MeemEzz

The fashion industry has complex links to many other sectors, including manufacturing, advertising, raw material processing, transport, and retailing. The immense profits to be gained in the retail industry give rise to the desire to engage in unethical practices. When suppliers, distributors, designers, or customers are exploited or treated unfairly, fashion industry executives have an ethical duty to improve the situation.  

Within Fashion Ethics and Culture course, we were given the opportunity to explore the breadth of creative, aesthetic, and social/cultural expression of design through the lens of ethical and historic considerations – as it is and how it needs to change, the role of the MENA region and its relationship to fashion media.  

As a student of DIDI, I felt the same link and inspiration between the Fashion Ethics and Culture course and my vision of how I want to be as a future designer and how I should change the current fashion industry status quo with my future career path. The course creates a creative paradigm for learning ethical fashion design through the lens of ethical and historic considerations. Students are introduced to fashion history, cultural criticism, contemporary culture, and the diversity of representation including ethical considerations and perspectives.

In my opinion, this course plays as a moderator between all other fashion courses we study and extend to other courses with depth like sociology and design histories and theories to link and emphasis all courses material in a dynamic way. We covered various subjects relating to Body Image Problems, Fur Trade Issues, Cultural Hegemony and Appropriation, Consumer Over-consumption, Environmental Effects, and Concerns, Advertisement Conflicts, Brand Name Forgery, Sweat Shop Working Conditions, and Exclusiveness and Injustice Issues; that simultaneously vary from micro to macro scale through lectures, group activities, open discussions in class, and individual presentations.

The True Cost Formula 

Investigate your Wardrobe

Doughnut Economics

ATCAC-Disrupting the Fashion System

Earth Logic: the turning point

Careers in the Fashion Industry

The future of Garment Technology in Circular Fashion

Market Segmentation

Fashion for Good: Virtual Tour

Fashion & Society

Made in America

“Luxury: Behind the mirror of high-end fashion”

Empathic Design Process

SOKO Kenya - A people first company

Innovative Fashion Marketing

Key trends innovating Fashion Marketing

Fashion for Good: Virtual Tour

Untangled Egyptian Beauty Standards

The Fashion & Race database

The Modist- Modest Fashion Dream

About Time: Fashion and Duration

The It Girl: Ashley Al Busmait

I enjoyed the above-listed topics and guest lecture discussions we had this semester, but certain to a whole new way of perceiving the world. I would love to deepen and expand my knowledge on the technology and circularity of the fashion industry future as well as focus on modest fashion and ethical practices and success and failure aspects of the Modist business experience. Whether through merging my learning outcome within this semester to my nest fashion studio or final thesis.

Here's my list of the most meaningful subjects for me and some of the highlights of my recent blogs on these topics:

ATCAC-Disrupting the Fashion System

ORIGIN AND HISTORY

Atacac is a Swedish fashion studio that Jimmy Herdberg and Rickard Lindqvist created in 2016. Atacac is designed to disrupt the current fashion system. Atacac is like a laboratory for developing ideas and principles. Then they work as consultants sharing that with other brands to improve their design. The other way they work with other designers is what they call Share-wear. When they release a new product in their online store, they also offer the 2D pattern and the 3D model of the garment for free download. This builds a community of home sellers and independent brands that use their patterns and designs. In certain terms, you can do whatever you want. There is a Credit Common Licence connected to the Share-wear which means you can use it commercially in any way you like, and you can make improvements to it, But you need to give credit back to Atacac if you use it commercially and market the product. You also need to make your development available for other people to keep developing further.

For me ATCAC is a brilliant business module example that is trying to blow the entire system to the ground, I loved how I saw ATCAC embodying every principle, I have been learning for the past 3 years. This blog post and the investigation behind it gave me hope that I can succeed in doing something different with my future dream brand.

Innovative Fashion Marketing

Stretchy Kids’ Clothes Petit Pli gets a growing identity

A sustainable fashion design example that offers apparel that evolves as the wearer grows older has an innovative branding that sounds like “more human” and “less professional." The idea is to reduce the waste of apparel and save parents’ money as children progress up a range of sizes in the first three years of their lives.

It needs time and education to promote meaningful behavioral change. We assume that we are too late for much of our generation. We assume, though, that we are just in time for the next era of LittleHumans. The brilliance of the brand strategy is in anchoring on the opportunity where new parents and young children are more open to improvement and learning than any other part of our community. They do everything not only to promote constructive behavioral improvement but also to make it as seamless as possible.

Marketing as a term became cliché of how much brands are using it without actually making the right –positive impact on their users, within this blog post example of how marketing approach could be current, supportive and extending the brand value to further stage where the client loyalty will be granted due to that extended value, this reminded me of applying the product-service systems methodology, where it's not only the brand responsibility to produce and market a product but they innovate different approaches to extended their after-sale services and product value to emotionally engage their clients.

Empathic Design Process

Empathy is the core of the entire process of Design Thinking. Putting ourselves in someone else’s shoes reinforces our ability to interpret information, and lets us understand how other humans perceive the world around us.

 The realm of fashion design is shifting from an external focus on the industry, or an internal focus on integrating technology, to an empathetic focus on people. While it’s not too difficult to rally people around this general idea, it can be hard at first to understand how to translate it into tactics.

I ask myself as a designer, how do we make a good connection between a fashion worker and a customer? My solution to this question is to make fashion employees the hero of the story, create brand ideals around them. Plan company modules to be a win-win for staff and stakeholders. As designers, we should reconfigure how the framework is giving back to the societies through which we work. I expect, as a future fashion designer, to build a secure working environment that will help better the lives of single mothers in Egypt. By offering comprehensive educational opportunities and curating future working talents. The Empathy Concept process will be incorporated not only to understand the consumers but also most critically, to understand the true needs of the heroes behind my future brand.

Technology & future of Circular Fashion

Fashion has always been a major hub for innovation — from the invention of the sewing machine to the rise of e-commerce. As technology, fashion is both forward-looking and cyclical. At $2.2 T, the apparel industry is now one of the top sectors in the global economy. Nowadays, apparel technology is rising more than ever. From robots that sew and cut clothing to AI algorithms that anticipate style patterns, to VR mirrors in dressing rooms, technology automates, customizes, and speeds up every aspect of fashion.

In the optimistic scenario, the future will be led by innovators and collaborators, the industry will leap forward in developing digital passports for clothing that carries an internationally recognized digital asset trigger that could be accessed by designers, retailers, recyclers, and customers alike. This type of standardized infrastructure and labeling approach means that not every brand or approach provider has its own patented approaches, leaving customers stuck in the sea of things to consider. In this way, the future of fashion technologies could truly unify the industry around common practices that would make circularity more visible to everyone.

Reference list

Accenture and H&M Foundation (2018). Circular x Fashion Tech. [online] Available at: https://www.accenture.com/_acnmedia/PDF-74/Accenture-GCA-Circular-FashionTech-Trend-Report-2018.pdf [Accessed 3 Oct. 2020].

By Insider Trends (2019). Why does Swedish clothing brand Atacac give its patterns away for free? - Insider Trends. [online] Insider Trends. Available at: https://www.insider-trends.com/why-does-swedish-clothing-brand-atacac-give-its-patterns-away-for-free/ [Accessed 14 Sep. 2020].

CB Insights (2020). The Future Of Fashion: From Design To Merchandising, How Tech Is Reshaping The Industry. [online] CB Insights Research. Available at: https://www.cbinsights.com/research/fashion-tech-future-trends/ [Accessed 26 Oct. 2020].

CHANGE, W. (2020). THE WARDROBE CRISIS. [online] THE WARDROBE CRISIS. Available at: https://thewardrobecrisis.com/the-magazine/2020/8/26/4-tech-innovations-that-will-change-the-future-of-sustainable-fashion [Accessed 26 Oct. 2020].

