L I N D s awerS y a
1304997 Final Major Project Fashion Communication&Image
001 002 003 005 007 009 017 019 033 035 038 039 041 043
introduction executive summary aims & objectives industry situation primary research competitor review consumer demographics brand identity promotional strategy development plan conclusion appendix interview
ents bibliography
cont-
001 // first
let’s begin
Graduate Fashion Week (GFW) is an annual event, which runs during the month of June over a long weekend. Its aim is to provide an unrivalled platform for the promotion of new talent in the fashion world, bridging the gap between graduation and employment and is responsible for launching the careers of some of the most successful designers of our time including, Stella McCartney, Giles Deacon, Matthew Williamson and Julien Macdonald and, of course, Christopher Bailey, who was the winner of the first ever GFW Gold Award.
The series will explore the fashion, art and music of every decade of the 20th century, decade by decade with articles being written month by month across the year. The blog will explore fashion and cultural history from 1900 to today and will focus on the influence of fashion, art, music, writing and theatre on each other and the culture of the decade. The series will feature as part of GFW’s current blog on their website (http://www.gfw.org.uk/blog/), beginning in July 2016 and a new article will appear every week. Each article will be written by a different individual who has a passion for fashion blogging and will provide them with the opportunity to have their works published to be read by the fashion industry, hopefully then leading to job opportunities, bridging the gap between graduation and employment for fashion writers. For visitors to the GFW website, the blog series, titled ‘1 Year of Culture’, will enlighten and educate readers on the impact of fashion and the arts on the culture of each decade. The blog will provide a cultural background for each decade in the century past and each article should provide the writer’s personalized insight, developing connections between the fashion, art and musical creative trifecta of their chosen era.
Every month of the year will focus on a different decade, beginning with the 1900’s and sequentially moving through the twentieth century towards the current day. The website will promote, in advance, the four pieces to be covered that month, which will each have a different focus. The choice of topic will be mainly at the discretion of the writer but will fit with their chosen focus area. These focus areas will be: Iconic outfits and looks; an interview; a review; and the legacy of that decade. The blog will give graduates and students a springboard into their desired career and will establish a link between the students, their writing and the fashion industry. This platform for self-promotion, endorsed by GFW, will help to create professional networks.
002 // second
In celebration of GFW’s 25 Year Anniversary, I plan to launch a blog series, written by fashion students and graduates who are interested in fashion and cultural writing. The blog will have the same aim as GFW but will focus on showcasing new talent in fashion writing rather than design.
aims
To create an opportunity to mirror the aim of GFW, creating a platform to showcase the works of graduate fashion students and bridge the gap between graduation and employment, specifically for fashion writers rather than designers. The event will sit within the framework of GFW and be promoted and published on their website.
objectives In order to achieve my aim, my objectives followed by their key results would be:
1
To promote a framework which signs up volunteer graduate fashion writers who will commit to write an article relating to a topic and decade, for publication on a blog at a specified timeslot during the year. • Successful promotion of the event on GFW website and social media clearly explaining the mechanics of the event. • Manned stand at GFW encouraging sign up to the event and explaining how it works • Complete sign up by 48 different graduate fashion writers committing to write a specific article for the blog at a specified time.
2
To provide an opportunity for graduate fashion writers to showcase high quality writing. • All pieces are submitted on time and edited feedback is taken into account before publishing. • Pieces are interesting and well researched • The promoted blog articles are published to the timetable • Social media comments about the content of the articles is positive
3
To Inform and excite readers of the blog on fashion and cultural aspects of the various decades of the last century. • Positive readers’ comments and regulars ‘shares’ on social media from social media promotions. • Increased hits on the GFW website throughout the year
4
To allow employers to identify future fashion writing talent and network with and recruit individuals into fashion writing roles. • Volunteer bloggers will include an article in their portfolio that has been edited by industry professionals and published online. • Volunteer bloggers are approached and network with fashion industry, in particular being offered work opportunities • Some bloggers, first published on the GFW website, in time become fashion writers of the future
004 // fourth
5
To strengthen the GFW brand identity • A community of followers, existing and new, reading articles each week. • Increased number of visitors to GFW website • Increased GFW social media following. • Feedback from fashion writers and fashion employers that GFW has a stronger mechanism to promote the work of future fashion writers.
industry situation Written work in the 21st century can be published either via print i.e. magazine, newspaper etc. or be posted on a website or blog online. With that transition the style of the publications we read are changing. Internet pioneer Bob Stein asserts, “Unlike the printed book, the networked book is not bound by time or space. It is an evolving entity. Unlike the printed book, the networked book is never finished: it is always a work in progress.” (The Future of Reading and Academic Libraries, David M. Durant) In this context, reading takes its new value from the network effect of cumulative sharing, meaning, and learning. Thus, as the digital age unfolds, it is likely to transform both the nature of reading and the nature of the book itself, as deep, immersive reading fades in importance and functional, tabular reading becomes more widespread. In this day and age, as digital media becomes increasingly the way forward, many printed magazines are ensuring that they have a strong online presence, which meets the needs of the digital age reader. Still not certain that their fashion conscious readers are fully prepared to part with their printed magazines, a combination of both printed and digital versions of their publication are available. Yet at the same time we see a move towards Stein’s ‘networked book’, the evolution of web site articles, posted on social media, shared, commented on, and shared again’ ‘never finished’, ‘an evolving entity within an ecology of readers, authors and texts’, ‘never finished’.
