Years after flower crowns and flat-lays TikTok is dominating the trend cycles with a very own set of aesthetics. Reaching millions of people and boosting of micro-aesthetics trends change within a day – or in about two weeks (coincidentally about the same time it takes fast fashion houses like Zara to bring out a new collection), instead of only twice a year. Others state that today it is a 90-day cycle for fashion trends – occasionally stretching to about six months. For fast fashion companies, this is a growth generator and leads to endlessly increasing sales. Therefore, companies fuel these trends benefiting their bottom line without any regard for consumers’ wallets and the planet’s well-being. The aim: seduce consumers to discard their recently purchased items as quickly as possible – the quality oftentimes is low and the design so trend-focused that selling them on is not even an option.
ON TREND FOR NEVER
Today there is a focus on trends like never before. Not to say that fashion trends have not been ever-changing or important in society but that they are more accessible than they used to be. In the current time, everyone can dress in the latest fashion and with the short life cycle of every trend, customers focus less on quality but more on quantity. It is not uncommon to only wear items once or twice – and items are especially often discarded after posting them on social media. This might be because users want to attract attention and want to create an interesting feed or, and this is more likely, due to the fact that social media users are oversaturated by a trend in a very short time.
The need to belong is another booster for the fashion cycle. People want to express belonging to a specific group through fashion. It is a prime example and the origin of the “fake it till you make it” mentality. Consumers dress their way into a social circle – or at least try to. In particular so-called quiet luxury is subjected to this trope, as brands are not logo-heavy but made for those in the know, the fashion insiders or the extremely wealthy. These brands are harder to be found online and less popular for a broad audience but are known to those who focus on quality and luxury. This phenomenon can often be observed by con-artists as well –without fashion scammers like Anna Delvy or stories of the talented Mr Ripley and Felix Krull never would have come into existence.
Following the theorist Veblen, back in the late nineteenth century, the tastemakers used to be the upper classes and aristocrats. This helped in the glamorization of wealth in regard to the fashion industry. It might have cost many families in the past their fortunes and generational wealth, or in Marie Antoinette’s case even her head, but the allure to be fashionable has been stronger. Today everyone can become an influencer and thanks to fast fashion the demand for big hauls and ever-changing looks can be met without selling off the family silver. Trends now are more created by a trickle across movement – as social classes are less of an influence on fashion nowadays.
WELCOME TO THE DARK SIDE
With the fast paste of fashion and the need to belong many people follow the rapid shifts in fashion. From a psychological perspective, it is plausible that about 39% of TikTok using GenZers have been influenced to buy a piece due to the app’s content. But at what cost?
After air transportation the fashion industry is the second biggest cause of pollution. Due to increasing demand, the garment industry is growing by 2,7 % every year but of course, not everything can be sold. 25% of all produced garments remain unsold – a massive overproduction takes place. Even though many companies claim to recycle garments, use deadstock fabrics and so much more only 1% of the unsold garments are actually recycled into a new piece of clothing altogether. This amounts to huge wastelands of never worn fashion. For reference: it is estimated to be one garbage truck load per second. These are often filled with products consisting of acrylic, nylon or polyester – which are all petroleum-based and will take a long time to decompose. Even garments made of natural materials are not great for the environment. In decomposing, they often produce methane – a gas harming the environment. This summer we got the first taste of what to come: constant heat waves, fires, and other environmental challenges. This and more is what we will have to get used to over the next decades.
Something very different suffering under the quickening trend cycle: creativity. Even for a creative genius, it takes time to come up with a concept and design idea. Creating something that can actually be called art in form of fashion is hard. Therefore many merchandisers rely on metrics – what is foretold to be sold best, what trends are predicted and by that create big excel sheets limiting the creative based on what is supposedly going to be the best design for the next season. Some creative directors speak out about this like Alber Elbaz did (read more about him and his tenure at Lanvin here) – but that mostly led to them leaving their posts and not changing a company’s focus on the bottom line.
BUZZWORDS & MICRO AESTHETICS
Buzzwords are omnipresent and changing the aesthetics of entire customer groups. Mini Trends and micro aesthetics like the coconut girl, the mall goth or fairy core are quickly gaining traction and have a broad reach. Formerly only adapted by small niche groups, who found it hard to meet like-minded people, are now reaching broad audiences and can gain a massive fanbase – even though this might only last for a short time. TikTok is the perfect breeding ground for these subcultures. A strong and fast pasted algorithm is sharing with potential consumers what is on trend and what could match their style or they might want to represent for a limited period of time. Therefore, an increasing number of creators gain influence and create versions of a trend adapted to different tastes and for the first time in (high) fashion inclusive body shapes. Due to the TikTok algorithm, it is easy to define something as a trend, as consumers only see what they like and get the idea, that everybody likes it, that it is a full-on trend, even though they might have just found a niche where something is popular. Much more trends are created and spoken about, as there are so many more ways to access items and detect creatives combining them than it could be done in a time of monthly issued fashion magazines.
IS TIKTOK THE END OF TRENDS?
For sure not – trends might become increasingly dispersed and many people focus on small trends and niche segments BUT overall it just means that more people get into trends and fashion. Influencers mirroring their own taste or symbolizing a unique aesthetic can adapt to broader trends. The early- and mid-2000s were a time period dominated by fashion magazines telling shoppers what is in or what is out. No longer do simplified columns dominate the mindset of fashionable shoppers about what is cool and what is not. Today’s trends are more multifaceted and influenced by many more people than just high-end fashion editors. This makes it harder to create a cohesive trend narrative for the individual. It is one of the reasons why there are an ever-increasing number of what used to be IT items which only are around for a shorter time as well.
Furthermore, many trends are interconnected and have the same idea or basic ingredients. Plenty of different names and interpretations of the same trend actually can still be condensed into essentially one trend or core idea. Influencers who can not only sell products but as well create trends are becoming creative directors of brands, which mirror the increased paste. After famous designers now many brands seem to aim for famous faces working with their brand in a more exclusive manner than just being the face for a new campaign or reel.
THE NEW MAXIMALISM, OLD MONEY & COSTAL GRANDMA
Trends are no longer just created by fashion houses but as well influencers. By these influential few a demand for certain products can be created and skyrocket – which means the companies who have a short production cycle and quick design team can easily cater to that demand. But these companies often are fast fashion companies.
But some trends on social media might actually be good for a push toward sustainability. One example could the new maximalism. This aesthetic often consists of bold and flamboyant second-hand and vintage garments from various times, even though McBling and Y2K are fan favorites. Aesthetics, like old money or costal grandma on the other hand, rely on natural materials and classic garments. These items are made of wool, linen or silk and can be worn for many years, if not decades. A consumer might buy the only with a certain picture or outfit in mind but will be able to keep them for a long time as wardrobe staples. Furthermore, have these styles been around since a long time – under one name or another – and can easily be found in a local thrift store. Trends relying on classic basics – can be kept for years and easy be sold on
DROP 13
There used to be times when fashionistas only wore current seasons or some of the most influential and well-connected even the next season. Today more trends cycle back into the past due to the quickened past of the industry or focus on classics. This makes sustainability harder to be found but the second-hand market is the alternative solution. Instead of focussing on the ever-changing It items, unique pieces can be found, that spark joy. A unique aesthetic created, instead of just mirroring a look seen on TikTok. Pieces found on the second-hand market therefore can help to do what Gen Z does best: expressing one’s personality.
And here comes an eclectic mix of pieces from high–end to inexpensive, our DROP 13 is mixing unique designer items with non-branded pieces to complete your wardrobe for the late summer and early fall.
