2008 Fall/Winter Colors

According to the Color Marketing Group, these colors will be influenced in items for Fall/Winter of 2008:

Extreme matte and very shiny glossy finishes are also to be seen with the upcoming color trends.

Red based purples, reds mixed with oranges and blues, the original gray and some lighter shades of it. Green has been in use for the last couple of years with help from environmental awareness, so new greens that are mixed more with blue will be appearing. Dark navy blues and greens that are almost black will also be in. Soft light blues will also be seen.

For more details on the colors above for Fall/Winter 2008 Visit the Color Marketing Group.

2008 Moccasin Trend

Minnetonka sales representatives distributed these flyers at the World Shoe Association Show in August 2008 to further emphasize to buyers the current moccasin trend that is seen in the media. Celebrities are wearing moccasins, although I have noticed people wearing moccasins as a trend item for about a year now. It is interesting that young, fashion-forward individuals are taking an item typically worn by older adults for casual comfort and slippers at home and wearing them to achieve an entirely new and different aesthetic. This certainly highlights the innovation of a familiar and non-fashion item to a trend accessory.

Politics and Cultural influences in 1986

According to the CPI inflation calculator on the bureau of labor statistics shows that $50.00 in 1986 has the same buying power as $99.95 in 2008
A great website for economic, political, and social information for 1986 is http://www.answers.com/1986
This website has a list of categories on the right hand side with a variety of information from this time period

1986 was designated the international year of peace by the United Nations.
Some more websites for political information and articles are
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B0DE1D81538F937A25754C0A961948260&scp=6&sq=politics%201986&st=cse

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A0DE1D71638F93AA2575BC0A960948260&scp=1&sq=politics%201986&st=cse

http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=20030201&slug=webchallenger01

http://www.enotes.com/peoples-chronology/year-1986/political-events

A big influence throughout the late 1980s was princess Diana she supported many british designers from Arabella Pollen and Bruce Oldfield to Amanda Wakeley, then started supporting more international designers such as Chanel.
http://www.fashion-era.com/diana_80s_fashion_icon.htm

In the 1980s, fashion was influenced by the western economic boom. The dominant market was getting older and was also financially secure. Demographics changed the face of society. People were living longer and seemed to act younger at the same time. Old industries died, while new technologies developed and boomed.

Ronald Reagan and his wife Nancy Reagan in the USA celebrated presidential success with a style that used fashionable conspicuous clothes and social events to display the affluence of American society to a world audience. 1980s Fashion history - Headshot of Margaret Thatcher in her trademark royal blue tailored suit and also a black suit with white collar.

The world was in flux; ever changing. The USSR relaxed rules and opened up to private enterprise. The Berlin wall came down and other eastern bloc countries craved western clothes and liberation.

In Britain Thatcherism promoted privatization and the idea that greed was good was given credence. Temples to modern living, shopping malls sprang up throughout Britain. Western society consumed and consumed.

Designer labels and branding gained impetus. Brand names became status symbols for sports gear and sportswear, perfumes, electrical equipment, cars and fashion designer goods such as clothing, bags, luggage, scarves and spectacles.

By the mid-eighties tills rang not with cash, but the increasing use of credit cards. It was all such a relief to the consumer to be able to spend and actively be encouraged to consume after years of recession. Clothing purchases soared. Interiors were decorated. Showing wealth was superficially powerful.
http://www.fashion-era.com/1980s_lifestyle_and_fashion.htm

some fashion history of not just 1986 but all of the 1980s
http://www.thepeoplehistory.com/80sclothes.html

1986-Economics/Social

Economy-
In 1986, Ronald Reagan, a Republican, was in his second term as President of the United States. Coming into office, he inherited high inflation and a high unemployment rate. In 1986 the country was beginning to recover from this. The Cold War had just ended the year before, however the Berlin Wall was still intact until 1989. As far as the economy is concerned, Reagan is still well known for his economic policies, also known as "Reaganomics". This conservative economic policy style has four key fundamentals: 1) Reduce government spending. 2) Reduce marginal tax rates on income. 3) Reduce government regulation of the economy. 4) Control money supply to reduce inflation.

http://ntserver1.wsulibs.wsu.edu:2054/ehost/detail?vid=5&hid=108&sid=18edd2da-4a8c-4fc5-b948-52d6fc82ceec%40sessionmgr107&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=a9h&AN=

Social-
In 1986, Reagan signed legislation budgeting 1.7 billion dollars to fight the War on Drugs. It was assumed that by cutting of the supply of drugs to this country, the demand would in turn decrease. The government fought to catch cocaine trafficking coming in from South America on boats, planes etc. Cocaine, and eventually crack became wildly popular in the country trickling down from the elite eventually to those in poverty.

"By the mid-1980s, as crack leeched out from New York, Miami and Los Angeles into the American interior, the devastations inflicted by the drug were becoming more vivid and frightening. The Reagan White House seemed to capture the current of the moment: Nancy Reagan's plaintive urging to "just say no," and her husband's decision to hand police and prosecutors even greater powers to lock up street dealers, and to devote more resources to stop cocaine's production at the source, in the Andes. In 1986, trying to cope with crack's corrosive effects, Congress adopted mandatory-minimum laws, which hit inner-city crack users with penalties as severe as those levied on Wall Street brokers possessing 100 times more powder cocaine. Over the next two decades, hundreds of thousands of Americans would be locked up for drug offenses."

