Fashion’s flirtation with supernatural style

This summer, the School of Creative and Cultural Business at RGU hosted the first of its kind Supernatural in Contemporary Society conference. This event brought together researchers from across a range of disciplines and universities who shared their research.

Subject Lead and Fashion Management course leader Karen Cross designed three spooky fashion posters for the event…

These posters showcase findings from Karen’s research into comfort in clothing where she discovered a number of supernatural themes and ideas…

 

 

 

A project-based approach to teaching

We had a great time at last week’s ABS50 Research Conference where we heard some interesting presentations and keynotes. Our Fashion Place contribution was two posters showcasing examples of a project-based approach to teaching. This year’s Magazine Project and Fashion Exhibition celebrated the 50th Anniversary of Aberdeen Business School so it seemed very fitting that these should be included in the conference! Well done to all the students who made these projects a success!

My fashion place

Summer has arrived and we hope you’re enjoying the wonderful weather! We’d love to hear about your summer adventures so please tag us in your Twitter and Instagram pictures, using the hashtag myfashionplace. Here are some posts from students and staff from their summer “offices”. Madeleine’s been carrying out interviews with North East fashion bloggers in various Starbucks and is now analysing the data in her garden (making the most of the Aberdeen sunshine!)

Karen’s also been doing some work from home. Can you spot the fashion dog?

And one our students, Courtney, is in Paris where she’s been working at the Capsule Show!

Looking forward to seeing more of your fashion places…

Can you measure the ROI of your social media marketing? DL Hoffman, M Fodor – MIT Sloan Management Review, 2010 – emarketingtravel.net

Social media in marketing is gaining a great deal of interest from companies and consumers alike.  A number of contemporary studies are now considering the effectiveness of adopting social media in terms of ROI.  The following articles identify work being undertaken in this area:

• Impacts of Luxury Fashion Brand’s Social Media Marketing on Customer Relationship and Purchase Intention AJ Kim, E Ko – Journal of Global Fashion Marketing, 2010 – Taylor & Francis

• Finding high-quality content in social media E Agichtein, C Castillo, D Donato, A Gionis… – Proceedings of the …, 2008 – dl.acm.org

No Logo is the New Logo!

More companies are recognising the growing trend towards ‘no logo’ branding.  Following in the footsteps of ‘Revolver’ who minimized its logo identity to Japanese ‘passionate extremists’ , Louis Vuitton’s 2013 Autumn/Winter collection  showed a range where the LV house signature monogram and chequered Damier canvas were absent and replaced by an increased use of animal skins such as fur, crocodile, python and marabou.  According to Gemma Hayward (Paris Fashion Editor for The Independent, March 2013) ‘no logo was to be seen from the label famed for making such things fashionable’. This suggests consumers may be moving away from a socially comparative relationship with brands towards a more internalized relationship were only they are aware of the ‘superiority’ of the brand adopted.

High-Tech Fashion

High-Tech, and particularly the digital revolution, is influencing fashion in a major way.  Style and state of the art technology are being combined, even in the ‘LBD’.  M-dress by CuteCircuit incorporates a phone in the sleeve of that ‘little black dress’ to permit the wearer to simply raise their hand to their ear and ‘take that call’.  Replay, the Italian jeans brand, have also launched a Social Denim range with Bluetooth features inbuilt to synch with your smartphone.  Find out more about High-Tech fashion through: http://www.thefashionspot.com/style-trends/news/172727-high-tech-fashion.

Fashion and textiles: Advertising and PR spend

The Marketer (CIM, Jan/Feb 2013) offers a fashion infographic of advertising and PR GVA (Gross Value Added) by product.  This indicates that the advertising/PR  of womenswear  contributes £41m to the UK economy whilst the advertising/PR of menswear contributes £26m.  The Marketer identifies promotion of ethical fashion as a growing area of interest and cites H&M as one of the key brands positioning itself as an ethical and sustainable business through its  ‘ Conscious Collection’.

Fashion tourism: Milan

Stage 3 BA (Hons) Fashion Management students are carrying out research into fashion tourism as part of an individual project. Their aim is to prepare a strategy for promoting Aberdeen as a fashion destination and this will be informed by primary research into the opinions of their target market and an analysis of the fashion capitals.

Milan – by Selina Jones

Milan is one of the big four fashion capitals. Its reputation as a fashion city started around the 1970s. The name Milan comes from the English milaner meaning ‘fine wares like jewellery, cloth, hats and luxury apparel’. Milan opened has its first department store in 1865. In the early 20th century Milan was renowned as a major centre for textiles and silk. Milan is also the business hub of Italy.
Milan has produced major fashion designers and is home to the head offices of fashion houses such as: Giorgio Armani, Valentino Garavani, Gianni Versace, Gianfranco Ferrè, Miuccia Prada, Krizia, Moschino, Etro, Trussardi, Missoni, and Dolce & Gabbana. Milan hosts two fashion weeks each year, like the other fashion capitals, one in spring and one in autumn.
People travel to Milan for the fashion; to shop and to visit shows. There are museums and wonderful architecture which add to the history and culture of the city.

Fashion tourism: the city of London

Stage 3 BA (Hons) Fashion Management students are carrying out research into fashion tourism as part of an individual project. Their aim is to prepare a strategy for promoting Aberdeen as a fashion destination and this will be informed by primary research into the opinions of their target market and an analysis of the fashion capitals.

The city of London – by Jenni Kelman

The city of London has an extensive background in Fashion, being a city that leads trends to popularity. Most recently known for retaining its title as the most fashionable capital worldwide for two consecutive years, this is thought to have been influenced by the Duchess of Cambridge, and the Olympic games in 2012 (VOGUE.com, 2012). London is extremely well known for pioneering individual style, with many ordinary people becoming trendsetters in their own right, for example the early 20th Century Lady Lucy ‘Lucile’ Duff-Gordon, a designer who became known for creating designs regarded as liberating and controversial in comparison to the clothing that was popular in the early 1900s.
In the modern day, individual style can be influenced by celebrities and popular fashion bloggers, many of which originate in London, encouraging fashion lovers to create their own look from predominantly high street brands, vintage and charity stores. It is this that gives London its name for standing out among many other style capitals.
London has a large tourism industry, attracting many people worldwide to the capital of Britain, and fashion is a key part of this. London’s annual ‘London Fashion Week’ is the most notable event which attracts fashion lovers, designers and models to the heart of the city, showcasing some of Britain’s most-loved designer collections, as well as introducing new and upcoming designers for the following year.