TFS Community influencing the fashion world? See Post #1 for related thread.

Opinions should never be censored. Sometimes you can't really explain exactly WHY you don't like something, you just know you don't. Or maybe you can't put it into words others will understand. When sites or threads are nothing but Rah-Rah, and ooohs and ahhhs with no dissenting opinions, they don't really serve a useful purpose as a cross section of society. It's like conducting an opinion poll and stacking the deck to achieve a desired outcome. That makes the poll virtually worthless.
I completely agree. And seriously, what logic is there to allowing only compliments? If users are not allowed to speak negatively of a designer's collection here, you better believe that that collection will get bashed on another website forum or on a fashion blog. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and if you work in the fashion industry, you need to have a thick skin.

And with regard to the topic of this thread, I don't think that TFS "influences" anything. But, I certainly do think that some fashion reporters browse the forums during fashion week to get ideas on what to write about in their reviews of the collections. There was a review of the Valentino fall couture collection that seemed like it came straight out of TFS forum posts. The only real difference between that review and the opinions of several TFS users was the wording of the review.
 
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For some magazines, I don't think people on tfs are that representative of their overall readership, so the opinions expressed might not appear tremendously relevant to them - although I'm a great believer in the value of reading every post, with the mindset that every person who doesn't like your product today is someone who could be persuaded to buy it in the future. That's how I would see it - negativity isn't necessarily something to dread, because it does still offer potential, especially in fashion, where things change by the minute, the hour, the month. Hated today, adored tomorrow, then dismissed as boring. It seems to be a natural cycle.
 
TFS is what drew me into fashion in the first place. I was googling Diane Kruger and her tfs thread came up. Then, I started exploring the rest of the forum and I was instantly fascinated. I'm sure there are others who were also drawn into fashion by tFS. It also makes being interested in fashion easy, since there's such a huge and current database that gets updated so quickly. Before buying a magazine, I always check the tFS thread to see if it's actually worth buying.

I won't comment on the thing about changing opinions because everyone's different, but it can definitely make us aware of something we didn't really notice before, such as photoshopping failures (thread of that name), weight issues (weight watch thread), who's a total copycat (look-alike thread), things like that. I think the "in depth" section also gets us thinking about the things in the industry, not just blindly accepting. IMO, thinking about fashion and hearing other people's thoughts just makes it even more interesting.
 
I agree with the last comment particularly because some TFS users seem like they judge the content of the magazine purely by the content of the cover or editorials, when there is so much more to a magazine publication than that. I actually read Vogue and and find that the content does tend to make up for the lack of innovative direction editorial wise.

I also agree with honeycombchild because you can tell when people just have "fangirl" moments because their favorite model is featured in a magazine or designer's collection or something, rather than looking objectively at how they actually fit into it. That's when I don't really take some people's comments too seriously.

Another example of potential influence over a model
-- I recently saw in one model's thread her showcard for SS11 and many people made comments on how it should be changed differently to include a close up shot and within the next day a new image for a showcard appeared. I'm not saying one thing lead to the other...there could be many reasons for the change, but I found that very interesting :innocent:
 
Another example of potential influence over a model
-- I recently saw in one model's thread her showcard for SS11 and many people made comments on how it should be changed differently to include a close up shot and within the next day a new image for a showcard appeared. I'm not saying one thing lead to the other...there could be many reasons for the change, but I found that very interesting :innocent:
I think the promotion of models, particularly runway models is very relevant in this discussion.
I have no doubt this forum is frequented by model agency staff (particularly bookers), many of whom are members. Not only do they monitor comments but I suspect some of them could be using the tFS forum as a vehicle to create hype. I guess it stands to reason.. if the tFS community can influence the fashion world then model agencies will try to influence the tFS community.
(I in fact wouldn't be surprised if there are members here who are essentially model "promoters" who aren't necessarily affiliated with any one agency! :ninja:)
 
Quite a few industry people are well aware of TFS (like Emmanuelle Alt, or many of the models), and the proof emerges in print sometimes- like i-D January 2009 which mentioned TFS in a cover story on Eniko, or Ten S/S09 which actually featured TFS on the list of best online sites for fashion discussion. I guess it's a resource to some people because of the vast amount of information here, but in terms of 'influence'.....I honestly have no idea.
 
I really hope TFS wasn't instrumental in any way in the booting of Paulo Melim Andresson from Chloe. There were so many negative threads, and mostly from a handful of Phoebe Philo loyalists, who dissed his designs as they hankered after the retro frilly, lacy Chloe. In retrospect, even Philo has gone all minimal and edgier at Celine, so Paulo was really ahead of his time, with his bold brush-stroke prints, boxier cut and minimal-modern aesthetics. And of course those kind of dated Chloe designs never came back anyway!
 
^I totally agree with you about Andersson, his AW07 collection- the one with orange, and black? - has become a bit of a classic, especially with the Docs that everyone and their aunt so adores. He was ahead of his time, it's true, but Philo's shoes were always going to be tough ones to fill- not that he could have continued along her track anyway, boho was done to death by the end of 2005. If it's any consolation, there was a lot of industry 'talk' about him too which led to the actual sacking being no surprise to most people- I doubt TFS, as it stood two years ago, was an actual factor in the decision. I mean, people were still being very sniffy about blogs and anything online back then.
 
