The Designer's Strategic Intent

My strategic planning / journalist / publisher / fashionista diva brain was on overload this weekend at Saskatchewan Fashion Week, which I was pleased to once again attend in Regina.  This is the third year  of the event in Regina. Earlier this year, I also attended Vancouver Fashion Week.  

Saskatchewan Fashion Week (SFW) is an entrepreneurial venture, brought to life by three entrepreneurs and a team of talented and committed people.  Over the past days, it has been described as a show, a party and an experience.   It had all the trappings that fashion shows tend to have:  designers, models, a runway, lights, cameras snapping, bloggers and writers. The hope is that something on the runway will create a buzz and attract attention.

I love fashion shows for the fashion. I have a soft spot for the designers, as many on the runway are people I have come to know. I am also the mother of a fashion designer now living in Vancouver, so I understand a little more about what it takes to be seen on the runway.

The audience seemed to enjoy and appreciate the event.   One woman said, "We need to do more of this.  It's so nice to see who our designers are and what they offer."  I suggested she visit the designer after the show and shop their lines.

Integration with the retail industry is an important part of the designer's world, since that is ultimately how a designer can one day make a living as a designer.  In 2013, SFW hosted  27 designers on the runway.  A city-wide Katwalk of more than 20 independent retail destinations and specialty services providers offered a premier shopping experience with exclusive promotions in celebration of SFW.

This year there was no formal Katwalk, per se.  Instead nine retailers and 20 designers shared the runway over three nights at Saskatchewan Fashion Week. As a strong advocate of local independent business, I believe every opportunity to remind people  about our independent retail is a good thing.

Fashion shows are really job interviews or trade shows on runway.  Some say they are about the art of fashion and design.  Fashion shows are the place where designers present what we will be wearing in the coming seasons.  From the fashion show to the racks of retailers they go, and the circle of life is complete when we buy the designs at our local retailer.

Fashion shows are the designer's opportunity to present their products and vision to potential buyers.  It's a big commitment for the designer.  Each look that walks the runway represents the heart and soul of its creator.  Designers do what they do out of love and vision.  But how does love translate to making a living?

Speaking from a business strategy perspective, I couldn't help but think about the level of financial risks the designers had taken to walk the runway and how long it would take for them to see a return on their investment (ROI) in Saskatchewan, and how the rest of the world would find them.

 Ester Knight's Moon Star Designs at Saskfashionweek on May 8, 2014

My inner accountant emerges as I start adding the looks on the runway.  If one where to quantify the full cost of a collection, including: the designer's time to conceive, create and manage from the outset to the packing up their cars after the show, the hours of time that their supporters / helpers gave to their cause, materials, transportation, entry fees, model fees, food and residual costs and the opportunity to attract fashion buyers, would the business case be there?

My daughter has presented her designs in Regina's 2012 and 2013 shows and Vancouver's show in 2014.  I can say from experience that conservatively each designer spends a minimum of $5000 to be seen on the runway for those brief moments.

The runway is part of a broader marketing strategy. Pre and post marketing activities, including film production, look books, website, branding and post production (assuming there are orders) are additional costs to be considered in the equation.

Realizing Return on Investment (ROI) in a timely manner is the key.  At some point, the designer needs income to begin the cycle of investment again.

The business of Fashion Design is business that requires a strategy and money.  The designer's strategic intent (his or her why) must be clearly defined and understood in the designer’s mind. If the designer's goal is to create a custom design market then the local runway show is a good place to be seen.  If the designer's strategic intent is to expand into broader markets and move to mass market production, their runway needs to attract buyers, and their marketing efforts will need to be tailored to the people who can make the connections.  Whatever the strategic intent,  somehow the runway has to be part of the ROI, unless it is purely entertainment.

Visit www.saskatchewanfashionweek.com 

An Old Soul Comes to Life on the Runway at Vancouver Fashion Week

Photo: Laurie Larson, Vancouver Fashion Week FW 2014

 I was there when she came into this world, and have watched over her from band aids to boyfriends. She was born with an old soul, with a passion for making art with history and integrity and she is going to be famous. On March 20, 2014 in Vancouver, I watched as her soul came to life on the runway. 

Sara Armstrong was born and raised in Regina where her life of 21 years was consumed with dance, painting, sculpting and creating art.  She graduated from the University of Regina with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in May 2010,  after which she packed up her brand new sewing machine and her clothes in her Mercedes (which later became mine) to study fashion design at Blanche Macdonald.  At that point, she could not sew, but she said, 'I will learn when I get there.' One year later, her design was featured on the cover of Blanche Macdonald's fashion design graduate show, entitled "Colour Couture."

Sara is an artist with a message, which is revealed in the medium. I like to think of Sara as the Marshall McLuhan of her time. Whatever the medium, her creations are arresting, soulful and purposeful.

During her fourth year at University in Regina, she created an eight - foot headless mannequin dressed in depression black skirting and a metal chest plate etched with dates, such as birthdays, wedding anniversaries, and other note worthy moments. The headless woman was placed in a field just outside of Regina. From a distance, it was eerie as she appeared to be looking out onto the cold bleak prairie, her dress blowing in the wind.  

This ghost of a past was haunting, yet respectful as she paid heed to the history of the land and its people. When we returned to the field to take her home, there were tire tracks in the mud around her, as passers by had been drawn in to see her, but not disturb her.  As we disassembled the statue a small field mouse scurried out from under her skirt where it had taken shelter from the wind.  Sara looked at me and smiled, saying "it's nice that the mouse had a warm place for a while."

In Vancouver, Sara dedicated herself to learning the business. While attending school,she worked multiple jobs, volunteered for fashion shows and other events and interned for a local Vancouver designer.  What she didn't learn at school, she took in classes and workshops outside of school.  

Sara launched her first line, Motel June, an eco-fashion collection. Her second line, Heed the Free was launched at the Blanche Macdonald Fashion Show in 2011, which carried the eco-fashion message as well but with a revolutionary romantic flair. Heed the Free then made its way to Saskatchewan Fashion Week in 2012, standing out as an artistic rendering of eco-fashion worthy of the runway.

In 2013, Sara rebranded, launching her self-named collection Sara Armstrong. This predominantly black collection of men and women creations was less feminine and more androgynous, and less quiet and more defiant as it came to life again on the runway in Regina during Saskatchewan Fashion Week.

In 2014, Sara Armstrong presented her self-named collection on the runway at Vancouver Fashion Week. Inspired by the ocean and the story of Moby Dick, the collection possesses a gritty natural quaity, softened by a cream and beige toned colour scheme, layered in dense fabrics and textures that tell the story of the artist's vision and inspiration. 

As her mother looking on, I could hear the voice of her old soul speaking to us once again as her designs moved down the runway and away from home where her destiny as an artist is being discovered. 

See Sara's work at: www.sararmstrong.com

Sara Armstrong Collection FW 2014 Vancouver Fashion Week