TREND JOURNAL

TREND JOURNAL Seth Mark

It's good to know where you come from. It makes you what you are today.

CONTENTS 3

FASHION HOOKUP

Designer uses popular gay dating app to debut his latest collection.

GOING OUT IN STYLE

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Which designer is rumored to be leaving this fashion house next?

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The rock superstar is revealed as the most marketable celebrity.

RIHANNA, RIHANNA

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L a t i n America has a new leader in luxury.

mexican luxury

BG ADAPTABILITY

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How the luxury retailer is using the new fashion calendar to their advantage.

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MORE Layers

Could layers being the merchant’s answer to unpredictable weather and higher sales?

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Gucci sales are better than expected.

GUCCI SALES

Dolce & Gabbana’s newest collection draws inspiration from empowerment and princesses

RUNWAY EMPOWERMENT SOURCES

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FASHION HOOK JANUARY 11, 2016

As fashion and technology continue to evolve and merge, we are seeing more unconventional presentations. This forces the creative planners in the industry to think outside the box when it comes to presentations and reaching a wider audience. It also forces merchants and buyers to think outside the box in a similar way. Can they reach a wider audience with unconventional methods?

Alexander McQueen surprised the audience attending his 2006 show, Widows of Culloden, with a hologram of Kate Moss floating above the runway. In 2009, Lady Gaga tweeted the

live stream link to McQueen’s, Plato’s Atlantis, thirty minutes before the show– crashing the site.

Fast forward to 2016, and J.W. Anderson is making similar headlines with the live stream of his fashion show. Instead of crashing a website, it’s where the live stream link was published that made headlines: Grindr.

Grindr is a social media app used by mostly gay/bisexual men looking for [typically sexual] connections.

Believing fashion is a sexy platform, Jonathan Anderson said, “We’re all humans, so we all have to be somewhat sexually attractive to someone. That’s the name of the game, with clothing.”

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He also went on to it was “nobrainer” to put his show on it, and said Grindr is “incredibly modern as a platform.”

Rumors circulated in the beginning, some suggesting model agencies were leery of the show and sending models, but the show seemed to be a success.

The show wasn’t actually streamed through Grindr, the link to the website was exclusively found on the app by users who were given a code for the streaming. The show was streamed about 100,000 times, one third of those were during the event, and accessible for 24 hours after.

KUP

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GOING OUT IN STYLE JANUARY 18, 2016

It seems the only thing the fashion industry loves more than the newest trend is the newest rumor, and Saint Laurent fits the bill.

Speculation has mounted that Hedi Slimane hasn’t reached an agreement to renew his contract at the fashion house. According to a WWD publication, Saint Laurent is said to have identified Anthony Vaccarello as a frontrunner to replace Slimane. Donatella Versace originally recruited Vaccarello to reboot the Versus brand.

Another event keeping the Kering-owned fashion house in the headlines is the announcement via Twitter of the men’s fall 2016 show taking place on February

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10th in Los Angeles instead of Paris. The show is part of a “Saint Laurent at the Palladium” event, and was described as a tribute to the music scene in L.A. by Saint Laurent– Slimane’s home since 2008.

If Simmane does exit Saint Laurent, this event could add to the blows of the exits of Raf Simmons form Dior and Alber Elbaz from Lanvin– signaling a seismic shift in the fashion industry. Are star desginers buckling under the pressures of the high-stakes fashion industry? Are we witnessing an end to cult followings to designers/brands? Only time will tell, and in the meantime merchants must plan accordingly.

THAT RIHANNA REIg JUST WON LET UP JANUARY 25, 2016

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gN N’T

When it comes to brand endorsements, Rihanna is the most marketable celebrity. The NPD Group, a company that tracks consumer spending globally, says Rihanna beats out all other A-list celebrities including Angelina Jolie, Tim McGraw, and Khloe Kardashian. Beyoncé was able to secure second place.

“Rihanna’s index score of 367 means she has almost 3.7 times as many strong brand endorsement opprotunities as the average big-name celebrity,” explained the NPD report. Puma, Jeep, and now Samsung, and River Island are

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among the brands Rihanna has worked with recently. If at least 50% of a celebrity’s fans are likely to use a brand, they’re considered a strong endorsement opportunity.

Knowing which celebrities are best for endorsements, and having the resources companies like NPD provide, marketers can invest money more confidently and efficiently.

At the end of the day, fashion is still a business, and merchants can make better plans when they know which celebrities are more succesful with endorsements.