It is a difficult time for hard copy magazines. Over the last few years, many Fashion Magazine, such as Vogue, Marie Claire and LOOK, have all attempted to sell, not only printed copy subscriptions, but subscriptions to their digital version of their publication which sends a copy of the magazine directly to the reader’s laptop, phone or iPad. Although publishers charge lower prices for their digital publications, as they have no printing, packaging and delivery costs, e.g. Marie Claire’s printed subscription £0.98 per printed copy compared to £0.65 per digital copy, the digital subscription concept does not seem to have taken off. In 2014, Vogue sold 192,763 print copies compared to 8,314 digital ones and Good Housekeeping sold a huge 410,981 compared to only 3,561 digital copies. Yet it is clear that the number of printed copies of fashion publications is in decline: “In 2010, monthly single copy sales of Vogue averaged 343,614’… In 2015, they averaged just 193,941.” (BoF Exclusive | American Vogue Publisher Talks Strategy Shifts) All established magazines having a strong and updated social media presence on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, the public are very tuned in to what is going on at the magazine on a daily basis. This allows the consumer to access magazines stories and articles on their website at one click without any cost at all. It is apparent that, although a website was just a small additional aspect of any magazine at one point, it is now crucial for magazines to have an updated website that goes hand in hand with each
market. A recent strategic approach taken by Vogue was highlighted in an article reviewing an interview with Vogue’s publisher Susan Plagemann explained that
‘by investing heavily in its digital presence and adopting a general interest approach to fashion news... garnered the site 10.3 million unique users in March 2016, up 72% from 6 million in 2015.’ The growth of followers to such websites looks set to continue, with Vogue showing a growth of 700% of users in the past three years alone. The future of fashion writing will follow this trend and, the role of the fashion blogger; a job unheard of 10 years ago, is a growing market for employment opportunities. With this anticipated growth in online fashion writing we would expect to see opportunities for graduate fashion writers to showcase their work, in a similar way as graduate fashion designers can showcase their designs on the catwalk. But it would seem that the industry has not responded well to the growing increase in demand for high quality fashion writers and as yet there are only limited opportunities for them to present their work to the industry. A few of these opportunities are reviewed in my competitor and S.W.O.T analysis (See figures 1 and 2). But for students who are looking to have their written work published, opportunities are few and far between. Of course, blogging sites such as wordpress.com, who have an average of 6 new blog posts every second; give students a means of showing their written work. However, it is impossible to direct the blogs at specific industry members without the help of a well-known brand publishing the pieces. In the world of fashion, 3D garments are the main focus, however fashion students who are focusing on journalism and writing aren’t given the same chances to have their work critiqued and viewed by industry professionals that would open up doors to jobs and experiences in the future. Key factors for the future of fashion communication: Digital communication is on the up; printed magazines are in decline. Communication revolves around social media sites and ‘one click’ news articles on websites. The growth in social media is set to continue; the demand for fashion writers is increasing. Limited opportunities for future writers to showcase their work.
The analysis below reviewing the lack of opportunities for fashion writing students to showcase their work is based on my own, firsthand experience as a third year Fashion Communication student at Arts University Bournemouth (AUB), combined with interviews I conducted with other third year students on similar courses at the same stage as myself, all hoping to graduate this summer and all looking for the opportunities to showcase our work and skills. (For interview details see appendix) The key findings from this research, albeit from a small sample, were conclusively as follows:
1
2
3 007 // seventh
4 5
There are a few opportunities to showcase work within the universities e.g. BUMF at AUB. However these are infrequently published, not known about widely and have readers who are only students. There were many opportunities in the form of competitions and catwalk shows for 3D fashion students to showcase their work. One student indicated that an email arrived in her in-box every week promoting such an opportunity for designers, whilst she herself was not one, however she had only ever seen two such opportunities for fashion writing students. Diversity Now was mentioned as an opportunity for all fashion students to take part in submitting an entry in the format of their choice e.g. written, photography, illustration etc. Most had taken part in Diversity Now, and some had applied to be an Ambassador for the Costume Society. Vogue Talent Contest was an unpopular opportunity because of the amount of work required and the conflict of the timings of this with final coursework. However this was the competition most would have liked to have won because the prize was an internship at Vogue. While all students said a cash prize would be welcomed they were motivated to enter competitions which would be viewed as a positive input into their portfolio or influence their job potential.
primary research Key comments made by future fashion writers: Few opportunities for Fashion writers to showcase their work. Many opportunities for designers, especially at GFW. Timing of opportunities were important and should avoid clashing with key course work deadlines for graduates. Cash prizes for competitions were motivational but career opportunities such as internships were more so.
c
o
m
p e t i t o r s
009 // ninth
There are only a few competitors to the proposed blog series “1 Year of Culture” who are promoting young writers by publishing their work and ensuring that it is read by industry members.
The deadline for the written pieces to be submitted, either via post or email, was the 8th April 2016 The Vogue Talent Contest for young (for this year specifically) and writers has been running for 66 years the winners will be announced this April. The competition is worldwide in UK Vogue’s October issue. and is open to any member of the The finalists are invited to join public under the age of 25. Vogue’s the editor, currently Alexandra website states that it is ‘one of the Shulman, and a panel of judges most prestigious writing awards around’. at Vogue for lunch where the winner is decided. The winner will The competition, founded in 1950, runs receive £1,000 cash with one of once a year uncovering and nurturing their pieces being published in fresh writing talent. Applicants are asked Vogue, both online and in print. In to submit 3 different types of writing. This addition to this the winner has, in year, 2016, the competition requires: the past, been offered a 1-month paid internship at Vogue. It is An 800 word descriptive unclear why they have removed interview with a person who this incentive from this year’s is not a member of your family. competition. However as Vogue is the fashion magazine a high An 800 word social-observation piece, percentage of young writers aspire a cultural review, a commentary on to, this element of the prize may current affairs, or an article about have been more valuable to many entrants than the financial reward. a fashion or beauty trend. Time will only tell whether removing Three ideas for stories suitable for this incentive will impact on the Vogue, related to the arts, beauty, quality of entrants to ‘the most fashion, a personality, or lifestyle prestigious writing award around’. orientated. You should briefly outline the proposal and, if you like, you may include visual prompts (no longer than 200 words each).
Contest 2014.
010 // tenth
Elle Fanning, by Angelo Pennetta, Vogue Talent
The Vogue Talent Contest for young writers has gained a lot of respect from publishers over the years. Previous winners and runners up of the award include the British Fashion Council’s Sarah Mower, who went onto work at Vogue, Harpers Bazar and The Times and US Vogue’s current Contributing Editor, Hamish Bowles. It is clear from the long list of successful winners that this competition opens huge doors into the fashion industry.
