media

setting trends…

The proliferation of cutting edge trends often relies on the exposure and sanction gained when notable social figures wear garments to important and much publicised events. Celebrity endorsement is fundamental to large scale commercial success as the public is often heavily influenced by the actions of role models and other public figures. Related to celebrity endorsement is the publicity gained for a design label when a notable figure (in effect) enters the label into the public domain through exposing it to the media. The relationship between the fashion industry and the media is thus very close, and the two industries can even be seen to be mutually supportive, and in certain respects symbiotic: that is, fashion needs the media for its proliferation, and the public looks to the media to gain their exposure to the latest trends. Fashion journalism remains the most popular media platform for a public wanting information regarding the industry, and provides editorial comment, journalistic research and articles, and provocative, aesthetically interesting images designed by top class art directors and photographers.

The fashion magazine began to appear around the turn of the twentieth century. La Gazette du Bon Ton, founded by Lucien Vogel in 1912 and remaining in print until 1925, was perhaps the most famous magazine of its era, and could be seen as the progenitor of contemporary quality fashion industry specific magazines. In America, Vogue was launched in 1892, and after the Second World War, owing to the increasing affluence of the Western hemisphere, became a sought after product. After the invention of cheap colour printing in the 1960s, Vogue was increasingly well equipped to provide the public with high quality, up to date, and relevant information, in print as well as in image. This, in turn, led to the magazine increasing its sales and becoming more influential. A criticism that can be levelled against fashion journalism (which has been largely mitigated since the 1980s and 90s) is that it has almost exclusively focussed on women’s fashion to the neglect of men’s fashion. In the 1980s and 90s, however, men’s magazines have taken the lead of their counterparts, and increased their own coverage of the fashion industry as it relates to their readership.

Although print remains the most popular form of fashion journalism, television is also seen as an important medium. As early as the 1950s, fashion inserts started to appear within other culture and news orientated shows. These inserts did, however, quickly develop into stand-alone shows that focussed exclusively on fashion and design, and by the 1980s, channels dedicated to the coverage of industry events appeared (Fashion TV is perhaps the best know example of a dedicated channel covering the fashion weeks, other shows, events, designer profiles and model biographies).

The internet has in recent years become an increasingly important media platform for the industry. In addition to being relatively cheap to run, websites have the advantage of being capable of being updated on a minute to minute basis and can reach a global, internet literate audience. Digital fashion magazines and websites on the net are combining traditional editorial comment with user generated content. In terms of selling platforms, the internet also has enormous potential: online shopping is increasing as consumers find less time to go out and shop, and websites endeavour to make online purchases as easy and safe as possible. In addition to adequate security measures, online gift vouchers encourage consumers to proliferate the internet as a buying platform for fashion items.