Here's my theory: as technology evolves and globalization continues, our world will continually get smaller. Innovation, although still capable of making giant leaps forward (touch screens, green energy, etc.), will also become more nuanced. Think about it this way-- back in the day, they had horse and buggies and then when the car came along, the combustible engine and the diesel engine revolutionized transportation, industrial manufacturing and agriculture. Comparing the engine to touch screens seems kind of crazy I know, but this is the world that we live in.
I don't want to imply that some of the innovations that we're coming up with nowadays are not amazing in their own way-- I'm constantly impressed by the things that the human mind comes up with, from octopus robots and augmented reality surgery to sequestering pollution in cement. So any way. Back to my rant.
Similarly to the general evolution of technological innovation, I think that businesses (however intangible and murky in comparison) will also begin to struggle in this environment to differentiate themselves and identify demand and subsequent revenue streams. And that's where "Fashion Star" comes in. (Ha! Bet you didn't see that one coming, did ya?)
So "Fashion Star" has the headliners of Jessica Simpson and Nicole Richie (that should throw up a red flag right away), and the premise of the show is that competing designers come on the show to create "wearable" designs. Buyers from Macy's, Saks Fifth and H&M (along with JS and Nicole) critique the designs and the buyers can either offer a dollar amount for the designs or, if the design is particularly bad, give "No Offer". The interesting thing here is that the winning buyer is able to have the designs in stores the following day for purchase and online for purchase immediately. But am I really going to write a post about just fashion? Pfft. Please.
Disregarding my initial reactions of "Wow we really do live in a right-here, right-now demand society", I have to say that this is actually a smart move. In a cultural atmosphere where being Joe Everyday is much more popular than High Society Sam (I really like personifying my intangibles), this show is kind of a nice break from the snobbery that we see on the "Project Runway" shows. Gone are the days of "Well, I mean he's choosing to work with taffeta" and now we actually are beginning to hear things that make sense (and actually mean something to us normal people). Things like, "That fabric is probably too heavy for spring" or "That's not flattering... on anyone" which makes me feel better.
From a business perspective, I like that they have potential buyers judging the designs. A Macy's buyer is not going to buy an outfit that consists of a clear shower curtain and rubber duckies as nipple tassles (hopefully), which lends more credibility to the show and also shows a little more about "the other stuff" that goes into procurement and ordering on a massive scale. These things are crazy things like, return on investment, mainstream sensibility, marketability, demographic targeting, sourcing, etc. From a consumer's perspective, it's exciting to see something go from design to store (from my perspective) in less than 24 hours. Overall, this show could be the perfect social experiment to see the appetite for made-to-order, semi-instantaneous consumer goods.... I'm intrigued to see what will happen when they roll this out to food products. Food Network just got a whole lot more interesting.
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