Lauryn Lavender

Figure 1Models of diverse looks walk and dance on the runway for the Tommy Hilfiger runway show in September 2019

One of the main focuses for the fashion industry to be successful is for it to know its consumer inside and out to ensure they adhere for their wants and needs. (Shelley, 2017)“The appearance of a design should evoke associations with its originators in the minds of consumers, thus helping its originators to market it effectively.”

The fashion industry wouldn’t exist without ‘People’ and this Is why it’s one of the 4 pillars the business fashion school.Generation Z (Gen Z) is an everchanging cohort of people between the ‘ages of 6 and 26’ (Morgan, 2022). It’s the hyper connected, fast paced generation that fashion businesses are constantly evolving for to suit their ever-growing needs. A generation surrounded by technology created an overconsumption of new information, it revealed four main Gen Z behaviours as a consumer; (Hoefel, 2018)“They strive for individuality and self-expression, they mobilize themselves and are prepared to take action for a variety of causes, they believe in the efficacy of dialogue to solve conflicts and improve the world, finally they make decisions and relate to institutions in a highly analytical way.” Regarding these points stated, it makes the Gen Z consumer a forward-thinking individual who are attracted to brands which advocate for future development and change, socially and economically. 

Linking back to the Gen Z consumer living in a digital world, social media and forms of AI have become increasingly more popular in everyday life. This resulted in fashion brands making the switch from instore and paper back advertisement, to social media and digital advertisement across many platforms. (Morgan, 2022) states; “the Gen Z consumer values a sense of community and are likely to respond well to brands and retailers who are using new technology, as well as anything that gives them a sense of control or co-creation, as TikTok and metaverse environments often do.” 

Brands like Swarovski have rebranded themselves to appeal to the Gen Z consumer. The 2023 marketing campaign on the collection ‘Metamorphosis’ is a perfect example of how brands are adhering to change to catch the eye of the Gen Z consumer. The ad was launched on TikTok, Instagram and other social media sites. The campaign featured a range of diverse fashion influencers modelling the jewellery in ways which where culturally appropriate to their backgrounds. “A celebration of self-expression and transformation, highlights a collection inspired by tropical flora and fauna.” ( L’Officiel Malaysia, 2023)

Bibliography 

Hoefel, F. (2018) Tracy Francis and Fernanda Hoefel – drthomaswu.com Tracy Francis, ‘True Gen’: generation Z and its implicationd for companies. Translated by T. Francis. Available at: http://drthomaswu.com/uicmpaccsmac/Gen%20Z%20Highlighted.pdf (Accessed: 16 October 2023).

Malaysia, L. (2023) Swarovski wants you to spread your wings with metamorphosis, L’Officiel Malaysia | Fashion, Beauty, Lifestyle, Arts & Culture. Available at: https://www.lofficielmalaysia.com/jewellery-watches/swarovski-wants-you-to-spread-your-wings-with-metamorphosis#:~:text=A%20celebration%20of%20self%2Dexpression,by%20tropical%20flora%20and%20fauna. (Accessed: 17 October 2023).  

Shelley, C. (1970) Style, SpringerLink. Available at: https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-52515-0_4 (Accessed: 15 October 2023). 

The term sustainability is used frequently in today’s fashion industry to present a brands integrity towards how they produce clothing and whether its ethical towards the planet and people. Defining the word sustainability as a general term is for, something to have the ability to be maintained at a certain rate or level. Relating back to today’s fashion economy it suggests the sustainable changes brands are beginning to make must become permanent, it must stop focusing on temporary fixed and symptoms and instead commit to finding long-term solutions that address the underlying causes of the extremely high environmental and social costs of fashion. (Gwilt, The Sustainable Fashion Glossary, 2014). The fashion industry is responsible for 2-8% of the worlds greenhouse gas emissions (Adamkiewicz, 2022), however using more sustainable materials and production methods with reduce the impacts. If these changes aren’t pursued the environmental impacts on the planet from the production of fashion will be catastrophic and irreversible if we leave it much longer.

The SDG goals contain a set of 17 measures to foster sustainable development, they offer a good opportunity to reinvigorate sustainable development in the industry. (Brandli, 2017). Sustainable consumption and production patterns,  is one of the SDG (sustainable development goals). Brands are taking onboard sustainable consumption by reusing old collections and recycled materials, this decreases the ricks of land fill and overproduction of clothing. 