In 2015, Mexico became Latin America’s wealthiest country after rising 11% to $14 billion. With all that wealth, department stores are updating, increasing square footage, and expanding their brand offerings. Fashion isn’t the only market on the rise in Mexico. Luxury automobile companies like Tesla and BMW are opening dealerships in large cities, and the beauty market saw a 3.8% increase in the first half of 2015.

The number of DINKs/ DINKYs (Double Income, No Kids/Yet) has doubled since 2005. This increase is due to the rise in career-oriented women and postponement of childbearing. These couples are also spending on dining and travel, and other nonmaterial things.

By 2020, the Mexican auto industry is projected to reach a fivemillion-unit production level. Tesla announced its commercialization of the Model S in the Mexican market in late 2015. Aston Martin also opened in the Polanco neighborhood of Mexico City. Besides consumption, Luxury auto companies are looking at Mexico for production.

Mercedes-Benz and Infinity will start production in 2017, followed by Audi and BMW in 2018 and 2019.

Luxury tourism is also experiencing a boost. Air France offers flights to Mexico City from Paris three times a week and plan to hopefully make the service daily after March. Chinese tourists are also interested in 9

Mexico.

“The affluent Chinese are more than ever enjoying trips to exotic locations less frequently visited by their peers,” said Liu Simin of the tourism research center at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. “Latin American countries will soon become the new favourite for the Chinese, especially the rich.”

Keeping up with trends and new financial success is imperative to the fashion marketing world.

Knowing which markets are becoming more successful means possible expansion for the industry, and in Mexico’s case, there are several industries who are able to benefit from the increased wealth of the nation.

MEXICAN LUXURY FEBRUARY 1, 2016

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bg ADAPTABILITY FEBRUARY 8, 2016

With the changing of the fashion calendar, merchants are scrambling to come up with plans that best suit their businesses.

Bergdorf Goodman always seems to be ahead of the curve and responds well to change in the industry, so it’s no surprise they had a plan in place as designers started to announce their intentions to make merchandise available after runways.

Bergdorf ’s plan was called Right off the Runway, and featured designers like Brandon Maxwell, Altuzarra, Cushnie et Ochs, Jason Wu, and Prabal Gurung. The events started on

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February 18, 2016 and lasted to the end of he month.

Customers were invited into the store to view and preorder the collections and meet with the designers.

This event is arguably the best idea any retailers have come up with since the decisions have been made to change the fashion calendar.

Bergdorf Goodman knows their customers and was able to take advantage of a new concept in fashion and benefit. Merchants can continue to learn from other retails and can host exclusive events that appeal to customers and ultimately benefit their bottom line.

MORE LAYERS, PLEASE FEBRUARY 15, 2016

Climates are shifting and changing– and places like New York are unseasonably warm; merchants are forced to come up with purchases and plans to save their bottom line. That’s where layers come in. A great winter merchandise assortment can still be bought ahead of time, and (depending on the temperature) warn as more layers or less to keep warm. Not only does this keep everybody at their ideal temperature, but also it accounts for more items sold in the stores.

TOPMAN

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PROENZA SCHOULER

Brands like Proenza Schouler, Coach, and Raf Simmons are just a few offering maximum styling options with layers. Add the monochrome trend to the mix and suddenly there’s a whole new look, and a whole new selling opportunity for merchants. Public School, Balmain, and Givenchy are big designers who recently sent layered monochrome looks down the runway.

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We’re constantly being updated with information about influential designers leaving their fashion houses.

This leaves merchants wondering if the sales will drop when a new creative takes over. For Kering– more specifically Gucci, the numbers are in and they’re better than anticipated.

Alessandro Michele was appointed Creative Director of Gucci in January

2015, and is responsible for all the collections and global brand image.

His changes have already been huge in his short time in the role. Most people think of Gucci in terms of Tom Ford– plunging necklines and sex appeal. But Michele is more contemporary and less refined, and has generated lots of excitement in stores that has been absent for awhile. Gucci is clearly moving in the right direction, releasing a number of new styles that are turning heads.

Gucci’s Q4 revenue rose 4.8 percent this year compared to last year’s, and was predicted to rise only 1.5 percent.

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What does this mean for merchants? It means that new designers might not be a bad thing. It means that there is still room for creative design choices in luxury fashion. It also creates a spotlight on new designers that merchants need to pay attention to and potentially support and ultimately get a return on their purchases from that fashion house in the retail market.

GUCCI SALES FEBRUARY 22, 2016

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RUNWAY EMPOWERMEN FEBRUARY 29, 2016

The culture norm in the recent past has been for girls to aspire to be like princesses. As times have changed and females find selfempowerment, so have those ideas. Movies like Frozen have shown young viewers how it’s okay to be a princess and still be empowered and live independently instead of relying on somebody to take care of you. Dolce & Gabbana have used this empowerment as inspiration in their latest collection, which mixes fairy tales with the modern woman.

