Linda Dyson
Project 1 Image Collection A, B & C Historic garment
Designer Emma Domb 1950 fashion Three social events that impacted the garment, design or brand •
1950 fashions were regulated by the three C’s—code, conformity and consumerism
•
Women were expected to attend social gathering wearing a cocktail dress to further their husbands career.
•
Nylon stocking went on sale for the first time
Three economic events that impacted the garment, design or brand •
Economy boomed and travel became affordable which encourage worldwide ethnic influences on fashions
•
Correlation was seen between fashion and other consumer products and popular annual colors were mirrored with fashion
•
Rayon was joined with another man-made fiber now known as synthetic fibers such as nylon, polyester, acrylics, spandex and Lycra
Three political events that impacted the garment, design or brand •
The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire of 1911
•
State Labor Laws
•
American workers were given 40-hour work weeks
Contemporary retail market
Christian Dior Spring 2015 The similarities between these two garments are they both have the close fitted bodice and hourglass silhouette bottom. They are both affected by economic factors. When there is an economic boom, more disposable income, therefore, more shopping. Opposite is when there is a recession consumers buy less and retailers are stuck with large inventories. In order to compete with more generic brands, retailers need to lower their prices.
They are both affected by political factors such as Industry affected repeatedly by issues such as workers’ rights and child labor laws, workers picketing employer for fair wages and medical benefits which impacts production and also delay shipments. They both are affected by social factors such as culture, norms, lifestyle, demographics and population changes the affect the clothing industry. Technological factors affecting the industry include availability of resources, demand and production. The introduction of new clothing styles by a competitor and advance equipment in plants to replace workers also impact the clothing industry. The differences between these two garments are minimal. The historical garment has shoulder straps while the contemporary garment is strapless. The fabrics used for these two dresses were not the same. The Christian Dior image from 2015 Spring Couture collection was a long cobalt blue cotton guipure bustier dress and the Emma Domb Vintage 50s was a black taffeta dress with pink satin pearls and beads circle skirt. The first strapless dresses appeared in the 1930s and became popular with designers. Christian Dior started designing strapless dresses in the late 1940s. They remained popular until after the World War II. Although it’s been approximately 60+ years since the original design of Emma Domb, the time period has not influenced change in the design. It is basically the same design from the 1950s. I think this garment has been included in the resource database because the hourglass silhouette has continued to be popular among consumers. Because of its popularity designers tend to revert back to this style and that is probably why it’s still in the database. Because the new garment doesn’t have much variation from the historic garment I don’t think it would be eligible for inclusion in the database. I believe the resource database should be use to show major variations in designs in order to give a new perspective on the item. SWOT Analysis of visual Merchandising Store/Window Retailer: Akira Title: Fall in Chicago SWOT Analysis Strengths •
Located in the heart of the business district in downtown Chicago
•
The backdrop and clothes colors represented the fall season
•
The neutral colors of the garments allow them to be interchangeable
•
Their merchandising store window is big enough to have on display six or seven mannequins fully dress for fall at the same time
Weaknesses •
They missed the opportunity of having the mannequins fully dressed with accessories.
•
No shoes or boots displayed in the window
•
Mix messages with the clothes displayed
Opportunities •
Add accessories to display so that customer could get a visual of how certain items complement the garments
•
Develop a much clearer picture about the season chosen
Threats •
Decrease in demand for their clothes due to competitor’s advantage with representation of window displays which leads to loss finances and which may lead to failure.
•
Lack of innovation in the window display causes them to become dull, stagnant and irrelevant.
What would I change and why? I would either use the display to represent the season we are in to the fullness or do a progression of the seasons from fall through winter. When I first looked at this display, the fall colors of the clothes on the mannequins and the backdrop colors reminded me of the season. My original thought was that this was a good representation of what to wear in the fall. Then I begin to look at the complete picture of whether or not this displayed would draw me into the store, to even consider making a purchase. I decided that the way this display was set up I would probably walk right past it without paying much attention. In my opinion, the mannequins were not fully dressed for the fall season. If I had done this display, every mannequin would have had on a complete outfit with all the accessories. It would have showed what boots, shoes and leggings or tights go better with each garment. I would have also included handbags/purses. Instead of the knit caps, I would have had a variety of hats that were stylish as well as functional. This would have given the customer options for multiple layered look.
