Conclusion
In conclusion, when looking at the High End High Street sector in relation to fast
fashion and the rise of internet shopping, there is evidence that brands within
this sector could lose out in the long run to other brands who follow the
fast fashion model a lot closer. For example, Mass Market brand Missguided’s
founder and chief executive Nitin Passi states "I like to say we’re the quickest,"
he says. "If [the high street] are fast fashion, we’re rapid fashion." "We update
our site once a day with new stock, but in my eyes we should be updating it every
hour. If a trend comes, we need to have it on our site in under a week." (Cocozza,
2015) Maybe this is what the high end high street are doing wrong? Because of
its position as the bridge between luxury and affordability, the high end high
street can either follow the designer route and bring out two collections
per year or it can try adhere to the Mass Market and its fast fashion model
by releasing new items whenever a new trend comes in. This however does
raise the issue of sustainability and how ethical the fast fashion model is.
Consumers today are now becoming increasingly aware when buying their clothes
and accessories, for example the Guardian found that "A third of UK consumers
claim to be very concerned about issues regarding the origin of products. A
study from YouGov and the Global Poverty Project revealed that 74% of those
surveyed would pay an extra 5% for their clothes if there was a guarantee
workers were being paid fairly and working in safe conditions." (Baker, 2015)
As well as this, the rise of internet shopping means that brands are under
constant pressure to deliver the perfect in store brand experience to customers
as brick and mortar shopping isn’t just about purchasing items anymore seen
as this can now be done online, it’s about experiences. Overall, in order for the
High End High Street to survive, it needs to adapt to today’s modern consumer
demands of ethics, transparency and creating memorable in store experiences.
Word Count: 2708
(Whistles, 2014c)
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