CLO (2020). Live Q + A with Fashion Studio Atacac. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHpiD5u0e1w&feature=youtu.be [Accessed 14 Sep. 2020].

Dawood, S. (2019). Stretchy kids’ clothing Petit Pli gets an identity that grows. [online] Design Week. Available at: https://www.designweek.co.uk/issues/1-7-april-2019/stretchy-kids-clothing-petit-pli-gets-an-identity-that-grows/ [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Design Indaba (2013). Data Dress: A tangible representation of your online movements | Design Indaba. [online] Design Indaba. Available at: https://www.designindaba.com/articles/creative-work/data-dress-tangible-representation-your-online-movements [Accessed 26 Oct. 2020].

Dezeen (2017). Ryan Mario Yasin’s Petit Pli kids clothing expands to fit as children grow. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJ8VSvkz_4w [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Dubai Design Week (2019). GGS Success Story: Featuring Petit Pli by Ryan Mario Yasin. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3a2eIix1rUI [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Dyson on (2019). Petit Pli: The unlikely fashion brand that wants to end industry waste by making clothes that grow. [online] Medium. Available at: https://medium.com/dyson-on/meet-the-inventors-fabric-fantastic-c5f18d7639bf [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Fashion United (2020). The future of garment technology in circular fashion. [online] Fashionunited.uk. Available at: https://fashionunited.uk/news/business/the-future-of-garment-technology-in-circular-fashion/2020091750927 [Accessed 26 Oct. 2020].

Givens, D. (2020). ASOS Unveils Its Made In Kenya Collection Collaboration With Soko Kenya. [online] Black Enterprise. Available at: https://www.blackenterprise.com/asos-unveils-its-made-in-kenya-collection-collaboration-with-soko-kenya/ [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

GLOBAL FASHION AGENDA (2020). Design for Longevity. [online] Designforlongevity.com. Available at: https://designforlongevity.com/page/about [Accessed 14 Sep. 2020].

Herdberg, J. (2020). Kokokaka - Work. [online] Kokokaka.com. Available at: https://kokokaka.com/work.html [Accessed 14 Sep. 2020].

Krantz, J. (2017). Atacac uses game tech to disrupt the fashion system - MAGIC FABRIC. [online] MAGIC FABRIC. Available at: https://magicfabricblog.com/atacac-uses-game-technology-change-fashion-system/ [Accessed 14 Sep. 2020].

LeVine, S. (2018). Automated fashion is now a reality in new Chinese store. [online] Axios. Available at: https://www.axios.com/fashion-automated-alibaba-china-store-d476b4a4-d74d-410e-9518-bea2449203da.html [Accessed 26 Oct. 2020].

Morrison, H., Petherick, L. and Ley, K. (2019). THE FUTURE OF CIRCULAR FASHION A COLLABORATIVE REPORT BY ACCENTURE STRATEGY AND FASHION FOR GOOD ASSESSING THE VIABILITY OF CIRCULAR BUSINESS MODELS. [online] ACCENTURE STRATEGY AND FASHION FOR GOOD. Available at: https://d2be5ept72nvlo.cloudfront.net/2019/05/The-Future-of-Circular-Fashion-Report.pdf [Accessed 2 Oct. 2020].

NB Studio (2019). Petit Pli - Brand Identity. [online] The Drum Awards. Available at: https://www.thedrumdesignawards.com/drum-design-awards-2019/brand-identity-design/petit-pli-brand-identity [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Partners, K. (2017). PROTOCHIC. [online] PROTOCHIC. Available at: https://www.protochic.com/stories/2017/3/17/kenyan-manufacturer-soko-kenya-partners-with-british-retailer-asos [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Petit Pli (2020a). MISSION 2: FUTURE OF HUMANITY Earth’s Hidden Figures. [online] Available at: http://ryanmarioyasin.com/hosting/BLMcomic.pdf [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Petit Pli (2020b). Petit Pli. [online] Petit Pli. Available at: https://shop.petitpli.com/ [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Petit Pli (2020c). Unstick The Sticky Alien! [online] Petit Pli. Available at: https://shop.petitpli.com/blogs/news/unstick-the-sticky-alien [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Pfaff, M. (2018). Amesterdam University of Applied Sciences. [online] AMFI.nl. Available at: https://amfi.nl/news/technology-is-transforming-the-fashion-industry [Accessed 14 Sep. 2020].

Sherriff, L. (2020). This Company Is Making Children’s Clothes That Actually Grow As The Kid Does. Forbes. [online] 16 Feb. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/lucysherriff/2020/02/24/this-company-is-making-childrens-clothes-that-actually-grow-as-the-kid-does/?sh=81b30233f70f [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Sohini Dey (2018). Can artificial intelligence and fashion create a smart stitch? [online] mint. Available at: https://www.livemint.com/Leisure/Vp81luEXDz3lWuvvYVYIdO/Can-artificial-intelligence-and-fashion-create-a-smart-stitc.html [Accessed 26 Oct. 2020].

SOKO Kenya (2020). SOKO Kenya. [online] Soko-kenya.com. Available at: https://www.soko-kenya.com/ [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

The Trampery (2019). Petit Pli : Future Design for “LittleHumans” - The Trampery. [online] The Trampery. Available at: https://thetrampery.com/2019/12/02/petit-pli-future-design-for-littlehumans/ [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

With Emirati-Mexican origins, the founder of digital fashion canvas @TheMirageEdit shares her vision of defying conventional gender roles. Via her blog, she strives to send a message to women from all walks of life that fashion should be a meaningful and influential expression of who they are, where they come from, and what they stand for.  

She takes inspiration from a variety of streams, sources that intrigue and urge me from an artistic sense. The greatest being my muses from past eras, each instilling a distinct sense of wisdom. While Frida Kahlo, the famous Mexican artist who sent shockwaves to her fragile and thought-provoking art, and Chavela Vargas, who defied society's expectations by becoming one of the first female musicians, have a lot of influence on her both personally and artistically.

also, she is deeply influenced by the pure power of women, how they are just as soft as they are the warriors-the way they can travel fluidly between their male and female counterparts. she always thinks of who came before her and how they summoned the courage to conquer all the obstacles of life, leaving behind great sacrifices and paving the way for women like me to continue cracking the boundaries and fighting for what we believe in-irrespective of all the external influences.

Reference list

Cpmagazine (2018). Ashley Al Busmait – The Desert Vogue. [online] Cpmagazine.net. Available at: http://cpmagazine.net/ashley-al-busmait-the-desert-vogue/ [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

Schröder, F. (2020). Stylish diplomacy: The power of modesty. [online] LGT Group. Available at: https://www.lgt.com/en/magnet/lifestyle/stylish-diplomacy-the-power-of-modesty/#button2 [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

themirageedit (2018). Ashley Al Busmait. [online] Instagram.com. Available at: https://www.instagram.com/themirageedit/ [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

Voilà! Arabia (2020). The It Girl: Ashley Al Busmait. [online] Voilà! Arabia. Available at: https://www.voilaarabia.com/post/the-it-girl-ashley-al-busmait [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

The Origin Story

The brainwave for the Met Gala was led by Eleanor Lambert, fashion publicist and founder of CFDA (and the annual Vanity Fair best-dressed list), who welcomed a select and intimate array of Manhattan's high society to a midnight dinner at Waldorf Astoria in December. The idea of collecting some much-needed funds for the newly founded Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Back then the Met Gala was a small, simple affair that combined the annual philanthropy calendar with the annual philanthropy calendar. The idea of raising some much-needed funds for the newly founded Costume Institute in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Back then the Met Gala was a small, simple affair that fit into the annual philanthropic calendar with a guest list drawn from the ranks of Manhattan's high society.

