Why do we wear that? How does a Fashion Trend start?

We’re all too aware of the fashion trends that surround us and the speed at which they can change. What’s hot one season can be all but dead within 12 months, and your prized, on-trend coat can suddenly look rather dated.
But who is deciding all this? Why do we even have trends? It stands to reason that, left to their own devices, those at the top of the fashion tree should be coming up with wildly varied designs each season, thus allowing us to enjoy a multitude of outfits and without one particular style standing out.
And that there is the big question: how is it that every season, such prominent trends appear across all the different designer’s work? Are they having secret meetings before? Is there a master trend-setter hiding behind smoke and mirrors?

You wore what last year?

The first thing to realise is that all trends and collections you see have been at least 12-18 months in the making. Seasonal collections premier at fashion shows around half a year before they are due to hit the shop floors, which means design work for them started 12 months ago, or more. It is back then that what you wear now is decided upon.

The second thing to understand is how a ‘trend’ is taken up. Primarily, trends start with the major designer brands who exhibit a noticeable style at the major shows. More ‘retail friendly’ versions then appear in stores, and as this happens the large high street brands pick up on the style and make their equivalents. It is the high street brands that allow a style to go ‘global’. The most recent years have seen a slight shift from this model, with trends passing through faster thanks to live broadcasts of shows, bloggers and a need for the high street retailers to start selling new trends faster. However, the basic premise still remains that a handful of designers will influence the next season’s trend.
Now that we’ve given a quick run-down on the industry, it’s time to understand how a trend develops.  

Textile Mills have a big say in colour trends

Now, 12 months preparation for designers may seem like a long time, but that is until we tell you that fabric designers are yet another season ahead of the fashion designers. And here is where it all begins. Hardly any brands manufacture their own fabrics- even huge power house fashion brands or large high street companies usually buy fabric from huge textiles companies. These textile companies, ultimately, determine the basis for what we will be wearing in 2 years time. In most cases, this means designers already being limited to certain textures, prints and hence forms of clothing. 

Most colour schemes have been decided before the designers have even started

Ok, so you can understand why designers may all be heading in the same direction – but the same styles? Why do we find ourselves with a variety of angle-cuts one year and more curvy, feminine shapes the next? There are two answers to this.

Firstly: Actually, designers don’t all have the same ideas. At every fashion show there is a wealth of styles and looks across the board. You only have to look at the most recent Fashion Weeks to see the variety of different trends available. However, across the multitude of brands displaying, there will always be similarities to be picked across some of them.
This is not to say ‘trends’ are a faux – far from it – but it is saying that there are many different ones available, which increases the likelihood of similarity when analysed and cherry-picked across the board. 

Secondly: The fashion world is not as big as you think it is. There are only a handful of top-level designers in clothing that set the bar for the mass-produced trends to begin. And they are all influenced by similar things – art shows, exhibitions, visual books, major films etc. You would think the chances of finding the same source of inspiration are low, but, actually, this is not the case. Most designers, by nature of their training, think in a similar way and recognise inspiration in similar forms. More often than not, most designers will be aware of the major visual and graphical releases during a season and therefore similar concepts will emerge.

Photography books and graphical works strongly influence trends

What about trend forecasters? Trend forecasters tend to work with fast fashion names, diluting trends from the luxury designers to create the major concepts for the mass market. So in reality, trend forecasters tend to be running behind the luxury names. However, they are sometimes used to consult on fabrics and colour themes as they are well clued in to the world of textiles.  

The overall analysis of what makes a ‘trend’ is a complex scientific and psychological question that no one has yet been able to pin down. But there is a basic structure in place in the industry which makes for some form of ‘trend path’ that can be followed.

At Lolo & Galago, we have a complex design process, working with jewellery designers from all over the world to encompass our own ideas and concepts based on our inspirations and findings, before applying this to new collections, ensuring that our exotic designs fit well with our customers. As a global brand with a British twist, it’s essential to us that we are aware of design trends but at the same time keep true to our own style.