Yuzihe Shen

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PEOPLE

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The fashion industry focuses on the four pillars to adjust to the changes generated by different pillars rapidly. In contrast, ‘people,’ as consumers and businesses at the same time, need to observe the changes and needs of both sides in order to make the best strategy, especially businessmen who should make marketing strategies in favour of their businesses according to changes in consumers’ preferences. Gen Z, the youngest consumer group, is already influencing the way brands market themselves in their way; Gen Z includes people born between 1996 and 2010, a generation whose identity has been shaped by the digital age, climate anxiety, the changing financial landscape, and the new coronary pneumonia (McKinsey & Company, 2023). 

Moreover, as a generation that grew up with widespread Internet use, Generation Z cannot live their daily lives without electronics: they spend a lot of time shopping and making friends on their mobile phones, habitually turn to the Internet for help when they have a problem and are influenced by short-form video media like TikTok (McKinsey & Company, 2023). However, short video media like TikTok is a double-edged sword for fashion brands, which can either make the brand famous quickly or shorten the cycle of brand popularity (CRIALES-UNZUETA, 2021). Therefore, brands should show a unique personality to attract the attention of Generation Z and direct this attention towards building a lasting relationship. For example, Mazaheri, a TikTok and Instagram influencer, for their account positioning is what is relevant to their work as a queer creative, which makes their account a recognisable character on the Internet, and the brands they choose to work with share the same values and consistency as the account (CRIALES- UNZUETA, 2021). Similarly, companies should work with trustworthy creators to take the lead in promoting their brands. Meanwhile, brands do not necessarily need creators to find an audience if they can create a consistent persona themselves, as in the case of Mirror Palais designer Marcelo Gaia, who uses Jitterbug as an educational platform to showcase concepts such as fast-fashion “dupes” and the quality of garments, which address themes such as the sustainability of Gen-Zers’ fashion (CRIALES- UNZUETA, 2021).

Nevertheless, BUTLER-YOUNG (2022) says a lack of data and to narrow a path to breaking out of fashion remains one of the most significant barriers to progress for many companies, including diversity and inclusion in organisations. However, one retailer, Ulta Beauty, has invested $50 million in diversity, equity, and inclusion development, which also includes conducting diversity recruitment efforts, creating in-house programming for employees, and appointing US actress Tracee Ellis Ross as a diversity and inclusion advisor (KENNEDY, 2022).

Therefore, as a fashion brand, staying on top of new trends and creating a close connection with consumers is essential, which enables the brand to maintain customer loyalty while constantly appearing to be seen by new audiences, thus attracting more consumers.

Reference list

BUTLER-YOUNG, S. (2022). ‘BFC Report Finds Half of European Brands Have a Diversity Strategy But Progress Still Lags’, Workplace & Talent. [Online]. Available at: https://www.businessoffashion.com/news/workplace-talent/bfc-report-finds-half-of-european-brands-have-a-diversity-strategy-but-progress-still-lags/ (Assessed: 30 June 2022)

CRIALES-UNZUETA, J. (2021). ‘To Hold Gen-Z’s Attention, Brands Need to Show Some Personality’, Marketing. [Online]. Available at: https://www.businessoffashion.com/articles/marketing-pr/to-hold-gen-zs-attention-brands-need-to-show-some-personality/ (Assessed: 23 November 2021)

KENNEDY, J. (2022). ‘Ulta Beauty to Invest $50 Million on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Efforts’, Beauty. [Online]. Available at: https://www.businessoffashion.com/news/beauty/ulta-beauty-to-invest-50-million-on-diversity-equity-and-inclusion-efforts/ (Assessed: 04 February 2022)

McKinsey & Company. (2023.) What is Gen Z. Available at: https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/mckinsey-explainers/what-is-gen-z  (Accessed: March 20, 2023).

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Screenshot-2023-10-11-at-20.14.41

Planet

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The essence of fashion is defined as change, learning from the past in the present context. Meanwhile, every change in fashion can interact with pillars. Planet, people, profit, and purpose are four pillars closely linked for Fashion Means Business. The four pillars complement each other, and no one is more important than the other. PLANET makes us realise that companies need to reuse limited resources to form a closed loop in the industry; PEOPLE need to promote social and self-identity in their daily lives through fashion, beauty, and health choices; PROFIT creates value and contributes to the prosperity of the industry in a way that respects the entire ecosystem; and PURPOSE is something that every ethical and responsible fashion business should be transparent about and run their company accordingly. 