011 // eleventh
It is clear that the Vogue Talent Contest encourages and provides a showcase for the best of future fashion writers. In order to maintain its on going success it is important to recognise the factors that make it successful and identify opportunities to improve the competition as it moves into the future. Such information is identified in the Vogue Talent Contest S.W.O.T Analysis. (See Figure 1).
Talent Contest
Figure 1
S
W O
Strengths
Weaknesses
Opportunities
The competition has been around for 65 Years
Unless you are looking for it, the competition only advertises online and in 1 issue of Vogue per year
Instead of having the competition once a year, make it biannual to allow more people the chance and time to enter
Offers prize money for the winners, as well as the opportunity to work at Vogue for a year The majority of the winners have landed themselves a long term job at Vogue through their winning entry and have remained there for many years The competition includes 3 parts, an interview, an observation piece and article proposals, allowing room for different specialisms
Once a year does not give all interested writers the opportunity to enter e.g. University deadlines at the same time Only having 1 winner eliminates and disheartens a great deal of people As the finalists have to attend a lunch before the winner is decided, it indicates that the Talent contest is not 100% based on the written work submitted
Introduce a few different categories throughout the competition, to give more people the motivation to enter. Such as interview OR creative writing OR review Introduce a competition that is for a different age range that is above 25 Promote the competition in every issue in a subtle way in order to attract more attention
T Threats
The majority of entrants who are around University student age, have tight deadlines around the time of year that the competition entries have to be submitted: April 8th 2016, this may put people off entering In this day and age the prize money (£1,000 for the winner and £500 for the runner up) is not of a huge value anymore, people may think the odds are too thin and the prize not worth it Competitors offering magazine space for winners, e.g. iD Magazine’s Diversity Now
The competition is advertised online 2 months before the deadline and in the February edition of the magazine. The short lead-time between advertising the competition and the submission deadline might result in reduced applications. The competition is mainly targeted at 18 – 25 year olds who are often students who may have conflicting
priorities at this time of year. The organisation of the competition could be improved by launching the details earlier; perhaps running on going adverts in the magazine throughout the year and on social media. More entrants would be aware of the competition and this would also allow applicants more time to reflect on and write their articles.
key factors to take away: Provide a longer lead-time for submissions, advertising the competition earlier to maximise the quantity of entrants, providing longer time for preparation and avoiding conflict with other priorities.
013 // thirteenth
Ensure the potential applicants are disposed to participate. Creating a competitive framework that provides a prize such as a career potential opportunity e.g. an internship at Graduate Fashion Week or a winning blog entry published in a magazine would encourage high standards.
c
o
m
p e t i t o r s
The UK’s Costume Society is an organisation whose website states that they ‘Promote the study and preservation of historic and contemporary dress’. Membership is £36 per year and offers the members lectures, study days, annual conferences as well as a six-monthly Newsletter. The Society is a registered charity funded by membership fees and donations.
Society’s blog as well as updating the social media one day every week.
The position is voluntary but in participating, the Ambassadors receive a year’s free Costume Society The Costume Society offer an annual membership, two Costume journals Ambassador program. The society and entry and travel to Costume takes on 10 Ambassadors per year, Society events. The Ambassador giving them the chance to share position is an opportunity for their journalistic skills writing articles keen fashion writers of any age about the costume world. The to have their writing published Ambassadors help build the Society’s for a wide audience and allows presence online, by contributing one them to network with fashionistas, blog post per month to the Costume historians and costume experts.
This year, 2016, the application process included submitting a cover letter and short piece of writing. Selected applicants then had to partake in a video interview with two of the Costume Society alumni discussing the journalistic pieces that they would be interested in writing.
United and Draper’s Jobs. These websites are viewed by people employed or aspiring to employment in the fashion industry who will be willing to participate in voluntary work or unpaid internships to further their career ambitions. They would be the perfect fit for the volunteer Ambassador position.
As this Ambassador program has only been running for two years there are areas of opportunity for expansion and improvement. These are reviewed in the Costume Society S.W.O.T Analysis. (See Figure 2).
Ideally one of the lesser-known websites, such as Fashion Workie, would be a more suitable advertising space as advertisements are free of charge. Drapers Jobs have a starting fee of ÂŁ648 per advert. As the Costume Society is a charity organisation, this would be an impossible cost.
The Costume Society advertised their Ambassador positions this year through their social media and on their blog. Although every paying member of the Society as well as their 4,000 social media followers could view this job advert, it could have been publicised further to reach a wider audience. In order to increase the number of applicants and reach writers interested in fashion and costumes the Society could advertise on sites such as Fashion Workie, Fashion
Not only will the wider advertising of the Ambassador Program attract more applicants to the scheme it will also increase awareness of the Costume Society name and potentially lead to a higher number of members. The selection of 10 ambassadors ensures that the styles of writing and topics are diverse and articles are varied and do not become repetitive.
key factors to take away:
015 // fifteenth
Advertising must be directed at targeted applicants e.g. job sites for potential future fashion writers. Low cost and free advertising space is available and can facilitate communication with the targeted applicants. More than one position provides greater variety of writing styles and makes pieces more diverse than if there was only one writer.