Dolce & Gabbana is known for catering to their customer, and this collection is no different. Details like embroidery covered masculine military

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jackets and trousers, but still remained whimsical and feminine.

Other collections that have focused on the strong, independent woman are Prada and Alexander McQueen.

Merchants who buy for strong independent women are able to offer not only Dolce & Gabbana, but other brands as well who cater to that woman. When knowing intimate details about collections, especially when the inspiration shows through so powerfully, it helps consumers connect with the garments on a different level and really speaks to their personality and fashion expression.

NT

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SOURCES COVER: Quote by Alexander McQueen.

http://www.harpersbazaar.com.au/news/celebrity-tracker/2010/3/alexander-mcqueen-the-final-interview/

FASHION HOOKUP NY Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/07/fashion/grindr-the-gay-dating-app-hooks-up-with-fashion.html?_r=1 http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/12/fashion/mens-style/jw-anderson-grindr-london-fashion-week-fall-2015.html

Images:

http://nymag.com/thecut/2016/01/soon-you-can-watch-a-fashion-show-on-grindr.html http://hypebeast.com/2016/1/grindr-jw-anderson-runway-stream http://www.headlines-news.com/2016/01/11/740239/the-fashion-crowd-considers-j-w-andersons-grindr-debut

GOING OUT IN STYLE WWD

http://wwd.com/fashion-news/designer-luxury/hedi-slimane-leaving-ysl-anthony-vaccarello-10312278/

Images:

http://searchingforstyle.com/2012/06/hedi-slimane-control-freak-stupid/ http://www.fashiongonerogue.com/saint-laurent-fall-winter-2014-campaign/

THAT RIHANNA REIN JUST WON’T LET UP The Root

http://www.theroot.com/blogs/the_grapevine/2016/01/report_rihanna_is_the_most_marketable_celebrity_for_brand_endorsements.html

Images:

http://www.vogue.co.uk/news/2013/02/19/rihanna-river-island-campaign-pictures---jourdan-dunn https://vimeo.com/138946884 http://www.xxlmag.com/lifestyle/2015/11/rihannas-puma-creepers-are-coming-in-mens-sizes/

MEXICAN LUXURY WGSN

http://www.wgsn.com/content/board_viewer/#/64132

Images:

https://thatsthelook.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/magdalena-frackowiak-for-vogue-mexico-december-2011-4.jpg http://alexadecastilho.com/shop/palms-vogue-mexico-2/ http://www.bmwblog.com/2015/07/27/test-drive-tesla-model-s-85/ https://chergeometry.wordpress.com/2013/03/19/distrito-capital-hotel-mexico-city-mexico/ https://forums.unrealengine.com/showthread.php?92240-Virtual-tour-of-the-Tesla-store-in-UE4

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BG ADAPTABILITY 5th/58th BG BLOG

http://blog.bergdorfgoodman.com/women/nyfw-fw2016-rtw/

Images:

http://designlifenetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Bergdorf-Goodman-Christmas-Windows-2013-01.jpg http://blog.bergdorfgoodman.com/women/nyfw-fw2016-rtw/

more layers, please Business of Fashion

http://www.businessoffashion.com/fashion-week/2016aw/proenza-schouler/collection/look/7

Images:

http://www.harpersbazaar.com/fashion/fashion-week-fall-2016/g6841/new-york-fashion-week-fall-2016/ http://www.fashiontimes.com/articles/24630/20160108/london-collections-men-fw16-5-best-looks-from-day-1.htm https://trendcouncil.wordpress.com/2016/01/12/mens-fw16-runway-coach-1941/042m-fw16-coach-1941-tc-11216/

GUCCI SALES Business of Fashion

http://www.businessoffashion.com/articles/opinion/kering-results-signal-a-bright-year-ahead

Images:

https://media.gucci.com/content/DiaryArticleDouble_Standard_1400x894 https://media.gucci.com/content/CategoryHeroHeaderStandard_1600x533

runway empowerment Business of Fashion

http://www.businessoffashion.com/articles/fashion-show-review/fashioning-a-fairytale-dolce-and-gabbana

Images:

http://blogs.disney.com/disney-style/fashion/2016/02/28/dolce-gabbana-runway-show/ http://shilpaahuja.com/fashion/fashion-week/dolce-gabbana-fall-winter-2016-17-ready-to-wear-collection-review/ http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2016/03/01/dolce-and-gabbana-disney_n_9358402.html

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