Class Feedback
What you have learned from this class？
Today we discussed the role of Fashion Week, it’s activities, and how it helps us observe how Michael Porter’s theory applies to the fashion industry. We saw how:
A) Brands gain competitiveness and set themselves apart by appearance on the runway with other prestigious brands (firm strategy, structure, and rivalry)
B) How the fashion industry is adapting to a social-media intensive customer using alerts and digital streaming (demand conditions) C) How fashion designers gain inspiration from artists and how fashion companies sponsor celebrities to go to fashion shows for exposure to the common consumer (related industries)
D) How fashion week can gain govt. sponsorship, as it’s a source of tourism attraction (government support).
Two groups then presented 3 Worldwide Trends and 5 Innovative Companies, where I found the ‘Rise of Amateurs’ and ‘Fits.me’ (virtual fitting room to be interesting concepts.
We also evaluated London’s competitive position in the global menswear industry through the Diamond Theory. How factors such as existing menswear brands, culture and history in wearing suits, government support, strong education system, and many other external factors all contribute to competitiveness.
Lastly, we learned about various other innovative online companies that are highly successful because they create links between different factors of the diamond theory that didn’t exist before. With the TED and MITOpenCourse examples I realized that specialized, industry-specific knowledge has also become mainstreamed and globally accessible
(rise of amateurs), which could affect companies and industries through human resources.
The connection with yourself？
Having little knowledge and background in fashion, I had a chance to see the different activities and key players that take part in fashion week, such as how celebrities are gaining significance in helping fashion brands gain exposure.
After learning more about the diamond theory, I’m starting to connect the dots with the different cases that we study such as with the innovative e-retail brands. There are fewer barriers between industries, companies, and customers. The costs of specialization and development are much lower, so the ability to bring innovative ideas to fruition is much easier now than ever before.
How to apply to yourself?
It’s important to observe the changes in various industries and customer behaviors because it can create a ripple effect to your industry. Sometimes there are solutions that are unknown to us because we don’t think outside the box. Cross-industry innovations are becoming a trend, like biocouture (science in fashion).
After learning about Sample Lab (obtain marketing information by sample testing) and Rent the Runway (renting clothes), I hope to try out these experiences out of curiosity or for marketing purposes.
Three most contrivable students in this class. (What they said, why you think is important.)
A、
Name
Content
There is a rise in the power of amateurs. Bloggers compete with journalists; Youtube competes with major entertainmentstudios.
Benefit
I think that the rise of amateurs really shifts the power of key stakeholders and customer behavior. The amount of information we absorb as a consumer is now massive and as a business we need to cater to these new standards, behaviors, and influencers. Information travels around at a faster pace through social media influencers.
B、
Name Content
Everything is linked and becoming mobile. Time you’re spending on one thing is time you’re not spending on something else.
Benefit
This type of consumer behavior shows how demand changes and how other industries are changing too at an even faster pace. In addition to fast information, industries have become more competitive and require companies to be fully aware of the external environment (even outside their industry) and react incredibly quickly to seek new opportunities and stay afloat. This also means that barriers between industries will disappear as the products we use become more multifunctional.
C、
Name
Content
Big data and the internet of things leads to better decision making and can increase customer satisfaction.Benefit
The internet and social media is something that all companies can’t escape from. It an opportunity to obtain accurate customer info and feedback. But also, companies have to manage customers and problems at a faster rate because a customer can easily expose a brand’s flaws through the
internet.