Showing posts with label Fashion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fashion. Show all posts

Saturday, May 10, 2025

Social Media Fast Fashion?


When you look at how social media is a part of our lives today, it’s hard to recall life without it.

Everywhere you go, someone around you is on their phone engaging with some sort of social platform..



And while some people use social media to share content, some people just use social media to see what their friends are doing.

According to Jeff Goins, author of The Art of Work, there are two types of social media users: “sprinklers” and “vacuums.” The sprinklers of social media share content, and the vacuums suck it all up. It’s in a way like the food chain, one can’t exist without the other.

Combined they keep social media alive, as they’ve fueled social influence and discovery and ultimately what we now know today as “social proofing,” which arguably represents the most powerful psychological trigger in marketing.

Fast fashion is one industry that is reaping the benefits of these habits, and it appears that it will continue to for years to come.

Before social media, many consumers would spend more on certain fashion items. The adage was often shared in magazines about quality “investment” pieces (you’ve all read the “splurge” or “steal” stories I’m sure). Items in one’s closet simply weren’t as exposed as they are today, and you could carry a handbag for 30 days in a row because no one saw it.



While high-end items are still a luxurious commodity, now in the world of Instagram, Snapchat and Pinterest—where people post weekly, daily or even hourly—the psychology around wearing that same thing too often has quickly changed. Today, consumers want to display their favorite brands to their network so they can affirm their buying decisions and be part of the crowd.

Social media encourages the mentality that once an outfit or item is shared with the public, it can never be worn again and photographed. The problem with this psychological shift is that most people can’t afford to buy a high-end item and only wear it once.

One solution this created was fashion rental sites like Rent the Runway (with the rental model that people can wear high-end clothing and return it after they’re done, and no one on social will ever know whether they rented it or purchased it), but it is also where fast fashion retailers have seen incredible opportunities.

Because of this change, people are more inclined to purchase low-cost, fashion-forward clothing to stay on trend as they share their latest looks with their social followers more often.



Fast fashion retailers are seeing the benefits of these trends’ shorter life cycles because it’s resulting in people constantly looking for a product to satiate their moment of inspiration. Today, people don’t walk into a retail store to find their next look—they turn to their social media feeds to see what’s happening around them with friends or people they admire.

These behaviors support the concept of social proofing and empower the sprinklers of social media to become influencers in their own right and the vacuums to find a way to duplicate the look, before it’s gone (and affordably).

According to consumer studies, 81 percent of people are influenced by friends’ posts and 85 percent of people are influenced by celebrity endorsements when making a buying decision. Fast fashion retailer Boohoo reported that its profits doubled after paying celebrities to promote its products on Instagram to 16- to 24-year-old fans.

For retailers, this means social media is carrying more weight than mannequins in their own store windows and, more important, it’s a way into engaging and retaining customers.



User-generated content used to be images of users’ proudest outfits, and now it’s transformed into brands’ marketing budgeted strategies that provide incentives for customers to evangelize it. The possibilities are endless for fashion brands on social today.

Looking ahead, this cycle isn’t slowing down, and it’s now easier than ever for inspired shoppers to find their next look online—not to mention items that look suspiciously similar to high-end pieces.

By converging the act of shopping online with technological advancements like artificial intelligence, social influence and discovery have been supercharged, and retailers can now find consumers at any moment, and vice versa.

In 2017 alone we’ve seen significant progress with AI being integrated into the online shopping world. Wayfair is the most recent retailer to launch its own visual search engine to help its shoppers find the product they’re looking for and easily make their home decor inspiration a reality.



The company even claimed that this feature would be most beneficial for discount shoppers who love the look of high-end furnishings but need something more affordable.

Pinterest also launched Lens for Android and iOS and just recently launched the ability to increase the efficiency of its ads using AI technology.

While we can’t predict the future, we can use the track records of etailers like Asos and Goxip to see how successful social proofing can be in pushing higher sales and engagement.

Social media has become the direct path into online shopping baskets, and it’s undeniably connected to how easily people are influenced by others. It doesn’t matter if it’s a family member, friend or celebrity—we’re all affected by what’s around us and we don’t want to be left behind.

Guest Authored By Oliver Tan. Oliver is co-founder and CEO of visual recognition company ViSenze. Follow Oliver on Twitter.





"Fast fashion opens doors for people who want to replicate looks but who don’t have the means to purchase high-end items.

Add social media into the mix, and the fashion industry is constantly evolving with no end in sight.."


    • Authored by:
      Fred Hansen Pied Piper of Social Media Marketing at YourWorldBrand.com & CEO of Millennium 7 Publishing Co. in Loveland, Colorado. I work deep in the trenches of social media strategy, community management and trends.  My interests include; online business educator, social media marketing, new marketing technology, skiing, hunting, fishing and The Rolling Stones..-Not necessarily in that order ;)
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    Monday, May 5, 2025

    Social Media Luxury Menswear Marketing?