Figure 2
S
Strengths Have a large following and a large number of paying members who would be excited to read the blog posts Offer Ambassadors compensation for visits to exhibitions and interviews for the blog Ambassadors are allowed free entry to Costume Society conferences Interview potential Ambassadors prior to confirming their job role and read old work before interviewing Have two blog editors to ensure a high quality of writing is published on the blog
W O
Weaknesses
Opportunities
Other blogs cover more than just costume, for example culture such as art and music, this may be more appealing for certain writers
Employee more Ambassadors in order to produce more blog posts
The additional task of keeping the social media up to date one day a week a long side a monthly blog post, even though it is possible to schedule in advance may be originally off putting to potential applicants Not a great deal of exposure to the public, unless you have been told about the society or stumble across it on social media, it is not well known
Put Ambassadors in touch with specific industry members in order to interview them Offer a scholarship placement for one of the Ambassadors at the end of the year judging on how hard they have worked, either within the Costume Society or another close company Have a meeting with all of the Ambassadors once every few months in order to generate ideas
T Threats
There is potential that the Costume Society will lose their income (which is made from people paying for membership as well as donations) and, even though they use a lot of volunteers, such as the Ambassadors, not be able to keep the Society afloat Due to the Ambassador position being a voluntary one, Ambassadors could feel they have taken on too much and drop out A lack of original ideas, due to the society discussing costume history
017 // seventeenth
creative academic bold open-minded opinionated passionate cultural determined ambitious dedicated researcher motivated independent engaging driven inquisitive
Figure 3
‘1 Year of Culture’ is specifically targeting fashion students, either recently graduated or currently at University. Whether they are Fashion Journalists, Marketing students or have opted to take the design path and are desperate for a written outlet, they will be extremely driven. They are looking to differentiate themselves from the pack and want to demonstrate to future employers that they are passionate about the world of fashion and culture and can express themselves with flair and creativity. They are intrigued by fashion, art, music, film, books and plays; magazine articles on key trends, to black and white films, to Shakespeare, there is no end to the scope of their interests. They travel far and wide to see new collections on the catwalk; seeking out obscure musical festivals; attending cultural exhibitions; listening to artistic talks and staying up late scrolling through a stranger’s blog posts. They are motivated to learn more about what influences and impacts on their cultural passions and will take time to research facts and opinions before forming their own views, which they will share with clarity and exuberance. Although they are independent, they enjoy being part of a team and thrive on the feedback and views of others who read and critique their work. They work well under pressure and to tight deadlines, often working through the night, egged on by coffee and the sense of achievement when a piece of work is finished. They want nothing more than for their voice to be heard and their views valued.
consumer demographics
018// eighteenth
They are Generation Y, however they are fascinated by the generations past, looking to understand and investigate the impact that these eras have on today’s culture.
brand identity It is important to build brand equity within a non-profit business. As a charity GFW has developed a strong brand identity within the world of fashion employers, existing and future employees. It promotes itself as, and is recognised as being ‘The world's leading event celebrating the creativity of students and graduates within fashion.’ As part of the wider aim of GFW, the blog series will focus on its own aim of celebrating the creativity of students and graduates within the world of fashion writing. As the blog series will be launched and published on the GFW official website, it is important that any communication must incorporate the key aspects of the Graduate Fashion Week brand, being easily identifiable as part of the Graduate Fashion Week but also reflecting the individual aspects of identity relevant to the blog series itself. GFW has always been a simplistic, luxury brand, graduates recognize as a prestigious event. Its name is uncomplicated and factual – it is what it says it is. Creating a name for the blog series needs to mirror this, something simple and to the point was fitting. A witty title or catchphrase would not be in keeping with the GFW brand. The title ‘1 Year of Culture’ is to the point, a blog series covering a year of cultural exploration. The title is short and it is easy to remember. The GFW logo is simple, uncluttered, with the organisation name in white block lettering set on a black background. Its simplicity ensures it does not detract from the creativity of the designers who are showcasing. Psychologically the colour used in a brands logo translates a message and mood - for example yellow indicates a happiness and friendliness. The use of black in the GFW logo demonstrates sophistication, luxury and elegance are conveyed by the simplicity and minimalism of the design.
The negative white space of the logo can be seen as a blank canvas waiting for creative inspiration. The logo for the blog series needs to be built around and include GFW logo and reflect the same simplicity of design and colours. Incorporating the GFW logo draws graduates in. The opportunity to blog will be viewed by fashion writers with the same prestige as the designers who show at GFW. The logo is extended to include the words ‘Honouring 25 Years of’, promote the purpose and inspiration behind the blog and reflects that the blog is an extension of GFW. The keywords ‘Fashion, Music, Art’ inform the reader that the blog covers a variety of aspects of culture, with Fashion leading these. A new and unique visual acts as a signature logo- a collection of black lines in a row, tumbling over. Fitting with the simplicity and colours of the main logo, this image subtly portrays the breaking down of barriers between different aspects of the cultural world. This image will identify the blog series on all communications whether with or without any text. The visual aspects of the logos and images used to reflect the blog series will clearly communicate the link to the GFW message while creating an seperate identity that will link to the blog itself. This strong visual connection will ensure enhanced customer loyalty and develop a strong network of readers and future applicants who wish to write in the blog series.
To put themselves forward to write blog entries students will sign up at GFW 2016. GFW 2016 will be held, as it has been for the past few years, at the Truman Brewery in East London. Its central location and industrial, edgy interior, make the Brewery the perfect venue for GFW.
place
021 // twenty-first
See GFW Blog Series S.W.O.T Analysis (Figure 4) for further information on strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats regarding the blog series.