I personally doubt that tFS had any sort of influence on something like Andersson leaving Chloe. As much as public opinion matters, it's the opinion and reactions of the buyers mostly that will have seen something that like happen. If it got bad reviews and negatives comments, but still went on to sell ridiculously well and have buyers clambering for it, then it wouldn't effect his job.
 
^
I agree.

I think tfs, as others have noted, is especially influential in the modelling world. There are huge 'loyalists' here and a lot of model threads are actively updated and so provide a good resource. I think perhaps with regard to design chatter, tfs used to be more influential but now with there being more members, it has become more mainstream and so perhaps taken less seriously.

Certainly, in the past trend setting was used by a lot of magazines (like Grazia UK). It's a great source to get ideas about up and coming trends that other sites don't cover and document as well, but with the past few seasons being sort of "trend-less" that has also disappeared somewhat.

Ultimately I think tfs is probably a great resource for those looking to test reactions and opinions of those 'in the know' and will continue to be used by industry professionals in that way.
 
Yea it's not really made clear how it would influence, if TFS did.. There are so many ways that could work out, but there's no doubt it has an effect on at least consumers, influencing what they buy, what they wear/ personal style ---and these are also part of the fashion world
 
but there's no doubt it has an effect on at least consumers, influencing what they buy, what they wear/ personal style

Some consumers, maybe. Probably a very small percentage of the market.
 
I agree with Drusilla and Honeycombchild that the influence is not direct, and sales is the ultimate decider, but I do think that since many tfs members work in the fashion industry and many are are bloggers, the negative "buzz" that disseminates does have an effect on the general public perception of the designer and the collection. I am fine with criticism, especially when they are objective and substantial, but when it gets so personal as to be unfair to the designer, especially a talented one, it could adversely affect him/her. Anderson sent a brilliant first collection, much better than the scalloped-edged sleeves of Gibbons, the influence of which is still present this season, yet he was harshly criticized here. His only sin was to deviate from the peasant smocks and broderie anglaise of Phoebe Philo. If you look at that collection again, the most dated looking pieces are the ones deemed to be the most "Chloe" then, with the elaborate shiny decorations. Isn't this what's great about forward looking fashion, that they are ahead and trend-setting? Hussein Chalayan is another designer that achieves this, it's a rare quality.

I appreciate the open forum that is TFS, yet sometimes you wonder how and why one designer gets the poisoned treatment while others receive only accolades - eg. the YSL strawberries vs. Miu Miu kittens. Both are somewhat silly girly, but only one is savaged. I feel sometimes that the threads get hijacked and ugly. Andersson is now toxic, and nowhere to be found, a loss to the industry, I feel. I hope he makes a comeback one day, like Alber Elbaz did after his disastrous YSL debut.
 
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I went back and looked at Chloe SS2008 and it is even more relevant today. I wish I'd picked up some of those pieces, I did pick some pieces from his first collection, but missed the Spring 2008 collection of genius complex transparent layers and bold brushstrokes even though I remember liking it even more.
 
I think tFS has a certain influence when it comes to campains ...
Do some people actually see any black people in the Prada prints campain this season ?
I doubt .......
And the pictures we got on internet were "sent" way before the menswear campain got to print ...

I think people do some tests here ...

And I don't really understand the "really" in the title !!!
Is tFS supposed to be influential ?
Not so sure ....

And tFS also represents well the increase of internet in the industry ... so that's a major poll to do ...
 
Perhaps tfs is less an 'influence' and more a resource that's exploited.
 
Perhaps tfs is less an 'influence' and more a resource that's exploited.

Much like a prolific intern? I do think that since tFS can't be completely controlled and some people rely on it, it does have an effect. I'm not sure I would call that influential though. To exert influence indicates a purpose or a goal - an agenda.
 
I think the exclusivity of tFS is what makes our community so influential. I have lurked for years but wasn't able to join until I began to work in the industry. As it should be! If anyone could join without working in the field then tFS would lose a large element of its social capital. The exclusivity is what allows relationships to be formed, ideas to be exchanged, and creativity to be unleashed. I feel confident sharing myself and listening to others knowing that I'm amongst like-minded equally talented people. I think another aspect of tFS that makes this forum the most important fashion forum in the world is the wide variety of professionals. I'm sure there are modeling forums, photography forums, marketing forums etc, but a lot of the creative processes and individual growth that takes place here is a result of having representatives from every facet of fashion. I personally come from an academic perspective and wrote my History honors thesis on the use of fashion in negotiating social and cultural revolutions (I'm also a streetstyle blogger and am now earning my M.S. to study fashion). If I was reading a forum with other history researchers I doubt I would have come up with the ideas for the thesis that I did. All of you should know that this forum played a large role in my formal education and decision to study fashion as an academic. I am just one person - imagine what else you all have influenced!

And I must say, after having lurked here for so many years I am incredibly grateful to be member.
 
I think the exclusivity of tFS is what makes our community so influential. I have lurked for years but wasn't able to join until I began to work in the industry. As it should be! If anyone could join without working in the field then tFS would lose a large element of its social capital.

There is no exclusivity nor membership requirements. It used to be wide open and anyone could sign up at will. In an effort to control growth that was causing traffic and bandwidth problems on the old web servers, they went to an invitation system. Any current member can invite anyone they choose whether or not they're involved in the business in any way.
 

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