fashion at large

Fashion magazine advertisements.

I’ve learnt a lot today about fashion magazine advertisement. Various bits of media clips have come my way making me take a closer look at this subject. Those who are already au fait with the matter do not need to waste time reading on.

Some examples.

Readers generally like advertisements, they are seen as essential and well liked. On average, applying to all types of magazines, this is a view shared by 65% of readers. For fashion magazine readers the figure is 75%. Financial Times picked up on this theme the other day, scrutinising which luxury labels are getting ahead in advertising in spring/ summer 2012.

A magazine is a brand and the editorial content of a particular publication has over time established an affinity with its readers. This greatly benefits advertisers.“The editorial/reader relationship is a one-to-one conversation, and in time it creates a bond of trust, of belief, expectation and empathy. It is through the quality of this relationship that an aperture or opening to the reader’s mind and heart is created, through which advertisers can establish communication.”

There’s a direct and very effective link between magazine advertisements and purchasing activities. People are 38% more likely to buy a product advertised in a magazine than on TV, and 50% more than an ad appearing in a newspaper. Mulberry’s experience is that people often come into stores asking for products appearing in a certain campaign.

Fashion magazine advertisements are big business. The ups and downs of ad-page counts are therefore of outmost importance. New York Post yesterday reported that in March 2012 Vogue had 442.74 ad pages, up 3.7 percent, with In Style in second place with 347 ad pages, a 13 percent gain. Similar figures for September 2011 were 584 ad pages for Vogue and In Style 431 pages.

Apropos of business and finally. There’s a fine line between editorial independence and advertisers’ wants. The price of a magazine covers production costs. Advertisements bring in the profit, in the case of Vogue UK around £32 million, for Vogue US $150 million. As Alexandra Shulman of UK Vogue puts it;

Vogue makes most of its money out of advertising – and it does make an awful lot of money – so we’ve got to have a good relationship with our advertisers. They’re not going to place £100,000 a year and then say, “Feel free not to use any of our goods” – life’s not like that. So although there is this feeling sometimes that creatively it’s not pure, well – magazines are a business, you’re not sitting there writing poetry.‘

Washington DC Fashion Week.

Some view Washington DC as the capital of the world. I know cause I’ve been there and someone indulged this piece of information to me. Dream on, I thought to myself. But didn’t tell.

In terms of fashion, the place barely registers on the radar. Or GPS, or conventional map if you are still in to those. Think Washington DC and grey, blue, maybe black suits come to mind. Accessorised with high-quality shirts, ties and perfectly tidy haircuts. Women may break the mold by avoiding the tie, but stick with the suit, using colour to differentiate themselves from the crowd.  Conservatism rule.

Jacqueline Kennedy was an exception. A very special exception. Close to 20 years after her death, there are still rave reviews of her dress code. Michelle Obama is a more recent example.

I’ve got no idea if the latter’s got something to do with it, but Washington DC is rising from the fashion duldrums. The D.C. Fashion Incubator was launched last year providing resources, infrastructure and programming that nurtures the District’s budding fashion industry so that it can reach its full potential.

“Everyone talks about job creation,” according to the founder Christine Brooks-Cropper, “but we actually have the resources to create small businesses and provide vocational skills in an industry that no one even thinks exists in D.C.”

A noteworthy initiative. Reminiscent of some old spy movie, however, fashion in DC has been cooking behind closed doors for some time. Felix Alonso is in the know, he’s spent 40 years making custom gowns, cocktail dresses and business suits for Washington’s elite, dressing four generations of Kennedys, as well as Hillary Clinton, Nancy Kissinger and countless ambassadors’ wives.

Mr Alonso; “D.C.’s fashion scene comes alive at night — but it’s almost always behind closed doors. Privately, Washington is as high-fashion as any city in the world.”

Business is booming and he’s taking advantage. Washington is coming out of the closet. New York, feel the pressure.