GFW Blog Series
S.W.O.T Analysis
S+ W
Charity Organisation 30,000+ guests each year 40+ involved Universities Boasts successful designers such as Stella McCartney and Christopher Bailey Sponsored by well-known brands Provides Graduates with recognition Partnered with Drapers Jobs, Fashion Scout and more Victoria Beckham and Christopher Bailey are 1st ever Patrons for GFW
T R E N G T S
E A K N E S S E S
+ Only shows the top students for each University + High focus on 3D Designers as opposed to 2D creatives + Crammed stand space for many Universities + Social media is not updated often Blog is not updated often + Social Media’s soul focus is on 3D designers + Website design is out dated + Website does not provide much information about the event + Not many event seats available
+ Branch out & host GFW’s in other countries + Add more sponsors therefore increasing budget + One on one interviews with industry members at the event + More social media presence Pre-organised job interviews at the event + Allowing students to be involved with the event management + Working with LFW to increase publicity + Behind the scenes coverage Inviting international industry members and bloggers the event
P P O R T U N I T I E S
H R E A T S
+ Competitors who are focusing more on 2D work + Sponsorship falls through + Other Universities follow St Martins and London College of Fashion and go straight to the LFW catwalk + Competitors such as the Vogue Talent contents and The Costume Society steal away fashion journalists + University costs cause less students and therefore a lower standard of final work + Ticket prices put of visiting public from attending the event
+ + + + + + + +
+ O+ T
Figure 4
Promoting the blog at this event will ensure that everyone showcasing their work and visiting the event will have the opportunity to take part. The footfall at this event was 36,000 in 2015. Facilitating a sign up method, which is quick and easy, will encourage budding fashion writers to engage. A small stand promoting the opportunity to blog on the GFW web site will be designed, posing the unmissable statement ‘Sign up to be a blogger for Graduate Fashion Week’. A large screen video showing shots from the website will be projected. The stand will be manned and as individuals show an interest they will engage them in a conversation to encourage them to sign up. The sign-up sheet will document which dates each blog post will be scheduled to go live as well as informing the interested bloggers what decade and type of blog post is needed for specific dates. They can therefore select their preferred era and style of blog post e.g. July 3rd, era 1900-1910 style of blog post required, Iconic Outfits of the decade. An array of books will be provided on the tables to inspire potential writers. This will allow students freedom and creativity to decide which topic interests them enough to write a blog post.
023 // twenty-third
place
SIGN UP TO BE A BLOGGER FOR GRADUATE FASHION WEEK Email Address
Name
Review Fashion Legacy
Iconic Outfits Interview Review Fashion Legacy
Across the year, month by month, decade by decade, the blog will explore cultural history from 1900 to today. The blog will be posted on the Graduate Fashion Week site and social media. There will be features on iconic outfits, interviews with cultural icons, a focus on the legacy of the era, as well as reviews of books, exhibitions and events relating to the period.
Iconic
A piece on the iconic, famous and memorable looks from the decade. Anything from celebrities or fashion trends to famous film costumes and the hair and make up of the time.
Review Fashion Legacy Iconic Outfits Interview Review
Interview Review Fashion Legacy
Fashion Legacy October 2016 Iconic Outfits Interview Review Fashion Legacy
March 2017
1990’S 1980’S
The series will give the Graduate Fashion Week bloggers a springboard into a new career by establishing a link between their written practice and the fashion indusrty. This platform for self promotion, endorsed by Graduate Fashion Week, will help to create professional networks.
Interview
Iconic Outfits
September 2016
1930’S 1920’S
Graduate Fashion Week are looking for fashion students and graduates, interested in writing about fashion, art and music, to take part in a blog series: 1 Year of Culture. The series is honouring 25 years of Graduate Fashion Week and will begin in July 2016. 1 Year of Culture aims to break down the currently daunting barrier between members of the industry and student graduates.
February 2017
1970’S
1910’S
August 2016 Iconic Outfits
Iconic Outfits Interview Review Fashion Legacy April 2017 Iconic Outfits Interview Review Fashion Legacy
Legacy
A piece on the legacy of the decade; examining the way in which the decade has had a lasting effect on fashion design today – from the catwalk to the high street.
Each blog post is to be a minimum of 500 and a maximum of 1,000 words with supporting images.
May 2017
2000’S
A review of a catwalk show, exhibition, album, song, collection, magazine spread, book or film that is related in some way to the specific decade.
Iconic Outfits Interview Review Fashion Legacy
Iconic Outfits Interview Review Fashion Legacy
December 2016 Iconic Outfits Interview Review Fashion Legacy
June 2017
2010+
Review
1950’S
An interview with an expert on the decade. Ideally designers, authors, musicians, museum curators, and lecturers, all who have produced work reflecting the decade.
1940’S
November 2016
Interview
Email Address January 2017
1960’S
1900’S
July 2016 Interview
Iconic Outfits Interview Review Fashion Legacy
024 // twenty-fourth
Name Iconic Outfits
GFW is a charity and sponsor funded event. Sponsors include retailers such as George at Asda (who have been the title sponsor for the past 4 years), Karen Millen, Boohoo.com, L’oreal, Samsonite, and Drapers. Ideally the blog series should create the opportunity to showcase fashion writers at no cost to the event. This would be possible were the opportunity to blog on GFW web site perceived by fashion student as a career promoting incentive and be a task they would carry out without financial reward. The marketing and promotion supporting the blog series would be positioned on the GFW web and social media sites. With a following of 10,000 on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, the marketing could be created completely online. By ensuring that the blog series will be written entirely by emerging Fashion journalism students, there will be no additional cost to GFW. In fact it may also encourage more students to attend GFW simply to sign up to the opportunity. The success of the blog should encourage more hits to the GFW website as readers log on regularly to read the next article in the series.
025 // twenty-fifth
See GFW Blog Series Brand Onion for details on brand values (Figure 5).
price
Touch Points
Personality
Values Promoting undiscovered talent
Diverse Ensuring success
Influential
Engaging
Working as a confidence booster
Demonstrate a range of writing styles
Established
Developing opportunities
Innovative
E s s e nce Celebrating the creativity of students and graduates within fashion in the UK Motivating fashion students to dig deeper
Interested
Offer guidance and editing Allowing creatives to have a voice
Worthwhile
Inspiring
Creative
Generating fresh ideas
Developed
Figure 5
026 // twenty-sixth
Creating relationships between students and industry members
P+ E
Figure 6
Rising University costs may put future students off attending and therefore leaving the blog series as well as the whole GFW event with a lesser talent and less interest.
O L I T I C A L
C O N O M I C A L
Keeping on top of current social events and trends is equality as important as the ‘1 Year of Culture’ blog series that looks back over the last 100 years. GFW’s Social media and original blog should still be kept up to date to be suitable for every target market.
O C I A L
E C H N O L O G Y
As the blog series will be published online, and due to the increase in online publications and use of the Internet, there could not be a better time to launch. The progression of technology, online at least, will do nothing but benefit the series.
