Code: The Agency

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EDITOR IN CHIEF

JILLIAN L HARMON FOUNDER & CEO OF CODE

CONTENTS

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Introducion // 6 Forecasing // 9 Backcasing // 10 Trend Analysis // 13

Approach // 14 Opportunity // 16 Jusiicaion // 19

CODE Agency // 20 Inluences // 23 Magnosphere // 24 Mezzosphere // 27 Microsphere // 28

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The Product // 30

Print // 32 Print Contents // 34

Click // 44 Click Contents // 46

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Speak // 48 Speak Contents // 50

Consult // 52 Consult Contents // 54

The Client // 56 The Client Details // 59

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The Markeing // 60 The Markeing Details // 63

The Pricing // 64 The Pricing Details // 67

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INTRODUCTION CODE is a muli-plaform trend analysis agency with a specializaion in uncovering the connecions between history and fashion trends. The CODE Agency performs a trend analysis that looks at history in terms of three inluenial levels: Magnospheric, Mezzospheric and Microspheric. The historical audit showcases fashion trends as they react to sociocultural inluences thus providing clients a formula of how to interpret trends to meet consumer needs. Operaing as a creaive think-tank on an internaional level, The CODE Agency provides the framework to develop the concepts of tomorrow.

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Chrisian Dior, 1950s

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Valenino, 1969

By Ruven Aanador

FORECASTING

Fashion trend forecasing is the predicion of longterm and near-team trends in consumer behavior. The job of a fashion trend forecaster is to anicipate a consumer’s desired purchase before consumers want them thus determining what consumers will wear in the future. Determined trends are based heavily on the compilaion of observaions and require interpretaion and contextualizaion of sociocultural knowledge. The world’s leading brands, designers, and retailers uilize fashion trend forecasing.

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BACKCASTING

Fashion backcasing is the ideniďŹ caion of the connecion between historical happenings and fashion trends. A fashion backcaster invesigates what triggers a fashion trend through an analysis of Magnospheric, Mezzospheric, and Microspheric inluences found within a previous ime period. This cause-and-eect recogniion is studied and translated into a formula that can be applied to the current market.

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Yves Saint Laurent, 1970

By Jeanloup Sieff

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Naomi Campbell for Ralph Lauren, 1997

TREND ANALYSIS & FASHION

Trend forecasing is a highly creaive ďŹ eld that is very grounded in the pracicaliies of business. A trend forecaster’s role is not only to inspire but also enable the right business decisions for companies navigaing an extremely compeiive and fast-changing landscape. The design industry relies heavily on trend analysis to back up their business decisions with research and data. This could make or break their sales numbers. Thus, understanding the movement of fashion and life-style trends is paramount for every creaive professional.

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APPROACH Every trend has roots somewhere in history. The importance lies not in knowing what was designed 10 years, 40 years, or over 100 years ago, but in understanding why; in other words: what historical factor or trend - or combinaion of both - was the driver behind the design? Recognizing the relaionship between sociocultural inluences and designs of the past will provide a framework for how more accurately determine the trends of the future.

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Paco Rabanne, 1966

By Guy Bourdin for Vogue

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OPPORTUNITY

While trend forecasing companies analyze the present to deliver the predicion of the future, The CODE Agency will uncover the connecions between history and fashion trends. The CODE Agency will educate the consumer on how to observe the patern of the past in order to determine fashion forecasts.

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Peggy Moffit in Pierre Cardin Dress, 1965

By William Claxton

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Valenino, 1991

By Herb Rits for Vogue

JUSTIFICATION

Fashion is a mirror of the ime in which we live and recognizing fashions reacion to culture provides the framework for future trend analysis. The state of the world, the beliefs held by the people, and the culture of that region all play a considerable role in inluencing fashion trends.

Fashions, similarly to our tastes in TV, movies and music, oten express the prevailing power relaions of a society.

It is imperaive to recognize what triggers a fashion trend. Whether it is inluenced by the Magnosphere, the Mezzosphere, or the Microsphere, disinguishing the trend driver is imperaive to all forms of trend analysis. Through understanding the patern of past trends we are able to draw connecions to what will happen in the future. For example, shoulder pads for women became popular in the 1940’s. The fad vanished from the society only to be back in the 1980’s. Culturally, what was similar about the 1940’s and the 1980’s that inluenced this fashion novelty? Two different eras with culture commonaliies will affect the fashions of that ime comparably.

