Gender, Origin, Alternative reality.

As my minor I choose Trendwatching at the Fontys Academy for Creative Industries in Tilburg. During this minor learned how to conduct a trend research. Within in trend research you analyse a certain "Hunch" based out of signals that manifests itself into different groups of society. These signals then make up a “trend”. In this definition a trend means “a change in society that is seen within a certain groups of people. A trend is influenced by underlaying demographical, ecological, sociocultural, technical, economical and political factors. After researching a advise or concept based on the forecast can be created.

Type.

Trendwatching, forecasting

Role.

Trendforcaster, photographer

Timeline.

3 months

Intuitive forecasting


In this forcasting method I analysed signals that I had found by observation, fieldresearch and deskreserch. To explain the trends I've used the CRAT-model, a model that let you go into the depths of culture, history and theory of the grouped signals, to understand the changes is society and to substantiate the trend.

Picture: Joey badass album cover by Brandon-Jerome

Challenge.

“How can Daily Paper apply the researched trends, to make their shopping experience more complete".

Hunches:
1. There is something about fading gender norms these days.

2. There is something about knowing where your clothing is from these days.

3. There is something about escaping reality these days.

Target group

All genders between 12-35, who are interested in fashion

Stakeholders

Daily paper and their consumers

Conflict

Making profet but also catering to the wants/needs and future wants\needs of the target group

Hunt.

To acquire signals and form a trend, I've used the three hunches as guideline for the "trend hunt". I went out in the streets of Amsterdam with my camera en started taking pictures of people, clothing, expositions and other sources of information that could be connected to the hunches. I also talked with Daily paper employees, researched online and looked at Pinterest to form an evidence wall.

Insights.

Faded gender norms

The target group seems to be more comfortable with their own identity and showing this in the way they dress. Gender norms are fading, not only in fashion, but also in society as a whole. People are stepping away from gender norms, making it acceptable to see clothing as just clothing and not labeled as male or female.

Transparency

Sustainability is already a megatrend. The target group has a growing value for echical consumption, making them buy more clean and ethical brands. A lot of industries look into being more sustainable and environmentally friendly. Being transparent about where the clothing is from, seems to be more and more pertinent.

Escapism by Augmentend/virtual reality

Getting away from the sometimes sad reality of the world we live in, causes our curiousity and our need for a different reality. This can be seen as the target group submerge themselves into games, interactive arts and more augmented or virtual reality themed ways to pass the time.

Outcome.

A trendreport with three different advises for Daily paper. This advice they can use to ensure that their company tries to become "future proof". Being future proof is important for the longevity a company. After I grouped the signals I came up with a "coined term" for the trends.


Link to report (Dutch)

Advice.

Gender flip

Letting go of gender norms, means letting go of gender labeling clothes. No more man or woman clothing collection but a all inclusive gender neutral line or a imagery of male models dressed with a more feminine look and vice versa. Switching up the rhetoric and telling a story that stands for inclusivity and acceptance.

Origin Society

Daily paper is good at telling a story about how the brand came about and that they're inspired by African cultures, such as the ghanaian and Kenyan culture. They can also add to that story by being more transparant about the production process and the used materials. This would be an extra trigger for them to become sustainable and to promote ethcical fashion.

Alt world

Technology is always improving. Somethings that used to be just concepts or still in a developmental fase, are now to be reality and accessible to the masses. Augmented and virtual reality are those things. These technologies are more used by different types of companies who are early adopters and spike the interest of consumers and show the Daily paper consumer a different type of storytelling experience. This is a way to lure the consumer to the physical stores.

Challenges and limitations.

In this research it was hard to contact the owners or the marketing team of Daily paper. In addition to the trendhunt, I based my advise and conclusions out of the information I found about the company online and from the employees of the physical store. It would be better to have a brainstorm or debriefing with the people of the Daily paper team who are in charge of the marketing, storytelling, concepting, design or other brand decision making. That way I could ensure that my advice would fit the needs of the company and is not redundant or far from what they strive to achieve.