E G A L
N V I R O M E N T
Due to the series being published online rather than in magazine or newspaper format, the company is indirectly working to help the environment. The public may opt to read the blog series as opposed to a magazine due to it being more ecofriendly as well as not having any cost.
Due to the blog series not being a profitable organization at current, the economic climate will not directly damage the effect of the blog on the brand GFW, however if GFW loses it’s funding, through sponsors etc., the website and therefore the blog will be come irrelevant.
+ S+T + L+E
Articles must be double checked to ensure that no plagiarism has occurred. Writers and editors for the blog must be aware that all positions are unpaid before they commit to the blog series and a contract must be drawn up so that the responsibility of each job is covered.
The end product would be the ongoing blog series itself. The product would only be established when specific fashion students had signed up and committed to each blog slot and the blog had been added to the GFW website. Once the blog series itself had begun in July 2016, the rewards of the scheme would begin to show.
product
GFW Blog Series
P.E.S.T.L.E Analysis
028 // twenty-eighth
See GFW Blog Series P.E.S.T.L.E Analysis (Figure 6) for further information on the political, economic, social, technological, legal and environmental issues regarding the blog series.
To begin with, the blog writers themselves would be acknowledged as published writers and their work would be viewed by thousands of fashion creatives. In addition, the content of their articles online would educate and interest the fashion community. ‘1 Year of Culture’ would provide the viewers with an insight into fashion trends, personal interviews and reviews of exhibitions, films and books that were inspired by the decade in question. The blog posts, each between 600-1,200 words, would summarize the particular topic and would be written in a way that draws in the reader. With each blog post being created by a different student, a range of different styles of writing would be evident. From formal to witty to journalistic; the lack of set in stone structure for each blog post would not only allow the writers freedom, but ensure that there was a wide variety of pieces to choose from.
029 // twenty-ninth
In celebrating 25 Years of GFW, the ‘1 Year of Culture’ blog would act as a spring board for young creatives and draw in a wider following of the GFW website and social media. This would increase the awareness of the event, increasing further its recognition and market presence and hopefully create an opportunity to draw in further investors and sponsors. The blog could become an annual or biannual event offering a greater incentive such as an internship for a fashion magazine if sponsorship was found.
7
201 e un
j
july
6
201
p e o p l e In order for the blog series to achieve its objectives the quality of the writing must be of a high standard, intriguing, informing and interesting the readers. The blog writers must be a Fashion student studying within the UK, who have an interest in Fashion writing and journalism. In order to avoid unnecessary administration writing portfolio or interviews would not be required before people are allowed to commit to blog. However a volunteer blog editor would be recruited. This individual (or the role could be shared by more than one individual) would need to have previous experience
as an editor and may be a university lecturer or a member of staff who currently works for GFW and would be prepared to take on the role. The role would require someone for the year (July 2016-June 2017) who has an insight into the world of fashion and culture and is able to give feedback on writing in a sensitive and productive manor. By adding this role to the blog series, the blog will not only give students the opportunity to have their work published, but will also allow them to liaise with the blog editor in order to enhance their writing skills. and improve their written style.
Rogers’ Diffusion of Innovations
Innovators 2.5%
Early Adopters 13.5%
Early Majority 34%
Late Majority 34%
Laggards 16%
031 // thirty-first
Figure 7 Within the world of fashion, consumers vary their responses to new trends. Roger’s Diffusion of Innovation categorises the different ways we respond to new trends and identifies the percentage of the population that fit into each category: innovators, early adopters, early majority, late majority and laggards. An ‘innovator’, a small percent of the population, are the risk takers, who will initiate the trend and wear it before anybody else. ‘Early adapters’ are people who pick up on a trend in the early stages; they have confidence and embrace change. The ‘early majority’ represents the main bulk of people adapting to a trend, whereas the ‘late majority’ tend to buy into a trend when it’s very established, at its peak or beginning to decline. ‘Laggards’ are people who refuse to take risks; they catch onto trends when the trend is on its way out.
Opposite in Figure 7, Rogers’ Diffusion of Innovations graph demonstrates the specific groups of people that would be interested in writing for the blog series. As ‘1 Year of Culture’ is a source of information, in the same way as a newspaper article is, the topics that are being written about must be innovative E.g. a blog entry could not mirror an article written on the same topic, the blog entry would have to provide something newwhether this is new facts or the personal opinions of the writer.
032// thirty-second
With this in mind, the writers of the blog must be opinionated and confident in expressing their views. The ideal writers for the blog series would be ‘early adapters’, someone who is quick to pick up on trends but also welcomes change and feedback. Alternatively innovators; setting the trends rather than following them and not afraid to take risks with their subject matter or ‘early majority’, keen to write about bold statements made by other people, would both be ideal categories for our writers to come from.
promotional strategy Teaser:
1
In the 3 months leading up to the event, GFW Social Media will be updated with teaser slogans e.g. “Dreaming of a career in fashion writing?” that, once clicked on, will take the customer straight to the GFW Blog and all of the details of the Blog Series. The teaser social media posts will initially be once a week, gradually becoming more frequent. In the 2 weeks leading up to GFW they will be posted daily. Emails will be sent out to the 40 Universities that participate in GFW. The course leader (Fashion) will receive an email with information attached (poster) or the current Teaser regarding the blog series and will be asked forward the email to all of the fashion students, inviting them to the sign up stand at GFW.