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CODE AGENCY The CODE Agency teaches clients how to recognize social and cultural movements in order to understand the fashion environment. The CODE Agency prepares companies and brands to operate in the direcion in which the fashion industry will move and how to anicipate what their consumers with want. Performing as a muli-plaform agency with a mastery of historical trend connecions, The CODE Agency will provide clients the ability to develop future concepts from evidencebased informaion.

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Christopher Kane

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Pierre Cardin, 1967

By Peter Knapp

INFLUENCES

In order to understand fashion trends, it is necessary to be aware of what surrounds the populaion in terms of the societal cultural way of life. The CODE Agency performs a trend analysis that looks at history in three levels of inluence: Magnospheric, Mezzospheric and Microspheric.

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MAGNOSPHERE

This level analyzes signiďŹ cant events that impact society at large. This acts as an umbrella, heavily inluencing the culture found on the Mezzospheric and Microspheric levels. The Magnosphere includes historical landmarks such as: war, conlict, movements, invenions, processes, and deaths.

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Missoni, 1971

By Barry Lategan

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Ralph Lauren, 1995

MEZZOSPHERE

This level analyzes change in aitude or behavior of a person or community as a reacion to social, technological, economic, environmental, and poliical advancements.

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MICROSPHERE

This level analyzes contemporary mass culture, and all of the inluences that color it – current slang, movies, television, music, products, and the superstars society idolizes. It encompasses common entertainment and consumer items, which vary from one generaion to the next as those things change.

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Claude Montana, 1992

By Tyen

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THE PRODUCT The CODE Agency operates on four platforms: CODE Print CODE Click, CODE Speak, and CODE Consult.

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Adidas Originals by Jeremy Scot, 2012

By Tim Ashton

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PRINT This historical audit is personally conceived by The CODE Agency Founder and CEO Jillian Harmon as the main book of the season. It is published biannually: in September for the Spring/Summer season and in February for the Autumn/Winter season.

The publicaion reviews a paricular decade in fashion and is comprised of ďŹ ve major secions: The Timeline, The Magnosphere, The Mezzosphere, The Microsphere, and The Fashion File.

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Pierre Cardin, Sunglasses, 1970

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TIMELINE

This is the ďŹ rst major secion in the CODE Print publicaion. The Timeline includes a year-by-year break down of the major events that occurred within the reviewed decade.

CODE Print | Contents

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MAGNOSPHERE

This is the second major secion in the CODE Print publicaion. The Magnosphere includes in-depth research of signiďŹ cant events that impacted society at large within the reviewed decade. This secion acts as an umbrella that heavily inluences the culture found within the other two levels covered in this issue: The Mezzosphere and The Microsphere.

CODE Print | Contents

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MEZZOSPHERE

This is the third major secion in the CODE Print publicaion. The Mezzosohere includes an extensive invesigaion of any change in aitude or behavior of a person or community as a reacion to social, technological, economic, environmental, and poliical advancements throughout the reviewed decade.

CODE Print | Contents

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MICROSPHERE

This is the fourth major secion in the CODE Print publicaion. The Microsphere includes a thorough analysis of contemporary mass culture, and all the inluences that color it – movies, music, super models, and superstars society idolizes. It encompasses common entertainment and consumer items, which vary from one generaion to the next as those things change.

CODE Print | Contents

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FASHION FILE

This is the fith major secion in the CODE Print Publicaion. The Fashion File includes a comprehensive breakdown of the determined era’s admired materials, the masters of design, the top seasonal trends, and the key silhouetes.

This secion is fueled with vibrant visuals of thenand-now comparisons between the reviewed era’s designs and the creaivity of today.

CODE Print | Contents

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CLICK This complimentary online trend forum designed and curated by The CODE Agency Founder and CEO Jillian Harmon allows users to submit trend connecion observaions to an interacive database. The CODE Agency incorporates these personal analyses with trained expertise to provide users a unique plaform for creaivity.

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Emilio PuccI, 1990

By Irving Penn for Vogue

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CLICK

CODE Click is updated daily with original content, including trend connecions from the past to the present. Under the EVENTS toggle, users are able to view where and when you can atend The CODE Agency’s Founder and CEO Jillian Harmon’s live seminars around the world. The ABOUT toggle explains the CODE Print seasonal publicaion and a brief explanaion of the Code Consult opportuniies.

