Instant Gratification
- Jamie Banks
- Feb 11, 2016
- 3 min read
New York Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2016 (NYFW16) officially begins today and there is a storm a brewin’. Not on the runways, but off. For years the fashion calendar has dictated how and when consumers can see, purchase and receive clothing. Now a few high profile companies (Burberry, Vetements) and designers (Tom Ford) are shaking things up.
As a lifestylist, I am fascinated with runway shows and the various collections presented throughout the year. As a consumer, I am utterly confused and frustrated when the items you see on the runways are not available for sale for four months after you see them on Ms. Hadid and Jenner respectively. I don’t know about you, but most days I can’t find my keys, much less remember what I saw and/or liked four months ago.
But fashion shows aren’t held for people like you and me. Currently they are staged for the media who create interest, tastemakers (think celebrities) and buyers who place orders for items later manufactured and delivered to stores. Makes perfect sense, no? In theory it’s good, but in practice it's antiquated. Don’t you think it’s weird to buy sweaters in July and shorts in February? In addition there are conversations about making the shows public and not just for the fashion elite. Will this ruin the "specialness" of the shows or will it create more demand for the seats? All good questions needing consideration.
The current schedule:
COLLECTION SHOWN IN STORES
Pre-Fall 2016 Nov 30-Dec 12 April
London Collections Men Jan 8-11 May
Milan Men’s Fashion Week Jan 16-19 May
Paris Men’s Fashion Week Jan 20-24 May
Paris Haute Couture S/S* 2016 Jan 24-29 May/June
NYFW: Men’s F/W* 2016 Feb 1-4 June/July
NYFW: Women’s F/W 2016 Feb 11-18 June/July
London Fashion Week F/W 2016 Feb 19-23 June/July
Milan Fashion Week F/W 2016 Feb 24 – March 1 June/July
Paris Fashion Week F/W 2016 March 1-9 July
NYFW: Resort May 30-June 10 Sept
London Collections Men June 10-13 Oct
Paris Men’s Fashion Week June 22-26 Oct
NYFW: Men’s S/S** 2017 July 11-14 Oct
Paris Haute Couture F/W 16/17 July 3-July 8 Nov/Dec
NYFW: Women’s S/S 2017 Sept 8-15 Jan
London Fashion Week S/S 2017 Sept 18-20 Jan
Milan Fashion Week S/S 2017 Sept 21-27 Jan
Paris Fashion Week S/S 2017 Sept 27-Oct 5 Jan
Pre-Fall 2017 Nov 28-Dec 9 April
*S/S – Spring/Summer
*F/W – Fall/Winter
The Internet and social media allow today’s consumers to watch fashion shows in real time thereby creating an immediate demand for items. Once someone at a fashion show posts a picture of a fabulous dress to Instagram the game is over. People want it now - Instant gratification.
Burberry will officially start this process by showing its men and women’s Fall/Winter collections together at London Fashion week this September with items immediately available for purchase. This strategy helps communicate the overall theme of the season across all lines. They also believe it will create a more intimate experience with their customers and create more excitement around the show.
Sounds great! Not so fast boo... There are many pieces to this puzzle, primarily the buying, production and distribution process. If the fashion calendar shortens, designers, buyers and manufactures would have to keep designs under wraps for the period before they are “revealed” on the runway – no easy feat – remember that little thing called the Internet? Not to mention the stress for all involved as there would be little time to change details and/or correct mistakes.
And then there is Anna. As the Editor in Chief of Vogue and Artistic Director for Conde Nast she will have a strong opinion (duh) and seat at the negotiating table. This new model would inevitably force the publishing industry to change. Currently, the traditional fashion magazine lead-time is months in advance of printing. A condensed fashion schedule would force publishers to decide when to put clothes in magazines. Would it even work? Will this be the end of the print versions of fashion magazines? Would they have to go all-digital in response to the new immediacy of the industry? I don’t know about you, but I would NOT want to be on the bad side of this bad ass.
I have mixed feelings about this change movement. I agree the system needs to have a more common sense approach and try to engage the consumer in different ways. All real change is difficult so I applaud those trying to work through all the details. In the end, I believe some compromise in schedule needs to occur and will help preserve the fashion industry for the future. Selfishly however I am nervous about the creative process being diluted and I don't want to give up that giddy feeling when I pull multiple magazines out of my mailbox. What do you think? I'd love to hear - please comment below...
תגובות