Or Because of the large window space, I would utilize it to represent the progression from fall to winter. I would have dressed each mannequin to represent each month from fall through winter. Wearing the lighter weigh clothing early in the fall and adding more layers as winter progressed. My recommendations for the bare floor would be to extend the backdrop to the floor area, stand mannequins on triangle shapes and place shelving units strategically around showcasing other items that would complement the outfits, as well as other items that are sold in the store. Akira located in the business district is a strength because it is a downtown location with daily foot traffic and many people flock to this area this time of year. They need to take advantage of the fact that the surrounding area businesses will draw a lot of people that will walk pass their display. This is a great opportunity for them to increase sales. One of the main attractions for tourist and Chicago natives is the Annual Christmas Tree Lighting event that will take place in a couple of weeks not far from their location. Akira has many locations in and around the Chicagoland area. So I would not say that this location is their core customer, but it is equally as important. I don’t think the geographic location has anything to do with this simplistic display. I think the person who did it did not put much effort or thought into what they were doing. Because of their potential to draw more people into their store, I feel this display is hurting their business. The background is Styrofoam cut into triangle shapes, covered with gift wrap paper. In my opinion, the backdrop colors were a beautiful representation for the fall season, but the overall display fell short. My target market is a female between the ages of 25 -45 years old. She lives in Chicago South Shore area and has obtained a bachelor’s degree in education and licensed by the state of Illinois. She teaches public school children, makes between $52k and $58k per year and enjoys cooking and biking. Creative Explanation Some of the similarities in what’s on sale and what I observed are as follows: •
¾ Puffer Coats and quilted down coats with and without fur trim some with hoods others without.
•
Short jackets
•
Wool coats ¾ button down front and zipper down front
•
Quilted asymmetrical zipper Faux Fur Collared Down coat
•
Quilted asymmetrical snap front Hooded Down Jacket
•
Skinny jeans
•
Stretch denim leggings jeans
•
Penciled skirts
•
Knit hat and scarf sets
•
Infinity scarves
•
Large cross body purses
•
Flat shoes
•
Boots of all lengths: Ankle, mid-calf, knee length
•
Leather and suede boots
Some of the differences in what’s on sale and what I observed are the way items are style. For instance, I observed suede boots with a regular heel, what I saw on sale was suede wedge heel boots. I also saw boots with high heels on sale, but I did not observed any high heel boots in my observations. On sales the cross body purses were small. The ones I observed were large purses.
Observation notes 11/29/15 Orland Square Mall in Orland Park, IL Skinny Jeans with pull over sweaters and hoodies Quilted asymmetrical zipper Faux Fur Collared Down coat Quilted Down coats ¾ front zipper Double-Breasted Wool coat ¾ Short Jackets Knit dresses with leggings Leather boots zipper on inside of leg – ankle, mid-calf and knee high Suede boots with fur inside—knee height Infinity scarves around neck Comfortable flat shoes/gym shoes Eyeglasses Purses all shapes and sizes Observations notes 12/7/15 Harold Washington Library ¾ Suede Coat with fur around the neck and wrist Suede fur boots knee height
Pencil skirt stop at the knee Puffer Coats 3/4 Wide brim hats and knit hats Long plaid scarves around the neck Wool maxi coat Hooded wrap around coat ¾ Maxi skirt Maxi dress Short jackets Purses long strap across body Overhead sweatshirts with corduroy pants Maxi wool coat with faux fur around hood and fur hat Overhead sweater ¾ length with skinny jeans and tall leather boots ¾ length black fur coat Black dress pants with turtleneck sweater
Observation notes 12/8/15 on the CTA Knee length hooded coat with Faux Fur collar button down front ¾ length Double-Breasted Peacoat Cross body purses Large purse on arm Leopard winter hat Pull over feet Ugg boots mid-calf ¾ length Hooded down coat Black pencil skirt with stockings Black knee length boots with zipper on the inside of leg Scarves that wrap around the neck Large loop earrings
Long scarves that tie around coat collar Dress pants with boots Wool coat with faux fur collar Short jacket that zip up front Puffer coat that zip up front Knit hats and scarves Leather ankle boots zipper inside the leg Suede ankle boots zipper inside the leg Wool cap Book bags Trends identified that were seen at Macy’s which was on the runway A/W 2015. BCBG Maxa Zria trends were suede jacket incorporated leather, leather jacket with asymmetrical zipper, Ponchos, and blazer capes. Michael Kors trends were turtleneck/cow neck sweaters, fringes on bottom of sweaters/tops, leather look pants and sweaters with stoles. Yes, these trends that were seen in the store and on the runway are consistent. I saw the same items in the store that I saw on the runway. The only difference I can think of is the different colors on the sweaters/tops with fringes seen on the runway that were not in the stores. In the stored the supply was limited. I predict that the trend for A/W 2016 would be Stripe Clash Trend. Bright colors with black setting between colored stripes in which stripe patterns are going in different directions to emphasize a bold graphic feel. https://www.pinterest.com/dyson1904/stripe-trend/