The CONTACT toggle will provide informaion regarding the home office locaion, telephone, and where to follow all of The CODE Agency’s social media accounts.

CODE Click | Contents

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SPEAK Founder and CEO of The CODE Agency Jillian Harmon creates special audiovisual presentations that exhibit in an inspiring manner the current historical digest according to the seasonal CODE Print Publicaion. She conducts breakout-brainstorming sessions to beter develop atendees backcasing abiliies.

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Rudi Gernreich, 1968

By William Claxton

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SPEAK

The CODE Speak presentaions occur twice a year beginning with clients in Tokyo, Paris, and Amsterdam and coninuing around the globe. The unique structure of the CODE Speak seminar revolves around breakout-brainstorming activities that allow companies to develop a formula for speciďŹ c consumer markets. The CODE Agency CEO and Founder Jillian Harmon also makes trend presentaions upon request for companies with tailored content exclusive to the brand DNA.

CODE Speak | Contents

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CONSULT The CODE Agency team relies on their experise in backcasing to develop made-to-measure services for specific client needs. Through these privileged partnerships, The CODE Agency offers an original and curated approach unique to each brand.

Relaions established with The CODE Agency’s clients are based on consistency, mutual respect, and confidence. From that standpoint, The CODE Agency philosophy can be best described by four key words: bespoke, exceptional, inspired, and rooted. This provides companies a unique viewpoint on shortterm and long-term trends.

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Vogue, 1950

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CONSULT

The CODE Agency provides tailored trend analysis for companies waning an extensive fashion backcasted audit. The experise breaks down as follows: • • • • • •

Advising on product idenity & development strategy Grasping brand heritage and visualizing the future direcion Expanding with trend analysis and conceping Inspiring color, fabric, and silhouete Revitalizing with fresh visual language Creating graphics and packaging

CODE Consult | Contents

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THE CLIENT The CODE Agency is relied upon by some of the world’s most creaive and innovaive businesses, from national corporations to independent designers.

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Rudi Gernreich Ensemble, 1971

By William Claxton

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Giorgio Armani, 2011

By Mert Alas & Marcus Piggot

CLIENT

The CODE Agency produces essenial informaion for clients participating on innovation and strategic design teams of consumer product development with fashion driven product assortments. The CODE Agency will advise clients on product development strategy by designing and deďŹ ning strategic direcions regarding a brands idenity.

CODE | Client

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THE MARKETING The CODE Agency markeing plan aims to promote the muli-plaform product through a variety of channels. These include, but are not limited to, design seminars, magazine interviews, and a feature spread in current trend publicaions.

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Yohji Yamamoto, 2009

By Inez van Lamsweerde & Vinoodh Matadin for Vogue

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Missoni, 1989

By Oliviero Toscani for ELLE

MARKETING

The CODE Agency will provide subscripions to educational institutions as well as design-focused companies worldwide. With a feature spread in WWD, The CODE Agency seeks to reach design ďŹ rms as well as independent design clientele. A CODE Agency booth will be presented to sell and promote product at trade seminars and fabric fairs.

The CODE Agency’s CEO and Founder Jillian Harmon will interview with fashion magazine companies to provide readers an intimate sneak peak into the history of The CODE Agency. Harmon will submit to present at Trend/Design Conferences such as Foresight and Design Management Insitute (DMI) in order to promote the CODE Print, CODE Click, and CODE Consult plaforms.

CODE | Markeing

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THE PRICING All of our products and services can be seamlessly integrated into one flexible package. We have soluions that touch every link of the supply chain so each department of the business can take the product or service most relevant to them.

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Chrisian Dior Haute Couture, 2012

By Mario Tesing for Vogue

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Giorgio di Sant’Angelo 1968

By Franco Rubartelli for Vogue,

PRICING

The CODE Print publicaion is released biannually and retails for $425. Yearly subscripions retail for $800.

The Code Click services are complimentary and completely free of charge for all users.

The Code Speak services are coningent on admission cost required to enter Trend and Design Conferences such as Foresight and Design Management Insitute.

The Code Consult services are priced on a project-byproject basis as some may require a more in-depth analysis.

CODE | Pricing

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