This is a small excerpt (page 25) from the book ‘Trendsociology v. 2.0’, published by pej gruppen. Buy the book here.
If everything stood still and nothing new surfaced, 90 percent of the lifestyle-driven industries would face a severe challenge. The DNA of the fashion industry is based on rejection and renewal. When a new season is just around the corner, the fashion-conscious consumer is convinced that their wardrobe is not fashionable and will change it (or parts of it).
“Everything has changed, is changing and will continue to change.” Idris Mootee, expert in design thinking
Fashion is an extreme example, but it is nevertheless an interesting starting point for the study of trends. Speed is very high, and many other industries have admired – and gradually learned – this unique ability to continually find something new, get it out on the shelves in shops and convince consumers to buy it. The fashion industry is fast and focused on short-term trends. However, change takes place on many different levels: from major social upheavals, demographic and geographic movements and economic ups and downs to the values and attitudes in a given spirit of the time, as well as basic life and consumption motivation through the stages of life, lifestyle-driven consumption patterns and shifts in sales channels to the hottest colour of the season.
Interested in getting your hands on the entire book, (it’s 400 pages), it is possible to buy here.
The book consists of three parts:
- Theory and practical description of what a trend is, how it is spread and what effect it may have.
- Interview with 17 of the world’s top trend researchers
- Practical process description (5 phased process) with concrete methods and tools for working with trends.