The Costume Institute's 2020 show traces a century and a half of fashion – from 1870 to the present – around the disruptive trajectory of The Met's 150th anniversary. Using Henri Bergson's idea of the duration, Henri Bergson discusses how clothing creates contextual connections that merge past, current, and potential. Virginia Woolf is the "ghost narrator" of the exhibition.

The timeline unfolds in two neighboring galleries, fabricated as massive clock faces, and arranged around the concept of 60 minutes of fashion. Each "minute" features a pair of clothing, the primary work reflecting the sequential essence of fashion and the secondary work possessing a cyclical character. To demonstrate Bergson's principle of duration—of the past coexisting with the present—works in each pair are related by form, theme, material, pattern, technique, or decoration.

For example, a black silk fault princess-line dress from the late 1870s is paired with an Alexander McQueen "Bumster" skirt from 1995. A black silk satin dress with giant leg-o'-mutton sleeves from the mid-1890s is juxtaposed with a 2004 Comme des Garçons deconstructed set. All clothes are black to accentuate shifts in silhouette, except at the end of the presentation, where a white dress from the Viktor & Rolf Spring/Summer 2020 Haute Couture line Made of up-cycle swatches in a patchwork pattern, serves as a metaphor for the future of fashion, with a focus on identity, teamwork, and sustainability.

Reference list

Bolton, A. (2020). Exhibition Tour—About Time: Fashion and Duration with Andrew Bolton | Met Fashion"}],"accessibility":{"accessibilityData":{"label":"Exhibition Tour—About Time: Fashion and Duration with Andrew Bolton | Met Fashion by The Met 1 month ago 15 minutes 12,519 views"}}},"descriptionSnippet":{"runs":[{"text":"Join Andrew Bolton, Wendy Yu Curator in Charge of The Costume Institute, on a guided tour of “},{”text":"About Time. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=about+time+fashion+and+duration+ [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

Mida, I. (2020). The Enchanting Spectacle of Fashion in the Museum. [online] Catwalk: The Journal of Fashion, Beauty and Style vol. 4 no. 2. Available at: https://www.academia.edu/40681255/The_Enchanting_Spectacle_of_Fashion_in_the_Museum [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

Pogrebin, R. (2020). Is the Met Museum ‘a Great Institution in Decline’? (Published 2017). The New York Times. [online] Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/04/arts/design/met-museum-financial-troubles.html [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

The met museum (2020). About Time: Fashion and Duration. [online] The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Available at: https://www.metmuseum.org/exhibitions/listings/2020/about-time [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

Timing is everything whether in business or life. Considering that the modesty movement has now officially hit the mainstream and dressing is de rigeur for women of all cultures and ethnicities, Ghizlan Guenez's decision to launch a luxury fashion retailer catering for a conservative dresser seemed incredibly prescient. On 8 March 2017 – International Women's Day no less – Modist.com launched a global revolution in fashion, women's empowerment, and women's empowerment from its HQ in Dubai.

The Modist is more than just shopping – it's tapping into the momentum of empowering people and styling women on their own terms. I assume that the apparel industry is shifting globally towards a more multicultural perspective. One that includes actual women who have not been portrayed in this room before, be it a modest dresser, a curvy woman, or a woman over a certain age. The need to embrace diversity is incredibly critical, and I believe it is no longer the norm' to showcase only one type of woman in the fashion industry. I assume there is also a transition from viewing life through a man's lens to the 'female gaze.' There is a new light in which women are seen that is not only about the sexualization of a body, but a way that reveals that sexuality and commerciality can be equally thrilling through a female lens.

The Modist also collaborated closely with designers, advising them on the design process and how to cater to the modest fashion client, but Net-a-Porter often followed this approach. Every year, Net-a-Porter has expanded its annual Ramadan edition, putting together major labels such as Carolina Herrera and Oscar de la Renta through unique pieces designed specifically for editing.

Although The Modist helped popularize the modest fashion movement, it struggled to build on the momentum. Larger luxury stores, such as Net-a-Porter, Asos, Zara and Matches Fashion, started launching their own modest collections after The Modist launched Net-a-Porter in the same year as The Modist in 2017.

The barely three-year-old luxury e-commerce website, based on modest apparel, permanently ceased operation, according to a notice from founder Ghizlan Guenez posted on the company's social media platforms. Although Guenez said the closure was due to the coronavirus outbreak, a source close to the organization said that the Modist had cash-flow concerns well before the pandemic happened. When asked to comment on this last week, Guenez replied by simply saying, "Many corporations are going through a very tough time. Guenez commented by simply saying, "Many companies are going through really tough times, and that includes our young firm. At this point, our focus is on the well-being of our employees."

Reference list

Arabian Buisness (2020). Abraaj-backed The Modist shuts down after financial struggles. [online] ArabianBusiness.com. Available at: https://www.arabianbusiness.com/retail/444301-abraaj-backed-the-modist-shuts-down-after-financial-struggles [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

Parisi, D. (2020). Luxury fashion retailer The Modist closes its doors – Glossy. [online] Glossy. Available at: https://www.glossy.co/fashion/luxury-fashion-retailer-the-modist-closes-its-doors/ [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

Theodosi, N. (2020). Modest Fashion Retailer The Modist Ceases Operations. [online] WWD. Available at: https://wwd.com/business-news/retail/modest-fashion-retailer-the-modist-ceases-operations-covid19-1203553984/ [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

Wamda (2020). The Modist ceases operations - Wamda. [online] Wamda.com. Available at: https://www.wamda.com/2020/04/modist-ceases-operations [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

The Beginning  

I created the burkini to give women freedom, not to take it away (Aheda Zanetti, 2016)

Back in 2004, the Lebanese-Australian Adeha Zanetti got inspired by the incident of her niece trying to play netball while being hijabi; the lack of social acceptance back then for hijab in sport fields and the fact of lacking any decent sports gear was the main trigger for Zanetti’s inspiration to create The Burqini™/Burkini™, which is a two-piece swimsuit that provides full coverage in accordance with Islamic guidelines to promote Muslim women’s participation in public sports.

BurqiniTM/BurkiniTM comes in three styles: modest fit, slender fit, and sporty fit. Modest fit guarantees the loosest fit of the suit, while the sport fit is tailored to maximize athletic performance.

The word "BurqiniTM/BurkiniTM" is a mixture of bikini, two-piece swimsuit, and burqa/burka, a full-covering veil type worn by some Muslim women. Although Zanetti owns the copyright of the word "BurqiniTM/BurkiniTM," it has become a common term to refer to this type of modest swimwear.

World impact

While the actual Burkini was intended to encourage observant Muslim women in Australia to go to the beach and work as lifeguards, others in France are now seen as a threat to public security and a sort of "enslavement" in the words of Prime Minister Manuel Valls, who supports the bans. The Council of Justice, the highest judicial court in France, is considering an appeal against the prohibitions of the French Civil Rights League. Previous attempts to appeal the prohibitions in court have so far failed. In Nice, the administrative court dismissed the appeals placed before it by the French Human Rights League and the Group Against Islamophobia in France and instead upheld the previous decision taken on 13 August. The judges held that the prohibition of Burkina Faso was "necessary, appropriate and proportionate to the objective pursued with regard to the protection of public order and security" in the light of terrorist threats. Yet what these bans really help to do is create a dangerous and ludicrous misunderstanding.

Bikini Vs Burkini Crisis

Although the majority of women in Egypt wear headscarves, and religious leaders advise women to do so. But women wearing headscarves or burkinis face bigotry and ridicule in some upper-class circles where such attire is seen as inferior and low-class. Many bars and clubs do not allow women with headscarves or hijabs to join, seeing their appearance and serving drinks as mutually exclusive. Burkinis are viewed with derision in many of the private beach societies that have expanded through Egypt's coasts. Many private pools have a stringent policy banning swimming in clothing, which is then applied to full-body swimsuits, even though made from Lycra. There's even a flip side of the difference.  In Egypt's few public beaches, which are frequented by lower classes, most women swim in headscarves and full-length robes, and a woman sporting a one-piece swimsuit or a bikini will face stares and harassments. A woman posing in a bathing suit on social media can experience a storm of shaming insults.

