COMMERCIAL MANUFACTURING PRACTICES Understanding how fashion trends are created

Understanding Fashion forecasting and predictions!

TREND BOARDS AND TREND BOOKS Trend boards or trend book’s focus on future trends. Designers often work two or more years in advance, current collections that they are working on will be available to purchase from retail outlets in two years time. Specialised companies and agencies are responsible for putting together and presenting trends. Trends are presented in the form of magazines, trend books, website, as exhibitions such as Premier vision, which takes place in Paris twice a year.  

www.trendstop.com www.wgsn.com www.fashioninformation.com www.fashiontrendsetter.com Trends agencies visit art and design exhibitions, trade shows. They research popular culture such as film, music, literature, television. Travel and observe other cultures, monitor street style and look at developments in technology. The information they collate from this research informs and developers the trends they produce. They predict what colours, fabrics, styles and silhouette the market requires in two o three year’s time

An example of how a trend agency prediction becomes reality in the form of design ideas.

Below is an example of some trend publications that are available in print:

Many of the trend forecasting websites offer subscriptions for a fee, they will then e-mail you the latest trends. A number of large fashion houses will employ in house trend seekers who travel the world seeking the latest trends and styles from New York to Tokyo. It is said that Donatella Versace employs fashion students from St Martin’s School of art, London as trend seekers. They will take photographs and produce reports on their findings.