunlight’. Again, the use of shots used within this film really helped shape the narrative. I thought the use of close us shots of the crossed hands and close up shot of the models face helped create emotion which represented the male models in a more sensitive way which is something that I wanted to achieve for my fashion film. Although from the beginning of my journey I have researched and analysed many fashion films these two were the ones that stood out to me the most due to the emotions they created. What stood out to me from both of these fashion films was the use of narration. This inspired me to use narration throughout my fashion film to add to the narrative of freedom, positivity and escapism. I decided to use Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech which backs up my brands message of acceptance and concepts and inevitably helps reflect on the changes that have transpired since this speech took place in a positive way.
Wales Bonner
Consumer My consumer group has been the main focus from the beginning to the end of my whole journey and therefore I have analysed every stage of my journey to make sure that it would appeal to them. As part of my research, I conducted a small questionnaire that I directed at my consumers who are males who are members of Generation Z. I used a questionnaire as I found it was a personal approach that would help gather more reliable data that would back up my secondary research into Generation Z. Evidenced by appendix 1, It is proved that 92% of my audience think that males within the luxury streetwear market are represented in a way that almost over exaggerates their masculinity. This, therefore, backs up my aim of shinning a new light on luxury streetwear through cultural commentary, and by focusing on my concepts of representing men in a positive but more sensitive way to show that they do not have to live up to those stereotypical conventions.
Due to the uncertainties and changes that the pandemic has created I have continued to stay up to date with changes within the industry and what the future could hold. The future of the luxury market is something that I have considered from the very start as I am targeting the new luxury consumer Generation Z and I wanted to make sure my brand is future proof. In my research I had specifically looked at High Snobiety’s prediction on the future of the luxury market as well as other predictions such as ‘Is Vintage the New Luxury?’ (Jacobs, 2020). My brand sits within the luxury streetwear market. I have combined elements of streetwear with luxury wear and have created juxtaposition around my whole aesthetic. High Snobiety’s book called ‘The New Luxury’ is something that I have referred back to throughout my journey. This book explains how luxury brands are adopting streetwear elements into their designs more and the changes that we should expect to see from the luxury market. This was very important to me as I am focusing on the new consumer, which is Generation Z, I had to consider what the future of luxury will be and what Generation Z want from a brand. I found it interesting that this book discusses how luxury brands are becoming more influenced from the ground up, as they are adopting streetwear elements within their designs. This is instead of the process of the trickle-down effect that we typically see from trends that start at the luxury brand level and trickle their way down to streetstyle. Both predictions have helped me corollate the possible avenues that the luxury market in general could face for the future. I have learnt a lot about what the future could hold, and I have adapted my work based around this by focusing heavily, on my consumer and their needs. In addition to the effects that the pandemic has had on industry I have also gained knowledge of the effects that Brexit has had on the luxury fashion market and the changes that we may expect to see in terms of a decline in one of Britain’s largest luxury consumers who are Chinese consumers, due to buyers being unable to claim their 20% tax back in this country (Team, 2021). Inevitably, over the next few years it will be hard to determine how much value British customer’s pounds will hold (Nieto, 2017) but Generation Z consumers will continue to buy into these luxury brands to feel validated (DeAcetis, 2019). In an interview with Jian DeLeon, Director of High Snobiety and co-editor of High Snobiety’s book ‘The New Luxury’ he states that “New Luxury isn’t about price, it’s about culture, community, the values we share, and aligning ourselves with brands who can help enhance that worldview.” (DeAcetis, 2019). Therefore, this resource has really helped back up the values of my campaign and why from my research I have stuck with my 3 main concepts.
Campaign
Leading up to my campaign shoot I finalised my styling, organised the shoot location and hired models that I thought would fit best with my brand campaign. I created digital croquis to help me visualise the styling against the models and location which helped create my overall vision for the final shoot. Although it has been tough completing my third year of University through digital learning due to the pandemic, I have used and expanded on my digital skills. I am also grateful to have had my brother to help style my outfits and use him as a model on my trial shoots. I was lucky to have the opportunity to collaborate with a videographer to create my fashion film. I discussed my brand message of acceptance and my 3 brand concepts and worked effectively in collaboration to create a fashion film that helps visually define my concepts and brand overall. This collaboration helped me push my organisational and professional skills and allowed to me use my team working skills to share ideas and gain ideas from a professional’s perspective. I created my brand campaign concept ‘This is Not a Trend’ to help spread the importance of the meanings and messages behind my brand. I was inspired my Virgil Abloh as he has taken a similar approach to this and used text that is juxtaposed to his designs. It helps represent that there is more to my brand, it is a movement and helps create the change that is needed.
For my visual campaign, in addition to the fashion film, I photographed models to create a look book and for use in my social media campaign that sits alongside my brand. My social media campaign helps to create that positive community and allow consumers to engage with my brand.
Behind the scenes
Campaign Shoot
INstagram Reels In addition to my fashion film and look-book I created reels for my social media campaign. The reels I created included footage from my shoot of the models interacting with each other in a positive and supportive way which helped back up my concepts of community, social consciousness and protection. I created a social media campaign as it helped showcase my social media skills, as social media is an avenue that I am passionate about and I hope to soon find a job within this sector.
Outcome
I wanted to showcase my skills and key strengths throughout my final major project. I am confident that I have successfully created a final major project that shows my transferable skills ready for industry. I have successfully demonstrated my strengths in styling, my digital skills through my digital brand zine and social media skills. I have successfully communicated the narrative around my brand and the hidden codes that back up my brand concepts. I am pleased with the outcome of my shoot and my fashion film that I collaborated with a videographer to help create. I have shown my digital skills and how I have continued to consider the current changes within the industry by creating a digital zine based around my whole brand and campaign. My research files have been a huge part of my journey as they help show the process of my journey and my findings that have helped shape my narrative. I am confident that I have demonstrated my creative, strategic and tactical skills and effectively promoted my campaign through a range of mediums. I have pushed myself a lot throughout my journey this year which has helped boost my confidence and transferable skills ready to enter the industry.
HM
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Final Major Project Fashion Brand Management 1807322 info@hannahmcguckin.co.uk