Tweet link :https://twitter.com/MiddleEastMnt/status/1286201883707703296?s=20

Reference list

Aheda Zanetti (2016). I created the burkini to give women freedom, not to take it away | Aheda Zanetti. [online] the Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/aug/24/i-created-the-burkini-to-give-women-freedom-not-to-take-it-away [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

Aina Khan (2019). Fan of Modest Swimwear? These are the Brands That You Need to Know About. [online] Vogue Arabia. Available at: https://en.vogue.me/fashion/modest-swimwear-brands-you-need-to-know-about/ [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

Amira Sayed Ahmed (2017). Burkini bans causing waves in Egypt. [online] Al-Monitor. Available at: https://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/09/egypt-burkini-ban-controversy-women-rights-debate.html [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

Associated Press (2020). A burkini sparks an argument in Egypt, then national debate. [online] Los Angeles Times. Available at: https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2020-08-14/conflicting-tan-lines-the-burkini-raises-debate-in-egypt [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

Hend Kortam (2020). Conflicting tan lines: The burkini raises debate in Egypt. [online] AP NEWS. Available at: https://apnews.com/article/religion-egypt-cairo-middle-east-lifestyle-35a9e0f21bec07d343d32434880762e9 [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

Hendrix, K. (2019). Halima Aden Receives Daily Front Row “Breakthrough Model” Award. [online] Swimsuit | SI.com. Available at: https://swimsuit.si.com/news/halima-aden-daily-front-row-breakthrough-model-award [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

LYRA Swim (2020). LYRA Swim. [online] LYRA Swim. Available at: https://lyraswimwear.com/pages/lyraladies [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

Middle East Monitor (2020). Footage of women criticising burkini wearer in Egypt pool sparks criticism. [online] Middle East Monitor. Available at: https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200722-footage-of-women-criticising-burkini-wearer-in-egypt-pool-sparks-criticism/ [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

Safia Sheikh (2020). BurqiniTM/BurkiniTM - The Fashion and Race Database. [online] The Fashion and Race Database. Available at: https://fashionandrace.org/database/burqini-burkini/ [Accessed 4 Dec. 2020].

Beauty Standards across the world

Perceptions about beauty standards and body shapes not only differ from culture to culture but have evolved significantly throughout history. History reveals that beauty standards are continually evolving. Most people agree that some women are truly beautiful in a specific era.   But what signifies aesthetics in any given era is very complex. Major Ancient Beauty standards were inspired and varied from Ancient Egypt (c. 1292 – 1069 B.C.)-Ancient Greece-Han Dynasty-Italian Renaissance-Victorian England (c. 1837 – 1901) Then, from the Roaring Twenties, we began a world-wide quest to force the beauty standers over all cultures.

The Egyptian actress Sawsan Badr is titled as Nefertiti of Egyptian Cinema

Egyptian beauty standards

I have selected Egypt as a part of the micro-scale of north Africa and of part the larger scale of Africa in general as a continent who was mainly under European colonization and how that historical aspect deeply engraved and changed the sociocultural aspects of defining the beauty standards in my county. Ancient Egyptian beauty standards: Slender-Narrow Shoulders-High Waist-Symmetrical Face. Eurocentric beauty standards have set guidelines in several countries – including in countries like Eastern Asia, North Africa, and the middle east, where people have their own history of beauty and standards. Light skin, straight hair, small noses, blue eyes, and slim bodies have for decades constituted the aesthetic goal.

Colonialism and the origins of skin bleaching

Skin bleaching today is a worldwide phenomenon that could trace the need for lighter skin from ancient civilizations to European colonialists, who have conveyed their prejudice to the nations they enslaved. This practice can be traced back as far back as the ancient Egyptians, Romans, and Greeks, who found that honey combined with olive oil was a skin-lightening agent and added this mixture to their body and face. Various precursors to the base were also used to appear paler, like chalk dust and a combination that, as in later decades, contained white lead. So if your skin was the only thing that would deter you from getting access to better prospects, the logical question is: why not bleach? Skin bleaching represents a step closer to the socioeconomic standing traditionally reserved for white people.

Media Messages and Women's' Body Perceptions in Egypt

When subjected to media advertisements, women in Egypt have shown eating disordered attitudes, feeling of body dissatisfaction, and have often preferred other compensating activities such as veiling, fasting, and following a diet. When subjected to media advertisements, women in Egypt have shown eating disordered attitudes, feeling of body dissatisfaction, and have often preferred other compensating activities such as veiling, fasting, and following a diet. There is considerable evidence for the belief that conventional media outlets (e.g. magazines and music videos) influence expectations of beauty and appearance issues by leading women to internalize a very slim body shape as ideal or beautiful. Rather than merely becoming passive consumers of superficial beauty stereotypes conveyed to them by the internet, social media is more engaging than conventional media, and the influence of self-presentation techniques on the portrayal of beauty impacts a significant percentage of people actually pursue idealized representations through the media.

Reference list

Akinro, N. (2019). Black is not beautiful: Persistent messages and the globalization of “white” beauty in African women’s magazines. [online] Journal of International and Intercultural Communication. Available at: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17513057.2019.1580380?af=R&journalCode=rjii20 [Accessed 1 Nov. 2020].

BuzzFeedVideo (2015). Women’s Ideal Body Types Throughout History. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xrp0zJZu0a4&feature=emb_logo [Accessed 4 Nov. 2020].

Calogero, R.M., Boroughs, M. and Joel Kevin Thompson (2007). The impact of Western beauty ideals on the lives of women and men: A sociocultural perspective. [online] ResearchGate. Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/234119371_The_impact_of_Western_beauty_ideals_on_the_lives_of_women_and_men_A_sociocultural_perspective [Accessed 1 Nov. 2020].

Elmeligy, N. (2015). Untangling Egypt’s Beauty Standards | Egyptian Streets. [online] Egyptian Streets. Available at: https://egyptianstreets.com/2015/07/20/untangling-egypts-beauty-standards/ [Accessed 1 Nov. 2020].

Elsheikh, D. and Lilleker, D.G. (2019). Egypt’s feminist counterpublic: The re-invigoration of the post-revolution public sphere. New Media & Society, [online] p.146144481989057. Available at: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1461444819890576 [Accessed 1 Nov. 2020].

Kashmar, M., Alsufyani, M.A., Ghalamkarpour, F., Chalouhi, M., Alomer, G., Ghannam, S., El Minawi, H., Saedi, B., Hunter, N., Alkobaisi, A., Rafla, K., Zari, S., Abdel Razzak Elsayed, M., Hamdan, F., Santangelo, S., Khater, M. and Rogers, J.D. (2019). Consensus Opinions on Facial Beauty and Implications for Aesthetic Treatment in Middle Eastern Women. Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery - Global Open, [online] 7(4), p.e2220. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6554175/ [Accessed 1 Nov. 2020].

Khalaf, R. (2019). Egyptian actress revives “ancient beauty” in modern times. [online] StepFeed. Available at: https://stepfeed.com/egyptian-actress-revives-ancient-beauty-in-modern-times-3883 [Accessed 4 Nov. 2020].

Khaled, H. (2018). Evolution of Egyptian beauty throughout 100 years. [online] Sada El balad. Available at: https://see.news/evolution-of-egyptian-beauty-throughout-100-years/ [Accessed 1 Nov. 2020].

Mahfouz, N.N., Fahmy, R.F., Nassar, M.S. and Wahba, S.A. (2018). Body Weight Concern and Belief among Adolescent Egyptian Girls. Open Access Macedonian Journal of Medical Sciences, [online] 6(3), pp.582–587. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5874390/ [Accessed 1 Nov. 2020].

