Fashion is no longer led by design, but rather marketing - Essay Example

Consumers thrilled by the advertising themes tend to buy without focusing on the product offerings by the brand (Agins, 1999, p.14). Marketing is more important than designs, but however the importance of design cannot in anyways be neglected. Importance of Marketing in the Fashion Apparel Industry The marketing activities of any industry depend on a set of four functions viz. product, price, place and promotion. The designing of the apparel by the apparel or the clothing industry encompass the product factor in the marketing activities.

However, the other marketing activities related to the promotion, place and price must be so used as to help highlight the product usages and unique features. In that marketing activities first endeavor to focus on enlarging the scope of seasonal offerings to the customers. Different segments like women, men, and sports possess separate attributes for producing seasonal products. The number of seasonal offerings increases in the case of women apparels than for men apparels. For the sports segment a separate line ‘resort wear’ is introduced which needs special promotion efforts to be largely marketed.

Promotion and distribution activities of the designer wears constitute selling such garments through the construction of retail outlets or organizing large fashion shows for the promotion of the new lines introduced (Jay, n.d. p.198). Marketing activities in the field of fashion merchandise occupies a place of strategic importance in its ability to relate the firm’s production activities to the outside world. The garment industry through the use of proper planning, promotion and distribution activities can endeavor to get a larger market share of its designed products.

In the planning stage the garment manufacturing firms through the incorporation of extensive market research activities endeavor to understand the needs of the consumers and target groups and design products accordingly. Moreover, the designers through the spontaneous study of international design standards endeavor to create a product to be accepted in the international market. Fabric designers should lay increased focus on enhancing the product quality through the creation of new textures through blending of fiber yarns and other finishing activities.

Having the product built the fabric manufacturers then concentrate on the marketing activities. The marketing activities must focus on making more number of customers aware of the product specialties of the particular brand based on the features of the textures and blends incorporated to produce the desired quality. Marketing activities encompass a wide range of events like advertising, promotion, creating huge publicity and rendering presentations. Presentations can be created to inform the large audiences about the designs incorporated to enhance the quality standards of the products and reflect such development based on market trends.

(Frings, Stephens, 2002.pp. 138-147). Marketing Activities affecting the market for Designs The increased focus lent on marketing activities helps the firm to incur more revenue through gaining a larger market share. However, the firms through the use of strategies like price penetration where the prices of the products are considerably lowered to gain wider market