For ‘Planet,’ reduce, repair, reuse, recycle… These ‘Re’ are practiced by sustainability rewards businesses for keeping our limited resources in a closed loop, forming a circular economy. Moreover, these actions help protect the planet that humans live with. However, Sara Arnold, a winner of BoF’s Future VOICES challenge, claims that the circular economy is promoted as a guilt-free solution to consumerism, and a sustainable economy can only be achieved if companies stop selling goods (Sara, 2017). While increased recyclability is laudable and necessary, the circular economy is being marketed as a bite-size change rather than a realistic, systemic reform. Therefore, an economic cycle formulated at a self-selected pace may be a guilt-free method of accelerating consumerism. Nevertheless, finding the right direction to sustain the circular economy is necessary, such as realising that yarn can be recycled indefinitely, and although closing the production loop towards infinite recycling of yarn seems a long way off, progress has been made (Frances, 2014).

As one of the most wasteful industries on the planet, the fashion industry has overproduced production, which has polluted the environment and the earth’s ecology (Drapers, 2022). This consequence creates a situation where the fashion industry must address progress towards sustainable development more quickly. Even though H&M, a leader in textile recycling, still has a long way to go. Because of the complexity of the mix of materials in many garments, it is an excellent challenge for recyclable technology. However, this can be started by changing how garments are designed and the fabrics (Sara, 2017).

Therefore, change in the fashion business is very important for sustainable development as we have many goals to achieve. The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a great way of summarising and calling attention to all the problems facing the planet today, especially poverty, hunger, and climate change, and trying to solve them by 2030. This includes that fashion companies also have much to contribute to reaching the SDGs, as they influence each other. Despite significant progress in global measures on water resources, hundreds of millions still need access to safe drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene. Water pollution can be reduced by controlling the amount of water used in the fashion industry, thus providing a small quantity of power towards clean water and sanitation (one of the Sustainable Development Goals).

Clothing that cannot be sold and reused by fast fashion brands piles up in underdeveloped countries such as Africa and can lead to the pollution of local land and water resources. Some materials that cannot be broken down by nature are used to make clothing. In addition, fashion companies’ technical capacity for recyclability needs to be improved. The good news is that textile manufacturers are starting to produce more fabrics that do not contain the cancer-causing chemical antimony, which is released into the environment through wastewater. Much research is also being done into manufacturing bio-based polymers that are recyclable, biodegradable, and made from sustainable resources. Such fabrics have some positive attributes of traditional synthetic materials, including low manufacturing costs, but without any adverse effects (Frances, 2014).

References List

Arnold, S. (2017) ‘An Alternative to Consumerism Does Exist: The Performance Economy’, Business of Fashion, sustainability. Available at: https://www.businessoffashion.com/opinions/sustainability/an-alternative-to-consumerism-does-exist-the-performance-economy/

Corner, F. (2014) Why Fashion Matters. Place of publication: London: Thames and Hudson, Limited.

Remy, N., Speelman, E., and Swartz, S. (2016) Style that’s sustainable: A new fast-fashion formula. Available at: https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/sustainability/our-insights/style-thats-sustainable-a-new-fast-fashion-formula  (Accessed: 16 Oct 2016).

United Nation (2023) The Sustainable Development Goals report. Available at: https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/report/2023  (Accessed: Sep 2023).

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Uma Wang SS 2011

My Favourite Fashion Brand

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Uma Wang

As an outbound brand, Uma Wang has a total of 71 points of sale worldwide. I like materials of their cloths and the final results these materials have showed.
As a new Chinese Style brand it has a strong global presence. According to a vouge interview column, the brand changed after Uma Wang’s spring/summer 2011 show at Paris Fashion Week, where designer Uma Wang gained a lot of attention and orders and now produces around 10,000 pieces a season worldwide.

Besides, sustainability to the designer is a way of living. She thinks it shouldn’t be just a mainstream word used to make more business. That’s why she was decided to work with a team, and especially a fabric supplier, that share her vision. She made cloths less and in a better quality, while being attentive to brand’s choices as producer but also as customers.

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