    Luxury menswear has historically played second fiddle to womenswear, but the industry is showing vast gains that point to cultural shifts in the way men dress and experiment with style..



    Menswear is forecasted to grow at a faster rate than womenswear over the next three years, with net gains of 2.3 percent and 2.2 percent respectively, according to data from retail analytics company Edited. Additionally, the menswear market is estimated to be valued at $33 billion by 2026, an increase of 14 percent from 2022.

    The expansion of the market can largely be attributed to social media’s role in building visibility around men’s style, said Tammy Smulders, global managing director of LuxHub, a division of Havas Media Group. As an increasing number of men’s fashion influencers crop up in social feeds, fashion has become a growing interest for male consumers. At the same time, designers who previously only made women's clothing have started trying their hand at men's collections — including Stella McCartney, who debuted her first men's styles in November 2016.

    “Digital media and a constant stream of imagery of stylish iconic men - from successful entrepreneurs to funny YouTube personalities - have encouraged the socialization of men's fashion,” Smulders said. “Social media and being "always on" has made it so that everyday men have become more focused on their look.”



    Alexa Tonner, co-founder of influencer network Collectively, said that while fashion magazines tailored for men have long been hailed as arbiters of style, social platforms have allowed male shoppers to discover luxury apparel in new, innovative ways. Apps like Instagram present a more diverse array of perspectives than are accessible in major fashion publications, she said.

    “Men who would have never bought an issue of GQ or Esquire are much more comfortable following style influencers on Instagram,” Tonner said. “Fashion magazines present a pretty rigid perspective on men's style, and you've got a lot more variety on social media. Even in the luxury space, you've got bespoke tailoring and vintage timepieces, plus you've got limited-edition streetwear.”

    While the market is undoubtedly expanding, growth is mostly in the casual wear sector, a reflection of the toned-down (versus business formal) ensembles of professionals, according to Jonathan Feinberg, chief men’s merchant at Givenchy. To meet increasing demand, price points across most apparel items have risen significantly in the last five years, but particularly among products like bomber jackets and sneakers. (The average price of a luxury menswear item is $232.29 across all categories, an uptick of 64 percent over the past five years, Edited data shows.)



    “While the market is opening up, it’s opening up to the casual side,” Feinberg said at an event last week.

    “The way men are actually dressing - especially if they’re spending time in tech startups or professional environments outside of New York City — is sneakers, backpacks, T-shirts and sweatshirts.”

    Tonner said social media has also helped perpetuate a culture of urgency, which has helped pave the way for luxury casual wear. Whereas suits and evening wear require an often lengthy and expensive tailoring process, high-end casual apparel is easier to obtain quickly without jumping through hoops.

    “Social media rewards visual impact and immediacy which serves the world of higher-end streetwear really well,” Tonner said. “Traditional luxury is more understated and also requires patience: You've got to go to the tailor and then you've got to wait for that bespoke suit.”

    Related Article: Social Media Fast Fashion?


    Looking to the future, Smulders said examining the progression of the menswear industry in recent years shows the industry will continue to grow.








    “Social media rewards visual impact and immediacy which serves the world of higher-end streetwear really well,” Tonner said.

    “Traditional luxury is more understated and also requires patience: You've got to go to the tailor and then you've got to wait for that bespoke suit..”

      • Authored by:
        Fred Hansen Pied Piper of Social Media Marketing at YourWorldBrand.com & CEO of Millennium 7 Publishing Co. in Loveland, Colorado. I work deep in the trenches of social media strategy, community management and trends.  My interests include; online business educator, social media marketing, new marketing technology, skiing, hunting, fishing and The Rolling Stones..-Not necessarily in that order ;)
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      Sunday, March 16, 2025

      Selling Fashion Through Social Media?


      Teaching assistant Alice Hall was struggling to pay her mortgage, despite having three jobs. To help pay the bills she bought a £90 pack of eight dresses and then sold them on eBay for £240..



      Her mother, Julie Blackie, advised her to reinvest the money, and she did. Eventually, when Hall’s 30-minute lunch breaks became too short to dispatch all the customers’ orders from the local post office, mother and daughter decided to focus on the business. In its first financial year, Pink Boutique turned over £500,000.

      During a single day last month it sold 3,500 garments for £101,000. This year’s turnover is expected to be £22m. Central to its success is “its close connection” to the target 18- to 35-year-old customer, says Chris Tighe in the Financial Times. The company, which advertises solely on social media, has 336,000 followers on Instagram and 1.3 million Facebook fans. In five years, Pink Boutique has taken off without borrowing or a business plan. With a stock shelf life of about 12 weeks, the firm is “part of a wave of low-cost, fast-fashion online retailers”.