Ngunan Adamu (2019). Colonialism and the origins of skin bleaching. [online] Wellcome Collection. Available at: https://wellcomecollection.org/articles/XIfdHRAAAKbQ_FWB [Accessed 1 Nov. 2020].

Ragab, S. (2007). Media Messages and Womens’ Body Perceptions in Egypt Media Messages and Womens’ Body Perceptions in Egypt. [online] Available at: https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=https://www.google.com/&httpsredir=1&article=1029&context=communication_theses [Accessed 1 Nov. 2020].

Samad, T. (2016). Beauty Standards. . .What’s Ideal? [online] Timasamad. Available at: https://timasamad.com/2016/02/07/beauty-standards-whats-ideal-2/ [Accessed 4 Nov. 2020].

Omnichannel Retailing

As consumers are now more demanding, satisfying their needs went beyond the infrastructure growth of retailers. Omnichannel strategy optimizes various distribution outlets while at the same time maintaining a high degree of collaboration between them. Fashion companies are constantly considering the prospect of encouraging consumers to buy and utilize items from the channels of their preference. Retail stores could be able to cross-sell goods from other stores. Lyn Evans is one of the fashion designers who are now exploring this. Many of the shops have iPads that shoppers can use to buy items from other stores until they find their favorite thing or color in that store. Gap is another brand that has adopted omnichannel retailing.

Product Customization

From running shoes to high fashion handbags, today's marketing is stamping our names on the items we're purchasing, setting them up as unique users – and counting on it. To get to this point, marketing has changed from the emphasis on the product itself to customers, who they are, and how they think.

Fashion brands increasingly encourage their customers to customize their products to their needs and desires. NikeiD on the Nike website offers consumers the opportunity to select the designs and colors they like on their sneakers. Black Lapel, Indochino, Vans, Ray-Ban, and Adidas, among other brands, also encourage their customers to tailor and customize their orders.

Social Shopping 

Social media is gradually becoming a designer brand storefront. Brands build connections on social media networks such as Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest, which redirect consumers to their retail pages. They're just doing shopping advertisements for a brilliant trigger. It performs exquisitely, the organic scope is now closer and closer to zero. Social Networking Sites have so much value that it wouldn't be smart enough not to monetize them. So if you want exposure, market recognition, and conversion, run Advertising. It's as simple as that.

The next big thing in fashion retail blends automated malls, internet retail, and social media altogether. Brands have not only created virtual shops for retail clothing but also encourage users to create avatars and make one shop with other avatars. These fascinating and creative ways of using technology can bring retail clothing to new heights of competitiveness and inspire customers.

Reference list

Denys Dubner (2019). 2020 Fashion Marketing: Everything You Need To Know To Get Ahead Of The Curve. [online] SONDORA SA. Available at: https://sondoramarketing.com/blog/2020-fashion-marketing/#1_Omnichannel_Retailing [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Devabit (2015). Customizable Fashion and How New Tech Helps with Interactive Product Customization - Devabit - Software development company. [online] Devabit - Software development company. Available at: https://devabit.com/blog/customizable-fashion-product-customization/ [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Fibre2fashion (2020). Social Media Impact on Clothing Social Shopping. [online] Fibre2fashion.com. Available at: https://www.fibre2fashion.com/industry-article/6981/social-shopping [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Intelistyle (2020). 5 Outstanding Omnichannel Retail Examples In Fashion - Intelistyle. [online] Intelistyle. Available at: https://www.intelistyle.com/omnichannel-retail-best-examples-fashion/ [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

‌Mega Store (2020). What is Omnichannel Retailing | Omnichannel Retail Guide | Magestore. [online] World’s #1 POS for Magento. Available at: https://www.magestore.com/retail-resources/omnichannel-retail-guide/what-is-omnichannel-retail/ [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Mondalek, A. (2020). Social Commerce. [online] The Business of Fashion. Available at: https://www.businessoffashion.com/articles/tags/topics/social-commerce [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

TFL (2018). Personalization and Customization: How ‘Brand You’ Came To Be | The Fashion Law. [online] The Fashion Law. Available at: https://www.thefashionlaw.com/how-brand-you-came-to-be/ [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Stretchy Kids' Clothes Petit Pli gets a growing identity

A sustainable fashion design example that offers apparel that evolves as the wearer grows older has an innovative branding that sounds like "more human" and "less professional." The idea is to reduce the waste of apparel and save parents' money as children progress up a range of sizes in the first three years of their lives.

It needs time and education to promote meaningful behavioral change. We assume that we are too late for much of our generation. We assume, though, that we are just in time for the next era of LittleHumans. The brilliance of the brand strategy is in anchoring on the opportunity where new parents and young children are more open to improvement and learning than any other part of our community. They do everything not only to promote constructive behavioral improvement but also to make it as seamless as possible.

Hidden Figures

The Petit Pli Team has created this comic for LittleHumans to demonstrate the relevance and meaning of the Black Lives Matter movement. We hope our comic continues to cultivate LittleHuman 's inherent interest and encourages them to never quit wondering for Earth's secret figures.

Via its approach to sustainability, Petit Pli aims to bring slow-fashion ideals to growing children by encouraging them to appreciate longevity and creativity in some of the most customized products of their lives – apparel! Petit Pli is designing for the future of humanity, starting with educating the next generation about some of the current complex problems in the social, global context.

Explaining Covid-19 by Storytelling

This is a confusing experience for everyone, let alone for LittleHumans. Petit Pli team succeeds to help out and they hope that by storytelling to let parents keep ready to work from home while looking after LittleHumans. Helping their users stay positive that things will change eventually.

Reference list

Dawood, S. (2019). Stretchy kids’ clothing Petit Pli gets an identity that grows. [online] Design Week. Available at: https://www.designweek.co.uk/issues/1-7-april-2019/stretchy-kids-clothing-petit-pli-gets-an-identity-that-grows/ [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Dezeen (2017). Ryan Mario Yasin’s Petit Pli kids clothing expands to fit as children grow. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJ8VSvkz_4w [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Dubai Design Week (2019). GGS Success Story: Featuring Petit Pli by Ryan Mario Yasin. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3a2eIix1rUI [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Dyson on (2019). Petit Pli: The unlikely fashion brand that wants to end industry waste by making clothes that grow. [online] Medium. Available at: https://medium.com/dyson-on/meet-the-inventors-fabric-fantastic-c5f18d7639bf [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

NB Studio (2019). Petit Pli - Brand Identity. [online] The Drum Awards. Available at: https://www.thedrumdesignawards.com/drum-design-awards-2019/brand-identity-design/petit-pli-brand-identity [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Petit Pli (2020a). MISSION 2: FUTURE OF HUMANITY Earth’s Hidden Figures. [online] Available at: http://ryanmarioyasin.com/hosting/BLMcomic.pdf [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Petit Pli (2020b). Petit Pli. [online] Petit Pli. Available at: https://shop.petitpli.com/ [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Petit Pli (2020c). Unstick The Sticky Alien! [online] Petit Pli. Available at: https://shop.petitpli.com/blogs/news/unstick-the-sticky-alien [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

Sherriff, L. (2020). This Company Is Making Children’s Clothes That Actually Grow As The Kid Does. Forbes. [online] 16 Feb. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/lucysherriff/2020/02/24/this-company-is-making-childrens-clothes-that-actually-grow-as-the-kid-does/?sh=81b30233f70f [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

The Trampery (2019). Petit Pli : Future Design for “LittleHumans” - The Trampery. [online] The Trampery. Available at: https://thetrampery.com/2019/12/02/petit-pli-future-design-for-littlehumans/ [Accessed 31 Oct. 2020].