At GFW:
2
An article will be published in the GFW brochure explaining what is involved in the Blog Series and promoting the stand’s location. An exhibition stand will be set up:
The stand will be manned by informed volunteers to explain and encourage participation. Visuals will be shown on a plasma TV screen including clips, videos, art, music, photos, representing various decades and inspiring potential bloggers. A selection of books on each decade will be available for bloggers to look at for inspiration. An Invitation to write “Sign up banner and sheet” will be on the wall for bloggers to commit to participate.
interview GRADUATE 25 FASHION
HONORING
YEARS OF
1
OF
Y
WEEK
R EA C U LT U R E FASHION
Jon Savage
MUSIC ART
Author of ‘1966: The Year The Decade Exploded’ Jon Savage, high profile music journalist and writer, released ‘1966: The Year The Decade Exploded’ in November last year. Savage, who was 13 during the year 1966, understands the in’s and out’s of the culture known as ‘Pop’. In his book he has looked to explore and understand the urgency and compression of ‘66 as well as digging deeper into the popular music, fashion, art and politics of the time. Meeting Savage at his book talk at the Fashion and Textiles Museum in London allowed us to discuss the research and inspiration behind his new release:
Why did you want to write about 1966 specifically? It was a very instinctive decision that took me five seconds to make, and after making the decision I then spent three years trying to work out why I had made that decision and that’s the book! What interests me about ’66 begins with music, I experienced
The Week to Follow GFW:
3
Branded emails will be sent to future bloggers confirming details of requirements, process, timescale etc. Each will be personally addressed to them, highlighting their specific time slot and topic and providing them with generic information such as links to Facebook pages etc. Social media will post updates informing the public about the blog series and the bloggers who will be writing the posts. It is important for the bloggers to receive affirmation and publicity in order for them to feel that participating in the blog series is worth their time.
music, I was young at that time, I was 12 or 13, that’s the time when music has a real impact an you are beginning to move away from your parents and start getting involved in the world of your peers. It’s a year of extremes, it’s a year of compression,
Monthly:
4
Over the 12 months of the blog series, social media will be the key to promoting new blog posts. Each blog post that is posted will have a social media update on both Facebook and Twitter. This will allow the writers, their friends and family, as well as people involved in the industry to ‘retweet’ and ‘share’ the post, resulting in a larger audience for each blog post. Each social media update will be describing the chosen topic of the blog post as well as which blogger has written them.
Comments on social media as well as the blog will be monitored daily and hits on the site will be recorded to document website traffic.
development plan The success of the first GFW blog series, celebrating 25 years of the event, can be measured by the key criteria linked to each objective (See objectives, Page 4, for reference). It has a number of target audiences who will be impacted by its success; the graduate fashion writers; the GFW website followers and the fashion industry recruiting fashion writers of the future. GFW itself will be perceived as widening its impact and reaching a wider audience, hence strengthening its brand.
035 // thirty-fifth
Monitoring the progress of the event will be multi-faceted. Looking at the impact of the promotional strategies on the website and social media can be quantified through monitoring website hit growth and retweets and shares on Twitter and Instagram for example. Demand and enthusiasm for sign up by writers will be imperative and an over demand for slots would indicate that the blog promotion is successful. As soon as the first blog post goes live progress can be tracked by watching the GFW Blog online traffic. This impact should grow over time if the articles are interesting and well written. However research into the nature of online reading may suggest that people do not follow a series of articles in this manner as they select their articles by topic rather than by brand. “What becomes of brand and brand experience when content is atomised — people consume the track, not the album; the article, not the magazine� states Lauren Sherman. This may suggest that the impact of the articles may take longer to grow the website audience. This is a complex area to monitor and quantify. Monitoring the impact of the blog series on the fashion writers could be done through interview. Do they feel more confident in their writing ability? Have they learnt something from the pieces they have written? Have they been approached about, or has their participation in the blog series helped them in any way to find, a job or internship?
The success of the initial blog series would determine whether it should become an integrated part of GFW. There will be learnings of course for the mechanics used to run the event, which will be taken on board. There is scope for the blog series to expand and offer a stronger incentive if it is successful. Future developments could include-
1 2 3
Repeating the concept with a different blog series each year. E.g. exploring different aspect of the fashion world, from ethics, to textiles, to futuristic collections to newer small brands. Increasing the number demand for slots was bimonthly or eventually
of posts if exceeded. E.g. weekly posts.
Expanding the scope of the blog to include photography slots or styling slots providing a wider range of fashion students the opportunity to bridge the gap between graduation and employment.
These exciting new areas for GFW event would increase the hits on the website and allow them to engage with students all year round instead of focusing specifically on their once a year event.
037 // thirty-seventh
4
A sponsor for the blog could be found, and to improve motivation for applicants, an intern placement offered to one or more writers whose pieces stand out.
5
As the demand for writers to take up slots grew, the event could take on a more competitive element, where blog slots were awarded based on a selected basis i.e. aspiring writers had to submit a short piece of writing that was assessed. As the blog series runs throughout the year conflicts with course work could be avoided.
6
As the event grew applications to write would be made on line and the successful applicants and their nominated slots and article titles announced at GFW.
conclusion
038 / thirty-eighth
This blog series is an innovative and original idea, which can initially be tested at no cost to GFW. It will provide opportunities for many in the fashion industry, from fashion magazines and websites looking to employ the best in future fashion writers, to the graduate writers themselves, to anyone interested in reading about fashion, to the organizers of GFW. There is little risk involved and a lot to gain for all parties. I look forward to a conversation with GFW to discuss how this concept gets started.
appendix Figure 1: S.W.O.T Analysis (Also the template for figures 2 and 4) Posner, H. (2011) Marketing fashion. London: Laurence King Pub A S.W.O.T Analysis provides a framework to collate and review investigative information. It is used to audit the internal strengths and weaknesses of a business enterprise and identify external factors that might provide potential opportunities within the marketplace and business environment. A S.W.O.T Analysis is also used to determine and assess external issues that could pose threats to the enterprise or its brands. Once the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats have been established they can presented in a simple overview table. Figure 3: Segmentation Variables /Consumer Portrait Posner, H. (2011) Marketing fashion. London: Laurence King Pub It is normal to use a combination of criteria; the exact mix will be dependent on the objectives of the research project and the specifics of the company and it’s market. Demograpic segmentatin is one of the most widely used metods of classification. It uses key variables such as age, gender, generation, occupation, income, life stage and social-economic status. The idea is to decipher what consumers think, how they behave, why they purchase what they purchase, habbits and what product benefits they require.
appendix Figure 5: Brand Onion Posner, H. (2011) Marketing fashion. London: Laurence King Pub A Brand Onion shows a concise overview of a brand identity and how it is expressed in actual strategic actions. It allows brands to ensure that their key touch-points accurately reflect the brand values.
