The British Fashion Industry

Paper Summary:

This paper looks at the trendsetters and influences on the British fashion industry and in particular Mary Quant and Jean Elizabeth Muir. It evaluates how, if the present and future fashion instructors at U.K.'s universities invest the same degree of skill in teaching creative young people the ropes of fashion design, as Ms. Muir and Ms. Quant did in fine-tuning their craft, there would be some very successful and revered fashion designers working in the U.K. and around the world. It shows how these two great ladies most certainly paved the way for future fashion talent to emerge and thrive.

Outline
Introduction / Generalizations About Changes in Fashion
A Glance Backwards: the Humbling of the Old Lords of Fashion
Fashion as a Culture Industry Generalizations, Observations
The Financial and Political Roles Being Played Out
How many Students are Currently Pursuing a Creative Arts Education?
The BA HONS Fashion Technology Course
Where do Fashion Students find Financial Help for their Schooling?
The Fall of Culture Minister Chris Smith and rise of Tessa Jowell
The Politics of being a Minister of Culture
London's Royal College of Art the Kickoff of the New Fashion Designer

From the Paper:

"The typical middle class consumer in the UK and America, Agins continues, is more apt today to spurn the $340 rayon chenille sweater from Barney's of New York for a far more practical $25 acrylic chenille sweater from Kmart. Why? Because consumer-friendly publications like Consumer Reports (CR) began investigating and rating fashion and apparel a decade ago. For example, CR began testing different brands of clothing for durability, fiber content, and wear, and in 1997, gave its highest rating for a men's polo knit shirt to "Honors." Honors' It's a store brand that sold for $7.00 at Target. But it proved that the old cliche, "you get what you pay for?" is false, because also in CR's investigation were versions of the same knit shirt by Polo Ralph Lauren ($49), Tommy Hilfiger ($44), Nautica ($42) and Gap ($24). The $7 Target brand polo shirt was simply better. Therein lies symbolism of this change in fashion from elite designers to mass marketing."

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