The shoppable catwalk. See now, buy now. Right off the runway.
If you're not familiar with these phrases, it's time to get to know them. When New York Fashion Week kicks off Thursday, a growing number of designers are expected to forgo the age-old tradition of previewing collections several months before they'll actually be available in stores. Typically, styles for next spring and summer are spotlighted at fashion week in September, while selections for the coming fall and winter are the focus during the annual February shows. This time, some will be debuting pieces that the public will be able to purchase soon after they're introduced on the runway.
During New York City's February shows, Michael Kors, Diane von Furstenberg, Rebecca Minkoff and Tory Burch were a few who offered the chance to pre-order or outright purchase select looks. Meanwhile, Tom Ford canceled his show in February so he could present his fall collection this month.
"The current way of showing a collection four months before it is available to customers is an antiquated idea and one that no longer makes sense," he told the media earlier this year.
Tommy Hilfiger also is making the switch this month to a see now/buy now format. His runway show _ a carnival theme that will take over a pier at South Street Seaport with a 40-foot Ferris wheel and other authentic fair rides and foods _ will be live-streamed at 7 p.m. Friday at tommy.com so that shoppers can view the collection, which will go on sale online and in retail stores worldwide immediately after the show.
The shift comes at a time when designers are reevaluating their relationships with New York Fashion Week _ and with their consumers. In a recent study conducted by Boston Consulting Group, on behalf of the Council of Fashion Designers of America (the governing body for fashion designers in America), it found that key industry stakeholders believe there's a need for "in-season relevancy," or finding ways to time fashion events to when collections arrive in stores to maximize sales.
Delivering collections to stores when they're out of season (rolling out spring apparel when it's still cold out, for instance) is hurting full-price sales potential, according to the study. Plus, previewing and selling collections so far in advance is leading to a perception of staleness by the time the pieces actually are in season. This also gives fast-fashion retail chains more opportunity to copy trends previewed on the runway, an issue that's dogged designers for years since stores such as Forever 21 and Zara came on the scene.
Social media is further fueling the faster turnaround between when clothes are seen on the runway and in stores. Dallas-based RewardStyle has helped labels such as BCBG Max Azria turn Instagram likes into sales through its LikeToKnow:It feature. It works by equipping select bloggers, celebrities and publications with the ability to tag posts with special links, which walk followers through how to sign up and receive information on how to purchase fashions pictured in the posts.
"It's all about accessibility," BCBG Max Azria Group chief creative officer Lubov Azria told digital outlet The Business of Fashion after the brand first teamed with RewardStyle a few seasons ago. "We really started realizing that the consumer really dictates trends, even though fashion people always think we do."
"My clients love being able to wear things immediately and appreciate the versatility of wearing that same item they loved in summer in a new way for fall," said Bear Brandegee, a wardrobe and image consultant for Worth New York, a luxury direct-to-consumer clothing line. "For example, a chic sheath dress in the summer is paired with a lightweight turtleneck or blouse as the temperatures drop."
But not everyone is convinced that changing up fashion's runway and retail cycles is a solid strategy. Across the pond, many European designers are sticking with tradition for now.
"The notion of see now/wear now, or sell now, is a negation of dreaming, of desire," Kering chairman and CEO Francois-Henri Pinault told Women's Wear Daily. Kering is the French holding company behind the likes of Gucci, Alexander McQueen and Balenciaga.
There also are sweeping concerns that the rush to push out fashions for purchase faster might erode designers' creativity.
"I still love the idea of a fashion show and the fact that it's a way to show an art form," said Aire Plichta Reese, a Pittsburgh-based stylist and fashion consultant who's worked in fashion for more than a decade. She's also a production assistant for the annual Steelers Style runway show. "We have people put previews for movies out. How is a fashion show any different?"
Even more questions are popping up as New York Fashion Week nears: Will the see now/buy now shift add confusion to retailers planning their inventories? Will having to keep track of what designers are releasing which collections and when make things more confusing for shoppers? Will this make it tougher for emerging designers to keep up?
Ready or not, here it comes.