The True Cost Formula 

Investigate your Wardrobe

Doughnut Economics

ATCAC-Disrupting the Fashion System

Earth Logic: the turning point

Careers in the Fashion Industry

The future of Garment Technology in Circular Fashion

Market Segmentation

Fashion for Good: Virtual Tour

Fashion & Society

Made in America

“Luxury: Behind the mirror of high-end fashion”

Empathic Design Process

SOKO Kenya - A people first company

Innovative Fashion Marketing

Key trends innovating Fashion Marketing

Fashion for Good: Virtual Tour

Untangled Egyptian Beauty Standards

The Fashion & Race database

The Modist- Modest Fashion Dream

About Time: Fashion and Duration

A great example of an ethical approach in the fashion industry is SoKo-Kenya, where they put people, communities, and life at the heart of everything they do. The fashion manufacturer built the business module based on their belief in equality and quality of life for all, they are linking their product quality to the improvement of the quality of life for their employees and customers alike.  

The brand has a sense of culture and aims to build and improve the social, environmental, and economic skills of local populations. By investing in their team's skills, designing price structures that adequately compensate their workforce so that they and their families can grow and thrive, and collaborating with partners to deliver education and skills to the broader community through their Community Trust and Kujuwa Project.

ASOS MADE IN KENYA is the newest limited edition unisex range produced in collaboration with SOKO Kenya. Yet, how precisely SOKO Kenya is branded to the ASOS audience is a critical issue. SOKO Kenya is presented as a "charitable project apparel workshop" and is included as part of the ASOS ECO Edit. Often African products are positioned as feel-good, philanthropic non-profits focusing on delivering job security and skill development. Many companies, like SOKO Kenya, definitely accomplish these honorable objectives (and making ASOS look good in the process), in some cases, though, the market underestimates the integrity of driving a bold, profit-driven enterprise that can create much more employment and have much greater long-term effects. Profitable companies will generate sustainable wealth and contribute to the formalization of the local fashion industry as an essential foundation.

Reference list

Givens, D. (2020). ASOS Unveils Its Made In Kenya Collection Collaboration With Soko Kenya. [online] Black Enterprise. Available at: https://www.blackenterprise.com/asos-unveils-its-made-in-kenya-collection-collaboration-with-soko-kenya/ [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Partners, K. (2017). PROTOCHIC. [online] PROTOCHIC. Available at: https://www.protochic.com/stories/2017/3/17/kenyan-manufacturer-soko-kenya-partners-with-british-retailer-asos [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Empathy is the core of the entire process of Design Thinking. Putting ourselves in someone else's shoes reinforces our ability to interpret information, and lets us understand how other humans perceive the world around us.

  The realm of fashion design is shifting from an external focus on the industry, or an internal focus on integrating technology, to an empathetic focus on people. While it’s not too difficult to rally people around this general idea, it can be hard at first to understand how to translate it into tactics.

As designers, how do we make a positive connection between an apparel worker and a customer? 

My answer to this question is to make the fashion workers are the hero of the story, build the brand values around them. Design the business modules to be a win-win between workers and stakeholders. We as designers could reconfigure how the system is giving back to communities, they operate within.  

I hope as a future fashion designer, to build a safe working space that helps improve the lives of single mothers in Egypt. by providing extensive programs to train and curate possible working talents. the empathy design process would be integrated not only to understand customers but more importantly to understand the real needs of the heroes behind my future brand.

Reference list

E.Postma, C. and Pelgrim, E. (2012). Challenges of Doing Empathic Design: Experiences from Industry. [online] International Journal of Dsign. Available at: http://www.ijdesign.org/index.php/IJDesign/article/view/1008/403 [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Esser, P. (2020). Empathy – How to Improve Your Designs by Developing Empathy for Your Target Group. [online] The Interaction Design Foundation. Available at: https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/article/empathy-how-to-improve-your-designs-by-developing-empathy-for-your-target-group [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Ethical fashion Podcast (2013). Tokyo Style with Hirofumi Kurino of United Arrows - Ethical Fashion Podcast. [online] Poddtoppen. Available at: https://poddtoppen.se/podcast/1518240363/ethical-fashion-podcast/tokyo-style-with-hirofumi-kurino-of-united-arrows [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Kateryna Ryabchykova (2017). Empathic design as a new paradigm in fashion methodology. [online] ResearchGate. Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/320225178_Empathic_design_as_a_new_paradigm_in_fashion_methodology [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Kolko, J. (2015). A Process for Empathetic Product Design. [online] Harvard Business Review. Available at: https://hbr.org/2015/04/a-process-for-empathetic-product-design [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Talya Weinberg (2018). Ethical Fashion: What is it? [online] YUMAJAI. Available at: https://www.yumajai.com/blogs/journal/ethical-fashion-what-is-it [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

tumblr (2020). π8š: Image. [online] Tumblr.com. Available at: https://64.media.tumblr.com/623d87b10e6a31d199684e64e8a6f111/tumblr_ph44v9YxOD1s9zihl_640.gifv [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

From Haute-Couture at Paris Fashion Week to Chinese and Italian backdoor fabrication hubs, to investigate the dark side of luxury. This documentary investigation reveals – behind the glamorous exterior, all that glitters is not gold in the world of luxury goods, with their beautiful shopfronts and finely crafted goods, brands like Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Max Mara, and Prada are seen as the definition of luxury, conjuring images of master craftsmen finely crafting each piece. But – While these uber-rich luxury brands justify their crazy price tags with a “made in Europe by highly trained artisans” image, they exploit the labor of less privileged demographics and sourcing/supply chains. Consumers are easily fooled to believe that they are making an eco-conscious purchase by buying lux goods, but there is no difference that consumers contribute to this vicious cycle of capitalism than buying Zara or H&M products.

As is widely said, under capitalism, there is no ethical consumption. As long as people chase money, there will still be exploitation. As a customer, it's up to you to know how much exploitation you're able to handle. Why would you help a brand that charges 10k for a bag made by overworked, underpaid, sometimes violently abused, and illegally trafficked immigrants, when you could instead support ethical companies that don't exploit people through slave labor? consider that the conditions of the Senegalese example in the documentary. Then there’s fur, the other iconic luxury material. Nowadays, the largest percentage of fur comes from China, where 70 million animals are hunted every year for their fur. Animals have no rights or safety there and the conditions in the farms are atrocious.

As the film goes on, ideas keep rushing of Socio-cultural factors linking the discussed topics to deeper problems of illegal immigration from North Africa to Europe that I actually grow up seeing in my home country. Being a migrant in Europe, regardless of jobs and legal status is a symbol of prestige. Immigrants often return to their home countries for vacations, showing off an apparently comfortable lifestyle: often a new car, a new language, a beach holiday package, and sometimes a wife. This causes those who are less familiar with reality to believe that Europe is the long waited paradise. The International Labor Organization estimates that 20 percent of employed North Africans and their families live on less than $2 a day. North African societal expectations lead many young North African immigrants to be responsible for supporting their relatives, mainly their parents and younger siblings., mostly parents, and younger siblings. Social pressure will also cause them to place their own lives at risk for the well-being of their family.

Reference list

Baldwin-Edwards, M. (2006). Between a Rock and a Hard Place: North Africa as a region of emigration, immigration and transit migration. Forthcoming in REVIEW OF AFRICAN POLITICAL ECONOMY. [online] Available at: http://aei.pitt.edu/6365/1/Between_a_rock_FINAL.pdf [Accessed 3 Dec. 2019].

DW Documentary (2019). Luxury: Behind the mirror of high-end fashion | DW Documentary (fashion documentary). YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7hzomuDEIk [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

EMN EUROPEAN MIGRATION NETWORK (2005). Illegally resident Third Country Nationals in Italy: State approaches towards them and their profile and social situation. [online] Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/home-affairs/sites/homeaffairs/files/what-we-do/networks/european_migration_network/reports/docs/emn-studies/illegally-resident/it_emn_ncp_country_study_research_study_ii_illegal_finalen_feb07_en.pdf [Accessed 22 Oct. 2020].

