In the wake of last week's NY Fashion Week, Bruce Nussbaum of Business Week commented about the state of the fashion industry due to the economy. Even the occasional clothes shopper has noticed in the changes in the past year in fashion, where luxury is not as demanded, but low prices are. Nussbaum says that by observing the fashion industry, we will see great innovation for these struggling times.
Some examples of busiess models and strategices that Nussbaum observed from the fashion industry are pop-up stores that take over an empty space for a few months just to highlight a new designer and invite-only, limited sales through fashion sites. A great example of this is Gilt Group, which allows people to subscribe to emails detailing about the schedule of online sales of designers' clothing.
Nussbaum also gave a shout out to Gen Y, saying that online based platforms for business will eventually become the norm.
What I most agree with Nussbaum is how in the too-soon-near-future, businesses will have to attract potential customers with an online component. Gone are the days of mainstream media and hoping the casual passerby on the street will stop into your boutique.
As for the fashion business model showing great innovation, it is because of the recession that fashion has the need for innovation. During a time of recession, "extras" like fashion and entertainment will be more difficult for the average consumer to purchase on a regular basis. The economy is testing every business, and this is the time when great creativity and customer relations are necessary in order to survive.
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