Figure 6: P.E.S.T Analysis E x a m p l e Business Essay. (2014), UKEssays.com, P.E.S.T Analysis’ explores how the macro environment has and can impacted the industry. Figure 7: Rogers’ Diffusion of Innovations Posner, H. (2011) Marketing fashion. London: Laurence King Pub Rogers’ Diffusion of Innovations identifies five different types of individual classified by their propensity to adopt innovation. Innovators, Early Adopters, Early Majority, Late Majority and Laggards. Consumers vary their response to new trends and ideas.
interview Figure 8 Jasmine Martin-Lord Fashion Communication
What opportunities did you find existed for graduates/students interested in fashion writing to showcase their talents at your university?
There are not many opportunities for graduates to showcase their talents. With a creative course writing isn’t as visually pleasing as a portfolio or a publication. It is harder to showcase a pieces of writing visually so I don’t think universities know how to represent it.
What opportunities did you find existed for graduates/students interested in fashion writing to showcase their talents outside of your university?
I am currently part of the costume society, which gives me a platform to write about fashion on an academic level, and share knowledge about the history of fashion.
Which did you take part in?
Diversity now & The Costume Society.
What motivated you to take part in that and not in others?
I like writing about black history and diversity in fashion and Diversity Now gave me an opportunity to write about diversity in fashion.
Why did you not take part in others?
There weren’t other competitions available & university deadlines.
Which would motivate you more: a competition that offered an internship within the industry or a competition that offered a cash prize?
Internship with industry.
Are there any other prizes that would encourage you to enter?
No.
Are there any other ways that you would suggest that the fashion industry could provide fashion writing students to showcase their talents?
More programs or competitions available for graduates.
interview Figure 8 Amy Roberts Fashion Communication
What opportunities did you find existed for graduates/students interested in fashion writing to showcase their talents at your university?
3rd year gave us the opportunity to apply to competitions specializing in creative fashion writing, as well as knowing what websites to look on for jobs. (Fashion Workie etc.)
What opportunities did you find existed for graduates/students interested in fashion writing to showcase their talents outside of your university?
Diversity Now and the Vogue Talent Contest.
Which did you take part in?
Diversity Now, creative writing.
What motivated you to take part in that and not in others?
I think creative writing is just as important as creative visual work. It helps shape people’s opinions and views after reading it.
Why did you not take part in others?
I didn’t know there were any other opportunities.
Which would motivate you more: a competition that offered an internship within the industry or a competition that offered a cash prize?
An internship in the industry (paid would be a dream).
Are there any other prizes that would encourage you to enter?
Internships abroad- especially in developing countries such as India.
Are there any other ways that you would suggest that the fashion industry could provide fashion writing students to showcase their talents?
There should be a specific platform dedicated to purely creative written work- maybe a competition through i:D/Dazed etc.
bibliography Color meanings in business (2009) Available at: http://www.empoweryourself-with-color-psychology.com/color-meanings-in-business.html Diversity NOW 2016 Available competitions/diversitynow2016/
at:
http://www.artsthread.com/
Durant, D.M. and Horava, T. (2015) ‘The future of reading and academic libraries’, portal: Libraries and the Academy, 15(1), pp. 5–27. doi: 10.1353/pla.2015.0013. Ewer, T. (2014) 14 surprising statistics about WordPress usage. Available at: https://managewp.com/14-surprising-statistics-aboutwordpress-usage Fashion jobs & careers in retail with drapers jobs (2008) Available at: http://www.drapersjobs.com/ Fashion, beauty, celebrities, news (2016) Available at: http://www. marieclaire.co.uk/ Graduate fashion week (2012) Available at: http://www.gfw.org.uk/ Hepworth, D. (2015) Fashion magazines reap the benefit of print – but there have to be enough ads. Available at: http://www.theguardian. com/media/media-blog/2014/feb/16/fashion-magazines-printadvertising-porter Hulkower, B. (2014) ‘Digital and Print Magazines’, Mintel, (1). Inc, T. (no date) High street fashion, celebrity style, Hairstyles and beauty - look magazine. Available at: http://www.look.co.uk/ Lea-Greenwood, G. (2008) Fashion marketing communications. United Kingdom: Blackwell Publishing.
043 / forty-third
Marketing psychology and the hidden persuaders (2000) Available at: https://thepsychologist.bps.org.uk/volume-20/edition-8/marketingpsychology-and-hidden-persuaders
Pascal, D. (2014) Home. Available at: http://www.goodhousekeeping. co.uk/ Pop magazine Available at: http://thepop.com/ Posner, H. (2011) Marketing fashion. London: Laurence King Pub. Rowlands, B. (2015) The fall and rise of magazines from print to digital. Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/media-network/ media-network-blog/2013/mar/07/fall-rise-magazines-print-digital Sherman, L. (2016) ‘BoF exclusive | American vogue publisher talks strategy shifts’, Intelligence, Singer, O. (2015) The illustrious history of the fashion magazine. Available at: http://www.anothermag.com/fashion-beauty/7487/theillustrious-history-of-the-fashion-magazine Swanson, K.K., Everett, J.C. and Ev.., J.C. (2008) Writing for the fashion business. New York: Fairchild Books. The costume society (2016) Available at: http://www.costumesociety. org.uk/ The old Truman Brewery (no date) Available at: http://www. trumanbrewery.com/ Vogue talent contest 2016 (2016) Available at: http://www.vogue. co.uk/miss-vogue/whats-up/2016/02/vogue-talent-contest-2016 Westwood, J. (2010) How to write a marketing plan: Carry out a marketing audit; establish objectives and strategies; create an effective plan (Sunday Times creating success). 3rd edn. London: Kogan Page.
bibliography
044// forty-fourth
Wheeler, A. (2012) Designing brand identity: An essential guide for the whole branding team. 4th edn. United States: John Wiley & Sons Canada. Available at: http://www.fashionworkie.com/
045 / forty-fifth