Fanack (2020). The Key Drivers of North African Illegal Migration to Europe - Fanack.com. [online] Fanack.com. Available at: https://fanack.com/international-affairs-of-the-middle-east-and-north-africa/north-african-illegal-migration-to-europe/ [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Giordana, E. (2015). For shoe workers, hell is in Tuscany - il manifesto global - Medium. [online] Medium. Available at: https://medium.com/il-manifesto-global/for-shoe-workers-hell-is-in-tuscany-d270f9aa2711 [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Human Rights Watch (2013). Italy: Leather Buyers Beware. [online] Human Rights Watch. Available at: https://www.hrw.org/news/2013/04/02/italy-leather-buyers-beware [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (2016). Rabbits Skinned Alive in the Chinese Fur Trade. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Of8rv4YhR7k [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Premières Lignes Télévision (2018). Luxury: Behind the Mirror. [online] Pltv.fr. Available at: https://www.pltv.fr/en/luxe-les-dessous-chocs/ [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2011). The role of organized crime in the smuggling of migrants from West Africa to the European Union. [online] Available at: https://www.unodc.org/documents/human-trafficking/Migrant-Smuggling/Report_SOM_West_Africa_EU.pdf [Accessed 22 Oct. 2020].

The stereotypical picture of garment sweatshops usually places them in countries such as Bangladesh — the result of decades of outsourcing of clothing production to Asian countries where incomes are among the lowest in the world. The documentary "Made in America" addresses abuses of human rights, and also links how sweatshops exploit immigrants workers in fast fashion factories every day in the United States. Los Angeles has a variety of garment factories notorious for hiring low-wage employees. Over the years, the Labor Department has continued to find abuses in the area, manufacturing factories for well-known low-cost stores, including Forever 21, TJ Maxx, and Ross Dress for Less. Most employees are illegal immigrants, leaving them reluctant to go to the authorities if they are abused on jobs.

Elena, a worker inside Reformation's Los Angeles factory. Photo: courtesy of Reformation 

In reaction to this threat and the immigration problems that already existed, the CFDA released a study in April, compiled with the help of FWD.us, an organization that campaigns for immigration reform with an emphasis on the tech industry, entitled "Designing an Immigration Structure that Works." The report contained survey responses from 100 members of the U.S. fashion community to demonstrate this. It showed that 82% employ foreign workers for their skills and abilities (not that they're cheap labor) and 42% find it hard to hire foreign workers because they're uneducated regarding the immigration system.

Sewing Resilience is a short film by Wil Prada and Pea Nuñez, artivists, about the lives of Santa Puac, apparel worker and  active leader for workers in the Los Angeles clothing industry (Wil Prada, 2020) .

Brands who advertise their goods are "made in America" should promote the concept of ethically produced apparel, but the reality is that apparel factories in Los Angeles can still be likened to sweatshop-like environments where products are made for less than a minimum wage under unsafe working conditions. Although not all of the clothes made in Los Angeles are made this way, it's interesting to figure out who makes the clothes and what kind of working conditions they're facing. Remake's Sustainable Brand Directory is a fantastic place to start with if you're trying to help sustainable, ethically designed apparel.

Reference list

Bain, M. (2019). Fashion Nova accused of using Los Angeles sweatshops. [online] Quartz. Available at: https://qz.com/1769309/fashion-nova-accused-of-using-los-angeles-sweatshops/ [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Davis, C. (2017). The Dark Side of Your Clothes Being “Made in America” No One Talks About. [online] ATTN: Available at: https://archive.attn.com/stories/18483/made-america-how-sweatshops-exploit-immigrants-make-your-clothes [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Dhani Mau (2017). U.S. Garment Production Wouldn’t Be a Thing Without Immigrants. [online] Fashionista. Available at: https://fashionista.com/2017/07/american-garment-factories-production-immigrant-workers [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Green America (2020). Get Sweatshops Out of Your Closet. [online] Green America. Available at: https://www.greenamerica.org/green-living/sweatshop-free-clothing [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Morse, A. (2020). The Dirty Truth Behind Los Angeles’ Garment Sector. [online] Remake. Available at: https://remake.world/stories/news/the-dirty-truth-behind-los-angeles-garment-sector/ [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Remarke (2020). Made in America: The Film. [online] Remake. Available at: https://remake.world/stories/made-in/made-in-america/ [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

UCLA Labor Center (2020). Immigrant Working Families are Sewing Resilience in the Fast Fashion Industry of L.A. [online] Medium. Available at: https://medium.com/@UCLALaborCenter/sewing-resilience-dfee6af7b312 [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Wil Prada (2020). Sewing Resilience - Short Film. YouTube. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wxNd3q94KjQ&feature=emb_logo [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Photo by : Devin Doyle -- Powerful documentation of Black history in Kerby Jean-Raymond’s spring 2019 Pyer Moss show at Weeksville in Brooklyn.

From the moment individuals are born, the political context of clothing is intuitively recognized. Since, basically, any human society is a dressed society. What one wears, how one wears it, and where one wears it represents expressions of degrees of individual freedom and influence. Fashion expression spans the entire spectrum of politics, from rebellion to conformity. Simply placed, a dress style that challenges — or is viewed as challenging, or poses a challenge to the status quo — has unexpectedly gained political relevance.

Trickle-up theory: how digital culture is changing the way fashion trends develop

While this cyclical fashion game is one of the oldest distribution theories, it may no longer be the most influential. The trickle-down from the catwalks to the high streets might still be there, but the trickle-up habits have certainly been substituted. A lot of fashion designers are not only looking for inspiration in landscapes, abstract images, all sorts of things they used to look at, they're going to the street; they're seeing what the youngsters are wearing in the cool, fashionable places. The Internet and the globalization of fashion have created a much better-informed audience, requiring that designers and mass-market stores to step up their game. When individuals acquire an agency through connectivity and social media, it appears like the cool  youngsters' don't need to get to the top of the ladder to be noticed or heard. Instead, people may build sense and learn from whoever they are.

This is a key shift in dynamics for many brands, their fastest-growing channels are now their online stores, so it's crucial that they retain an active presence in social media, and digital space is now a key location for brands to exhibit collections, build identities and forge partnerships with consumers.

Reference list

Boari, C. (2015). THE FASHION INFLUENCE IN CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY. [online] Available at: http://www.modadocumenta.com.br/anais/anais/5-Moda-Documenta-2015/07-Sessao-Tematica-Moda-e-Sociedade-percursos-diversos/Carolina-Boari_ModaDocumenta2015_influencia-na-moda_BILINGUE.pdf.

Nithyaprakash Venkatasamy (2015). Fashion trends and their impact on the society. [online] ResearchGate. Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/282571020_Fashion_trends_and_their_impact_on_the_society [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Singer, M. (2020). Power Dressing: Charting the Influence of Politics on Fashion. [online] Vogue. Available at: https://www.vogue.com/article/charting-the-influence-of-politics-on-fashion [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Wo, D.X.H., Schminke, M. and Ambrose, M.L. (2018). Trickle-Down, Trickle-Out, Trickle-Up, Trickle-In, and Trickle-Around Effects: An Integrative Perspective on Indirect Social Influence Phenomena. Journal of Management, [online] 45(6), pp.2263–2292. Available at: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0149206318812951 [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Wong, G. (2013). TRENDS-SPRING-SUMMER-2013-TEE - tongue in chic. [online] tongue in chic. Available at: https://www.tonguechic.com/archives/trendspotting-springsummer-2013-statement-graphic-tees/attachment/trends-spring-summer-2013-tee/ [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

The Dutch organization Fashion for Good has partnered up with Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum and New York's creative organization to create the "First Interactive Museum for Sustainable Innovation." The 40,000 square foot space opened in Oct 2018 has integrated an innovative kind of museum experience that takes visitors to learning,  gaming, group storytelling, and community promoting Good Fashion practice public awareness.

