#trendsthattranslate

Jun 30, 2020
5 min

What is the TikTok subculture Dark Academia?

School may be out indefinitely, but on social media there’s a thriving subculture devoted to the aesthetic of all things scholarly. School, as most of us know it, came to a halt this spring. There were no graduation gatherings and no proms. No study abroad or in-person summer classes. And what will happen in September is still largely unknown. Yet in the digital world, a different kind of academic community is thriving, one where students have created a niche of their own, al

Jun 27, 2020
4 min

Harris Reed Is Designing the Gender-Fluid Fashion of the Future, One Harry Styles Blouse at a Time

Minimalism often seizes designers in periods of uncertainty: when the fashion industry is on the ropes, say, or when a given designer needs a reset. But the work of Harris Reed, the 23-year-old English-American designer, suggests that fashion is entering a new period of exuberance. Reed just graduated from Central Saint Martins, fashion’s most prestigious graduate school, but has already been hard at work: dressing Ezra Miller in a feathered top hat and Solange in a portrait

May 26, 2020
5 min

Department Stores Are Dying. Could Artificial Intelligence Replace Them?

The Yes is a shopping app that uses AI to give you all the variety of a department store with none of the headaches. Department stores have been on the decline for years, and now that the pandemic has emptied brick-and-mortar stores, they may die out entirely. But the concept of being able to easily browse different brands and products still resonates with many shoppers. A new app called The Yes is built to be a virtual department store. Julie Bornstein [Image: The Yes] The a

May 26, 2020
3 min

How Growth For Indie Retail Is Forecasted Post Covid-19

The COVID-19 crisis is forecasted to make major changes in the retail business, and, when the dust from the crisis settles, some of the entrepreneurs best positioned to start over and make a connection with consumers will be independent retailers, according to a handful of industry watchers. The crisis has changed people’s lives and their needs. They’ll be looking for retailers who will reflect their needs, said Paco Underhill. As founder of the market-research company Enviro

May 26, 2020
3 min

The Future of Luxury Is Freedom

Beyond goods, services and experiences, freedom will become the ultimate signifier of status. In essence, luxury is about status, playing to that fundamentally human need to communicate who you are and how you fit into the social hierarchy. Through the ages and across cultures, status has been expressed in a multitude of ways, from the tone of one’s complexion to the size of one’s kingdom. But fundamentally, signalling status has long been about possessing something that is w

May 26, 2020
3 min

Could Antiviral Fabrics Take Off With Luxury Shoppers?

A leading Italian manufacturer has perfected an antiviral fabric, one of the first of its kind. Vogue Business unpicks the potential. Can your clothing protect you from Covid-19? A leading Italian luxury manufacturer says it has developed an antiviral fabric that may, and major luxury brands are snapping it up. Albini Group, best known as a dress shirt fabric supplier to companies including Kering, Armani, Ermenegildo Zegna and Prada, has developed new ViroFormula fabrics, cr

May 26, 2020
4 min

Direct-to-Consumer Brands’ Average Sales Revenue is To Soar 85% by 2020

Direct-to-consumer upstarts like Dollar Shave Club and Kylie Cosmetics sold stakes in their businesses to Unilever and Coty, respectively, but most DTC brands are not seeking billion-dollar valuations or quick flips to bigger incumbents, new research from the Interactive Advertising Bureau found. According to the research from the IAB, digital advertising’s biggest trade group, an overwhelming majority of DTC disruptors (90%) report they are profitable, are looking to expand

May 26, 2020
5 min

‘Squad Shopping’: Share, Ask, Interact – Shop Online With Your Friends

A new platform developed by a former L’Oréal brand manager wants to make e-commerce social by letting users shop online in groups. Key takeaways: More than $413 billion of goods will be sold through social e-commerce in China by 2022, an almost fivefold increase from $90 billion in 2017. Squadded Shopping Party hopes to bring this concept to the West by letting its users go shopping together on fashion e-commerce sites, as if inside a virtual mall. Online group activities lik

May 26, 2020
5 min

What Comes After Legacy Mid-Market Retail

J.Crew, Neiman Marcus, JCPenney. In May, the whispered demise of some of America’s most storied retailers abruptly became a reality with a final push from Covid-19. With the coronavirus pandemic ravaging US apparel and accessories retail sales (in April revenues fell 88 per cent according to the US Census Bureau) and traditional bricks-and-mortar retail already struggling with too many stores, heavy debt loads and little digital presence, the future of the middle market is li

May 26, 2020
3 min

What Will Post Pandemic Progression Look Like?

There’s no denying the Covid-19 pandemic has caused huge disruption, devastation and uncertainty about our future. Daily routines have shifted as everyone and everything tries to adjust, but we wanted to know if this really is the dawn of something different or just a momentary blip before it all goes back to business as usual? So we asked our community, what are you really going to change? This report explores the long-term attitudes – not short term reactions – that brands

May 26, 2020
11 min

After Covid-19: What Changed For (the) Good?

