| Section IV: Web sources on my topic
Title of Web page: BBC News UK London Fashion Week
Web address: http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/uk/newsid-1171000/117148.stm
Brief Description: Overview of London Fashion Week. This page has
lots of information on the fashions for fall that were presented in London.
The posting of this on the Internet allows consumers worldwide to see
the shows. This shows how the Internet and fashion industry work together.
Source of Web site: British Broadcasting Corporation
Title of Web page: Webcrawler Lifestyle: Beauty and Fashion: Fashion
Industry: Guides and Directories
Web address: http://www.webcrawler.com/lifestyle/beauty_and_fashion/
fashion_industry/guides_and_directories/
Brief Description: Directory site. This page lists 24 other sites
pertinent to fashion and the Internet.
Source of Web site: webcrawler.com
Title of Web page: Angel Fashion Award and the Fashion on the
Web Official Directory
Web address: http://www.fashionangel.com/linkpages/
Brief Description: This page offers "one of the most concise
fashion resources on the planet." Provides links to many categories
imperative to fashion. Has been on Web since 1996.
Source of Web site: fashionangel.com
Title of Web page: CNN.com-Web Search with LookSmart
Web address: http://cnn.looksmart.com keyword: fashion industry
Brief Description: This page offers articles about the fashion
industry. It also offers other links to more sites with fashion information.
Source of Web site: Cable News Network
Title of Web page: InStyle.com; Homepage
Web address: http://www.instyle.com/instyle/
Brief Description: This site is the on-line version of a prominent
fashion magazine and offers insight into all aspects of the fashion world
via the Internet.
Source of Web site: Instyle.com Inc.
Section V: Mini Essay
The Internet extends its Reach to Fashion
Just as the Internet has touched an overwhelmingly large number of aspects
of human life, it has also touched the fashion industry. Over the past
ten years, the Internet has changed the face of fashion allowing designers
and fashion houses to sell their products worldwide without consumers
stepping foot into a store and allowing everyday people, those that are
not celebrities or millionaires, to watch the fashion shows in New York,
Milan, and Paris from their homes. With technology advancing everyday,
the Internet will help create and promote many new innovations for the
fashion industry.
Cici Kelly, director of business development and e-commerce at America
Online, presented the following statistics at a seminar: "By the
year 2002, more than $80 billion worth of business will be conducted over
the Internet. Of that, $2.84 billion will be generated by apparel and
accessories." (3) Internet users represent 60 percent of the buying
power of the U.S. population. Women who had been a minority of online
shoppers' two years ago are now 51 percent of users. (3) There are many
advantages to shopping online and fashion industry analysts recognize
this. They realize consumers can shop from the comfort of their own homes,
at times convenient to their lifestyles, and can avoid traffic and crowds.
"What's the dream of every fashion lover? To be in the audience when
designers mount their extravagant shows each season." (1) Now consumers
can view these shows via the Internet. Victoria's Secret was the first
lingerie corporation to broadcast its fashion show on the Internet.(5)
Victoriassecret.com received 1.5 million hits in February 1999 for what
is believed to have been the largest streaming video broadcast up to that
time. (5) Victoria's Secret expected twice that number for their second
Internet fashion show in 2000. (5) Because of Victoria's Secret's success
online, they will broadcast their fashion show live on ABC on November
15, 2001.
Since then, other sites have been offering other designers' shows on the
Internet. The Internet site at www.virtualrunway.com shows many fashion
shows from New York and Europe and offers designer profiles and fashion
industry news. (1) According to Virtual Runway's demographics, the Web
site appeals to "mostly women (70-80 percent), ages 20-55. Most people
that access the site are from the US, Canada, and the UK, with about 15
percent being international clients." (1)
The Internet has also become a useful tool for the international fashion
industry. An article in the Prague Business Journal presented how Czech
textile companies are utilizing the Web. "Five years ago, only a
few Czech firms could be found on the Internet, while today almost no
firm can manage without it," explained Znderek Kus of the textile
faculty at Liberec's Technical University. (2) Czech textile and clothing
companies are turning to the Internet to showcase their designs abroad
as the threat of recession raises worries. (2)
While the Internet has had major impacts on the fashion industry in the
past, the growth of technology will undoubtedly change the industry even
more. Lucy Wallis, a reporter for the London Sunday Times, discovered
a scanner that shows whether or not an outfit will fit before a consumer
tries it on. (4) Wallis reported that Japanese scientists had created
a 3-D body scanner to record the dimensions of the person's vital statistics
and creates a virtual image of him/her, allowing the consumer to "try
on" clothes online. (4) Wallis also reported that the process takes
less than 12 seconds and the image can be stored for future sprees on
the Internet. (4)
The Internet is an amazing tool that is changing the way the fashion industry
markets its products and also the way consumers shop. The Internet allows
fashion lovers all over the world to view their favorite designers anywhere,
at anytime. Together the two are only bettering a fashion lover's experiences.
NOTES:
(1) Griffin, Linda G. "What's the dream of every fashion lover?"
The Houston Chronicle,
22 July 2001, p.10 (Lifestyle). Also Available [Online]: Lexis-Nexis [Accessed
17 September 2001].
(1) Kuchar, Vladimir. "Textile firms fashion Internet strategies
companies turn to the Internet
To head off the recession that threatens to sour the industry's recent
success." The
Prague Business Journal, 10 September 2001. Also Available [Online]: Lexis-Nexis
[Accessed 17 September 2001].
(2) Lockwood, Lisa. "Fashion's must-have: an Internet address."
WWD, 24 May 1999, p.14.
Also Available [Online]: Infotrac [Accessed 17 September 2001].
(3) Wallis, Lucy. "Changing the way we shop." Sunday Times
(London), 29 July 2001. Also
Available [Online]: Lexis-Nexis [Accessed 17 September 2001].
(4) Zimmerman, Christine. "Victoria's site Secret-retailer overhauls
Web infrastructure for
fashion show onslaught." InternetWeek, 17 April 2000. Also Available
[Online]:
Infotrac [Accessed 17 September 2001].
THREE WEB SITES:
Title of Web page: BBC News UK London Fashion Week
Web address: http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/uk/newsid-1171000/117148.stm
Brief Description: Overview of London Fashion Week. Offers glimpses
of the runway shows.
Source of the Web site: British Broadcasting Company
Title of Web page: CNN.com-Web Search with LookSmart
Web address: http://cnn.looksmart.com keyword: fashion industry
Brief Description: This page offers articles about all aspects
of the fashion industry and links to other pertinent sites.
Source of Web site: Cable News Network
Title of Web page: InStyle.com; Homepage
Web address: http://www.instyle.com/instyle
Brief Description: This site is the on-line version of a prominent
fashion magazine. It offers insight into all aspects of the industry via
the Internet.
Source of Web site: Instyle.com Inc.
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