-http://ntserver1.wsulibs.wsu.edu:2054/ehost/detail?vid=6&hid=101&sid=8ca094a9-daeb-48c9-9487-04fab3f9ce69%40sessionmgr107&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=a9h&AN=27736161

Popular styles of 1986:
Legwarmers and miniskirts were part of the "Valley Girl" look. Shoulder pads were extremely popular to show power at the work place by being equal to men. Bright pumps and jelly shoes were popular footwear choices. The "Madonna Look" i.e. large crucifixes, gloves fingerless or not, fishnets and layered beaded necklaces. Converse shoes became popular in the early 80's and throughout the decade, they remain popular today. Acid washed jeans and denim jackets.
http://www.80srewind.net/80s/80sfashion.htm

The Chenobyl accident of 1986 in the Soviet Union brought along a lot of nuclear power opposition. On April 26, 1986 in the Ukraine SSR, reactor number four exploded causing the greatest nuclear accident in history. A plume 400 times the size of the bomb dropped on Hiroshima covered Eastern and Northern Europe. There were 56 immediate deaths, and hundreds more in the coming years due to radiation.
Medvedev, Grigori (1989). The Truth About Chernobyl. VAAP. First American edition published by Basic Books in 1991

Other Important events in 1986:
The number one song in 1986 was "Papa Don't Preach" by Madonna
The Oprah Winfrey show makes it's debut.
The original Nintendo console is released.
The Average Household Income in Seattle is $36,338 and in Los Angeles it is $34,965
-http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/income/histinc/msa/msa1.html

2008 Economy

Dominus, Susan. "Well-Heeled Shoppers Defy Wall St. Malaise For a Sale at Hermes." New York Times: 26. Sept. 2008, A24.

Despite increasingly negative news concerning the American economy and Wall Street finances, women lined 18th Avenue in New York City this week to get their hands on a few deals at Hermes sample sale. "Oddly, that particular rationale -- shop to keep America strong -- did not come up in the Hermes line on Tuesday afternoon, although almost every other one did" (Dominus A24). Their reasons for buying luxury items in such a devastating economy primarily focused on the benefit of feeling good about getting something new and at a sale price. These women want to feel good about themselves and through their purchase, can feel better about their status through these luxury items, even though they are now feeling the pinch of the economy and need to budget more tightly.

Context: 1986

I found this great site that talks about what was going on in 1986 which I really think will help with researching the year. We can look at what movies were popular, who was in office, and other dominating ideas of the time, etc.
US President: Ronald Reagan
Events: -The Challenger Space Shuttle explodes after launch killing all seven on board
-Supreme Court reafirms abortion rights
Economics: -US GDP (1998 dollars): $4,422.20 billion
-Federal spending: $990.34 billion
-Federal debt: $2120.6 billion
-Median Household Income(current dollars): $24,897
-Consumer Price Index: 109.6
-Unemployment: 7.0%

Strategic Plan

Horizontal Paths of Dichotomy

Strategic Plan

Questions:

• What are the underlying currents fueling the spirit of the times?
• How does the context of the times affect what consumers spend their money on?

We will begin by gathering date concerning the context of the macro environment in both 1986 and 2008. This includes the major social, cultural, political and economic issues of both years. Information will be collected through various mediums and publications including: WSU libraries; The Lifestyle Market Analyst (LMA); the United States Census Bureau, American Factfinder; Academic Search Complete; current newspapers; current and archival fashion and lifestyle magazines; and internet news websites including CNN.com and FoxNews.com. Taking photos of our surroundings to include inspiring people, accessories, nature, colors, shapes, textures and architecture will aid in our search for the underlying currents fueling the spirit of the times, and also in understanding the context of our society here in Pullman, which is a cross-section of primarily students and faculty from around Washington State and from across the world, spanning several generations.

Macro Environment Research:

• Political

Is the political atmosphere including the extreme political division among conservatives and liberals affecting shopping habits?

• For example: Do the underlying principles and values reflected by a political party determine decisions such as what to wear, how much to spend on an item, where to purchase it and why it was purchased? If a someone is classified as a liberal and cares about the environment, will it change their spending habits and the items they purchase?
• Economic
• What is the consumer reaction to the current U.S. financial crisis? Is it affecting spending habits including: stores people shop at, how much they spend on an item, what they are purchasing and why they are purchasing it?
• Social
• Why is a consumer driven to buy and what are they buying? Is it a reaction of the pressures of society and status?
• What product sales are driven by the lifestyle a consumer chooses to live?

• Cultural
• Why are consumers purchasing a specific product? What meaning does the product embody for the end user?

Products in the Marketplace

We will analyze the current market to determine the major designers and their price points, then collecting information about the styles and designs offered, as well as the fabric used to create the desired aesthetic, the finishing processes, colorways and the manner in which they are marketed utilizing accessories and styling.

End Users

• Geographic
• Does the location of a consumer determine their buying patterns or habits? Why?

• Psychographic

How does a person’s value system and personality affect their spending habits and specific product needs

• Behavioral
• Where do consumers shop and why?
• Why are they satisfied with a particular shopping experience and continue to shop in a specific store, city or medium (online, in store)?

Demographics

• What are the classifications of various demographic groups determined by age, gender, education level, occupation and income?

Responsibilities:

In an effort to collect the most possible data and eliminate blind spots, we will be conducting the research as follows:

• Alex Kerouac and Ashley Musselman will gather data concerning the context of the macro environment. This includes information concerning political, economic, social and cultural issues within 1986 and 2008.
• Kristine Skelton, Melissa Stowe and Anni Woo will gather data concerning the product and the correlating end users in the macro environment. This will focus on information for 1986 and 2008 including: color; fabric, fiber and finish; raw materials; design and styles; major designers and competition; price points; merchandising; marketing; geographic trends; psychographics; consumer behaviors; and demographics.

Deadline: Through the blogging tool we will discuss and analyze the data everyone has collected. Group members must begin gathering research and upload it to the group blog as it is collected, or by Monday, 29. September 2008 at the latest.

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