Sales could fall up to 35% this year, but companies can still emerge stronger, more innovative, and more purposeful. From the earliest stages of the pandemic, the luxury industry has been highly attuned to the spread of the coronavirus—and its massive implications for the sector. Luxury brand owners felt the first rumblings of the storm when Covid-19 spread through China, the country whose citizens accounted for 90% of global luxury market growth in 2019. When the virus reach

May 21, 2020
1 min

Covid-19 & The Retail Industry: An Overview

MADE Trends introduces "Covid-19 & The Retail Industry". In this new report, MADE Trends explores a post-COVID future for retail, where brands and consumers alike will be forced to collaborate and evolve in creative new ways. After years of "retail apocalypse" predictions, the coronavirus pandemic has thrown the industry into truly uncharted waters where it feels like only the strongest will survive. But when the dust settles, we suggest there is an opportunity for a retail r

May 21, 2020
2 min

Knix Expands Shade and Size Ranges With the Launch of its Groundbreaking New Knix Nudes Collection

The Canadian brand is the first brand to ever make period-proof underwear in neutral colours. Canadian intimates brand Knix is extending its shade range today with the launch of Knix Nudes. The new collection features three of the brand’s best-sellers – the Wing Woman Contour Bra, Leakproof Underwear and Thigh Saver – in five beautiful nude shades, inspired by feedback from its customers. In fact, the brand worked with a diverse group of women to finalize the inclusive five s

May 20, 2020
5 min

COVID-19 Could Usher in a New Normal, Sustainability, Social Purpose

In times of crisis, it is tempting to lose focus on initiatives that support longer-term business goals such as creating a more sustainable industry and contributing to the social good. And with the uncertainty COVID-19 has brought, it’s understandable that cash-strapped companies would view any programs that are not critical to their immediate survival as unnecessary right now. But we can’t afford to lose the momentum we’ve built in terms of raising awareness and taking acti

May 20, 2020
3 min

Does ‘Business Comfortable’ Have Staying Power?

The world of working remotely has given rise to a “business comfortable” dress code. While it is generally advised to keep some semblance of routine and to dress in something marginally work-appropriate, there is little reason to sacrifice comfort for style when, at most, you will be seen from the waist up in a virtual meeting. After all, why would anyone want to be uncomfortable in their own home? Even Anna Wintour posted a picture of herself at her computer, dressed in trac

May 20, 2020
3 min

Menswear: Will The Momentum Last?

The last few years have seen an explosion in men’s fashion, both in a monetary and cultural sense. The menswear market as a whole has been growing faster than women’s, though it remains smaller overall. In 2018, Balenciaga said millennial men are among its biggest sales drivers and Euromonitor estimated that men’s would continue to outpace women’s at least until 2022. And thanks to the flourishing crossover between streetwear and luxury led by designers like Virgil Abloh and

May 20, 2020
7 min

Every £1 Spent Is A Vote For How Consumers Want to Live

Many shops will be destroyed by the pandemic’s impact on business. But, says the shopping guru, those who did the right thing will reap the benefits When the UK fully emerges from the coronavirus lockdown and shoppers are allowed out again for non-essential purchases, their local high street could be a very different place from the one they left in March. Since the pandemic gripped the nation, a string of big-name retailers have fallen into administration or announced store c

May 20, 2020
17 min

7 Brands That Got Inclusive Marketing Right

Inclusive marketing describes campaigns that embrace diversity by including people from different backgrounds or stories that unique audiences can relate to. While some inclusive campaigns make an effort to break stereotypes, others simply aim to reflect or embrace people in the real world. Have you ever had trouble relating to ads, TV, or other media because it told stories of people with lives that were vastly different from your own? If so, you’re not alone. Growing up in

May 20, 2020
2 min

Miley Cyrus Talks The Talk On The Digital-Only Cover Of WSJ

WSJ. Magazine to Skip August Print Issue Due to the Coronavirus WSJ. Magazine to Skip August Print Issue Due to the Coronavirus WSJ. Magazine is the latest print publication adjusting its summer plans due to the coronavirus. The monthly fashion and luxury-focused insert for the weekend edition of The Wall Street Journal will skip an August print issue this summer. Instead, some planned content will be included in an expanded summer digital issue, which made its debut last ye

May 20, 2020
7 min

Gamified Experiences: Can Playful Moments Stop Your Customers in Their Tracks?

Marketers and business leaders have been talking about gamification for years now. But what does gamification mean, and how can you use gamification to drive loyalty, increase sales, and engage your retail customers? In this guide, we’re exploring the benefits of gamification and examining how playful experiences can engage customers on a deeper level and re-energise your stores. As well as considering how gamified experiences encourage greater engagement than passive ads, we