Interactive Bracelet creates a gaming user experience for visitors to the Fashion for Good Museum.

The museum also encourages tourists to take part in a gamified exploration of space by adorning themselves with Action Bracelet, made by recycled plastics polymers; which captures the visitors' behavior while interacting with each space activity. 

Tactile fabrics let visitors feel and understand materials

While visitors enter the Design Studio to make their own personalized t-shirt, they select one of the 144 design choices. In their style, bold print, drawings, and tactile elements welcome them to the 8-step method of designing, manufacturing, and selling a cotton/polyester T-shirt. As a result, they take away a sense of ownership after engaging in the production process, along with the new addition to their wardrobe is made of 100% Cradle to Cradle GOLD Certified fabrics and practices and motivated by awareness.

Fashion waste information at the Museum

The Museum for Good design is ahead of the curve. One of the aspects that shines a bright light of optimism these days is the acceleration of awareness that sweeps the globe. Let us hope that this will serve as a roadmap not just for other museums worldwide, but also for retailers who want to make their customers more conscious and emotionally linked by opening up similar retail spaces that merge gaming, learning, and fun with shopping. They would be wise to do this because the green revolution is now a reality.

Reference list:

Fashion For Good (2018). The Experience — Fashion For Good. [online] Fashion For Good. Available at: https://fashionforgood.com/the-experience/ [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Business Model (BM) is an organization's representation in the fashion industry, focused on a variety of arrangements to meet its competitive goals and objectives. That is the core logic in which the organization develops, delivers, and captures its profitability by unlocking the capacity for inventions, technology, goods, and transforming it into a competitive business advantage.

Fashion Industry Segmentation is based on four business models:

Luxury brands (LB)

Fashion designer brands (FB)

Premium brands (PB)

Vertical retailers in the Mass market (MM)

Value /Price  is the most common market segment criterion since BM generates value: the product allows business strategy (the option of how to invest in the business), the business strategy determines BM, and BM generates value/benefit/utility.

Let's see some examples of fashion market value oppositions  :

H&M – fashion and quality at the best possible price;

Zara, fast fashion.

Haute Couture  – on the top, we find all luxury brands, high-end fashion,             commissioned pieces of wearable art.

Ready-To-Wear – another lower version of each designer brands

Diffusion –  premium and designer brands

Bridge – premium brands

Mass market – retail

Reference list

Danneels, E. (1996). Market segmentation: normative model versus business reality: An exploratory study of apparel retailing in Belgium  |  Emerald Insight. European Journal of Marketing. [online] Available at: https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/03090569610121665/full/html [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Marino, A. (2016). Fashion Market Segmentation. [online] Revealing your deep fashion thoughts. Available at: https://fashionthoughtsweb.wordpress.com/2016/11/23/fashion-market-segmentation/ [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

P.Smith, M. (2014). Fashion market sectors. [online] Blogspot.com. Available at: http://melaniepsmith.blogspot.com/2014/10/fashion-markets.html [Accessed 27 Oct. 2020].

Fashion has always been a major hub for innovation — from the invention of the sewing machine to the rise of e-commerce. As technology, fashion is both forward-looking and cyclical. At $2.2 T, the apparel industry is now one of the top sectors in the global economy. Nowadays, apparel technology is rising more than ever. From robots that sew and cut clothing to AI algorithms that anticipate style patterns, to VR mirrors in dressing rooms, technology automates, customizes, and speeds up every aspect of fashion.

'Technology' in fashion is a broad concept that encompasses anything from product details and traceability to distribution, inventory control, and fabric labels. Technology, as an umbrella concept, encompasses many of these concerns and is an increasingly pivotal enabler of circular business models. But when we talk about technology, we are no longer talking just about apparel being monitored from manufacturers to retail stores to measure how many apparels is sold, nor are we talking only about conventional stitch-on garment tags showing country of origin and information on the material composition of the product. Instead, it's time to spotlight the emergence of 'digital triggers' to render circular fashion models.

So, what's the future? In a perfect future led by collaborators and manufacturers, the industry will step forward in creating 'digital passports' for apparel that holds a globally accepted digital asset-level trigger that could be accessed by designers, retailers, recyclers, and consumers alike. This kind of generic infrastructure and marking approach ensures that not every brand or approach supplier has its own proprietary methods, leaving consumers lost in a sea of things to recall. In this way, the future of fashion technology could truly unify the industry around standard practices that will make circularity more available to everyone.

What‘s next? Technology future impact on fashion industry:

Design of Product

• AI will become the designer

• AI impacts brands strategies 

Fabricating

• No more seasons of fashion

• Promoting sustainability

• Rapid iteration & productivity

• Streamline the supply chain

• 3D printing of personalized items

•  robot designs for fabrication  

Inventory and Supply

• RFID verification for automation and digital integration.

• Blockchain in the production system

• Scaling down distribution

• D2C brands shun physical stores

 • From the sole owner to the user-ship solution: the spike in clothing-as-a-service

Retail & interactive merchandising

• AR / VR redefines user experience online and in-store.

• Virtual stylists are getting intimate

Tech fashion trends to observe

• Smart jewelry, garments, & footwear

• Interactive fashion

•  3D printing and Scanning

• Innovative fabrics

Reference list

Accenture and H&M Foundation (2018). Circular x Fashion Tech. [online] Available at: https://www.accenture.com/_acnmedia/PDF-74/Accenture-GCA-Circular-FashionTech-Trend-Report-2018.pdf [Accessed 3 Oct. 2020].

CB Insights (2020). The Future Of Fashion: From Design To Merchandising, How Tech Is Reshaping The Industry. [online] CB Insights Research. Available at: https://www.cbinsights.com/research/fashion-tech-future-trends/ [Accessed 26 Oct. 2020].

CHANGE, W. (2020). THE WARDROBE CRISIS. [online] THE WARDROBE CRISIS. Available at: https://thewardrobecrisis.com/the-magazine/2020/8/26/4-tech-innovations-that-will-change-the-future-of-sustainable-fashion [Accessed 26 Oct. 2020].

Design Indaba (2013). Data Dress: A tangible representation of your online movements | Design Indaba. [online] Design Indaba. Available at: https://www.designindaba.com/articles/creative-work/data-dress-tangible-representation-your-online-movements [Accessed 26 Oct. 2020].

Fashion United (2020). The future of garment technology in circular fashion. [online] Fashionunited.uk. Available at: https://fashionunited.uk/news/business/the-future-of-garment-technology-in-circular-fashion/2020091750927 [Accessed 26 Oct. 2020].

LeVine, S. (2018). Automated fashion is now a reality in new Chinese store. [online] Axios. Available at: https://www.axios.com/fashion-automated-alibaba-china-store-d476b4a4-d74d-410e-9518-bea2449203da.html [Accessed 26 Oct. 2020].

Morrison, H., Petherick, L. and Ley, K. (2019). THE FUTURE OF CIRCULAR FASHION A COLLABORATIVE REPORT BY ACCENTURE STRATEGY AND FASHION FOR GOOD ASSESSING THE VIABILITY OF CIRCULAR BUSINESS MODELS. [online] ACCENTURE STRATEGY AND FASHION FOR GOOD. Available at: https://d2be5ept72nvlo.cloudfront.net/2019/05/The-Future-of-Circular-Fashion-Report.pdf [Accessed 2 Oct. 2020].

Sohini Dey (2018). Can artificial intelligence and fashion create a smart stitch? [online] mint. Available at: https://www.livemint.com/Leisure/Vp81luEXDz3lWuvvYVYIdO/Can-artificial-intelligence-and-fashion-create-a-smart-stitc.html [Accessed 26 Oct. 2020].