a real interesting trend article from wwd of today, hope you guys enjoy the repost
from wwd.com
Fashion's New Segmented Society
Published: Wednesday, March 07, 2007
By Holly Haber
DALLAS — Say goodbye to the fashion mainstream.
"It doesn't exist anymore," says David Wolfe, creative director of the Doneger Group trend forecasting and buying service.
Consumers have splintered into four main groups driven by style, demographics, location or special interest, and each of these has multiple subsets, he told the Dallas chapter of Fashion Group International last week.
"It's a revolution the industry is not dealing with, especially the bigger companies," Wolfe told WWD after the seminar at the Dallas Market Center. "I honestly believe that those businesses that are predicated on a mass consensus of agreement on what's in fashion and what's out are in for a terrible wake-up call."
Few trends today are picked up by a majority of consumers, and many are relevant only to niche groups, he claimed, citing dark, skinny jeans.
"When we said, 'Have personal style,' that was the biggest mistake the fashion industry made," he reasoned. "We gave the consumers power, and now they're drunk with power and we can't get control over them….Personally, I love the idea of options and personal style, but from a business point of view, it makes it very hard for fashion companies and retailers to figure out what they should have in stock eight months from now."
Wolfe sees this splintering as an opportunity for specialty stores that cater to specific customer groups.
"At the Doneger Group, we've seen specialty stores thriving over the last year compared with department stores and mass merchants," he said, even though J.C. Penney, Nordstrom, Kohl's and Federated Department Stores in recent weeks have reported strong financial results for last year.
Still, there are emerging trends that have staying power for spring 2008. Fashion will continue to clean up after its orgy of embellishment and sexuality, moving into more subtle and sophisticated looks à la Marc Jacobs' surprisingly tailored fall collection, Wolfe predicted.
The new emphasis on shape will persist in both skinny and voluminous silhouettes and all lengths. Layering will continue, but in tonal coordinates and light weights. Futurism will remain in shiny fabrics; technological innovation, such as mechanical devices, to change the shape of clothing, and space-age-inspired style.
The palette will include combinations of neutral khaki, beige, tan and ecru; neutral pastels such as blush pink and mint; hues not typical of spring, such as purple, sapphire, chocolate and burgundy; shocking colors like hot pink, and high-octane mixes of brilliant colors.
Fabrics will be lightweight and seasonless, and there will be plenty of transparency in wovens and knits, floral and geometric prints, novelty treatments and shiny surfaces, Wolfe said.
from wwd.com