Linking back the idea of maintaining the sustainability of today’s fashion industry, brands and companies also need to think about the future. To eliminate the side effects from unsustainable fashion which will impact the planet, some brands have changed their views on production and sale and created the concept of a ‘circular economy’. 

Many sustainable brands have incorporated circular thinking into their processes, It’s all about minimising waste by reusing their existing materials and being conscious about the materials used. There are 4 main points to maintaining a circular economy; maintaining, reusing, refurbishment and recycling. Lastly, on this topic one of the main contributors to solve this issue is for brands to come together and share their knowledge to achieve a more sustainable future for fashion.

References 

Gwilt, A. (2014) The Sustainable Fashion Glossary , Condé Nast. Available at: https://www.condenast.com/glossary/key-elements-of-fashion-and-sustainability (Accessed: 06 October 2023). 

Author links open overlay panelJulia Adamkiewicz 1, J. et al. (2022) Greenwashing and Sustainable Fashion Industry, Current Opinion in Green and Sustainable Chemistry. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2452223622001225 (Accessed: 08 October 2023). 

Nations, U. (no date) Goal 12 | Department of Economic and Social Affairs, United Nations. Available at: https://sdgs.un.org/goals/goal12 (Accessed: 08 October 2023). 

Brandli, L. (2017) Reinvigorating the Sustainable Development Research Agenda: The role of …, Reinvigorating the sustainable development research agenda: the role of the sustainable development goals (SDG). Available at: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13504509.2017.1342103 (Accessed: 08 October 2023). 

Miu Miu the outpost for the most refined femininity. The brand was created by and named after Miuccia Prada as a sister brand of Prada to create an outlet for a more playful, youthful accessible and affordable line of clothing alongside the Prada line itself. The line was produced as a way to expand Miuccias’ designs to appeal onto a new cliental target audience of fashion lovers in their 20s and 30s. The brand was used as a creative outlet for Miuccia to create clothing as her own creative outlet. To introduce this narrative, they specifically chose youth models for ad campaigns and used a different less sophisticated approach to advertisement to connect with the correct audience the clothing was intended for. Unlike Prada at the time she decided to focus less on trends and focussed on designing clothing based on ‘the woman she wants to be.’

The brand started as a reflection of the designer to freely expressing her creativity and inner musing but over the years it has grown into a platform for inclusion and diversity for women empowerment. Initially in 1993 the brand wasn’t successful in the retail industry because they struggled to differentiate themselves from the Prada brand itself, because Miu Miu at this time didn’t have many strong brand identifiers.

This changed when the brand relocated for three seasons starting 1994 and because of Miuccias’ links with Prada the company was commercially viable. After, the brand naturally gained brand identifyers like these pieces which include colour detailed collars, the 60s as inspiration, stripes, babypinks and mini skirts (more recoginsable to todays brand identifyers).

Winter 2002 was one of the first collections which is still currently recognisable and distinguishable against Prada and after this the brand kept growing. A key piece in the collection was a clutch bag, which launched their line of accessories. It was made with the technique of gathering leather, called the mattelelaisse technique, and is still very popular to today’s collections. The spring summer 2022 collection for Miu Miu was what created an even bigger platform for the brand and how it has become extremely recognisable today. This particular show Mrs Prada used aspects of deconstructivism within her pieces, something she isn’t known for. This show was just after covid and critics stated she did it as a link to the current times to show the peoples rebellion to going back to work. It resonated aesthetically and emotionally to the viewers.

Prada as a brand portrays sophistication much more intently throughout their whole process of the production of designs, compared to Miu Mius spontaneously. The spontaneously of the brands designs is shown thought the outcomes produced. Miu Mius brand identity focuses on a mix of beautiful minimalism and avant-garde. The company produces a range of products from sunglasses, bags to perfume scents as-well as clothing.

The brand has stopped using fur and have been fur free since summer/ spring 2020 womens collection. This wasn’t long ago but because of the brands luxury influence from Prada they decided to keep fur in the collections. Miu Miu as a brand has developed massively and its progression of quality and sustainability is ever-growing to todays date.