      The Doctor Peddling Smart Drugs

      Doctor Molly Maloof optimize's health instead of just fixing illnesses, says Michael Coren in Quartz. Her concierge medicine practice in Silicon Valley charges patients $5,000 for an initial assessment, while comprehensive care can cost more than $40,000 a year. Her clients are often engineers and executives “looking to hit peak performance, or recover from an overstressed work life”. Maloof’s data-heavy approach begins with a battery of tests – measuring thousands of bio markers in all – to understand her patients at the cellular level.



      After analyzing the results, Maloof (pictured) prescribes a diet and lifestyle tailored to each individual. If needed, she also helps patients practise harm reduction with nootropics – “smart drugs” designed to enhance cognitive function – and micro-doses of LSD. Some investors are betting this approach will become standard, with start-ups such as Color Genomics, Forward and Nootrobox aiming to go mainstream. “In a perfect world, your body is like the airplane and I’m the co-pilot and we’re using all these tools to identify if there are issues going wrong with the engine,” Maloof says.


      Investors Bedazzled By Bike Sidelights

      When Dan Goldwater first attached kaleidoscopic LED lights to the spokes of his bicycle wheels, festival crowds were “wowed”, says Christie Hemm Klok in The New York Times. But Goldwater couldn’t at first see how to make a commercial project out of it. Today, his company MonkeyLectric has been in business for ten years, “convincing night cyclists that front and back lights are inadequate and that they need bright side lighting too”. Cyclists pay $25 to $60 for a set of lights to attach to their bicycle wheels, and MonkeyLectric makes $1m in sales annually.


      The product is a result of Goldwater’s time as an electrical engineer at the MIT Media Lab, where he was researching smart paint and self-assembling robots. Twelve years ago he made what he calls “a monumental art piece” – the bicycle with kaleidoscope wheels. MonkeyLectric sits at the intersection of safety and art, “with an overlay of whimsy”. When the wheels spin, they produce rotating light shows with various designs. The market is growing as more and more people start commuting on bicycles. MonkeyLectric has raised capital via Kickstarter several times. On the last occasion, it raked in $248,331.


      The “Millennial Whisperer” Helping The Young Grow Their Savings

      “For someone who built a career on getting what it means to be cool”, Acorns’ chief executive Noah Kerner is not – “at least not in the aloof, exclusive way 2017 seems to deem desirable”, says James Watkins on Ozy.com. Kerner is a “millennial whisperer”, according to Jeff Cruttenden, the man who recruited him to run Acorns, a start-up that helps low-income earners to save and invest. The firm targets “the 182 million Americans who make under $100,000”, rounding up their card purchases to the nearest dollar and directing these micro-investments into passive exchange-traded funds. Today, around 1.8 million account holders save with Acorns.


      Almost 70% of Americans have under $1,000 in savings and Acorns aims to “democrat[ise] access to the financial industry” for them. Kener is “a product and marketing guru” with expertise across hip-hop culture and brand consultancy. Before Acorns, he was the co-founder and chief executive of Noise, a product development and marketing agency that helped firms from Intel to Vice connect with “millennials”. Together with Chase Bank, Noise created a credit-card product aimed at college students that became the first product to launch on Facebook.

      Raised in Manhattan, Kerner showed an entrepreneurial spirit early by selling baseball cards. When he received a set of turntables at 13, “everything changed”. As a self-taught DJ, he worked his way up playing at events in New York’s hip-hop scene. The gigs funded most of his economics and psychology degree from Cornell University, during which time he interned at firms such as Merrill Lynch and Vibe magazine.

      By 28, Kerner had founded online hip-hop culture marketplace OneLevel, music agency Soundproof, and Noise. In 2010, London-based Engine Group acquired Noise and Kerner started working with various start-ups as an investor, adviser and board member. Six months after investing in Acorns and serving as a mentor to Cruttenden, its co-founder, he was asked to run the business. “He’s a brilliant product builder, marketer and branding mind,” says Cruttenden.

      Guest Authored By Alice Gråhns. Alice is a Journalist for MoneyWeek, the UK's Best Selling Financial Magazine. She's from Stockholm - London. Follow Alice on Twitter. 





      “MONEY MAKERS - Selling Fashion Through Social Media!”

      What's YOUR Passion?


        • Authored by:
          Fred Hansen Pied Piper of Social Media Marketing at YourWorldBrand.com & CEO of Millennium 7 Publishing Co. in Loveland, Colorado. I work deep in the trenches of social media strategy, community management and trends.  My interests include; online business educator, social media marketing, new marketing technology, skiing, hunting, fishing and The Rolling Stones..-Not necessarily in that order ;)
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