There
resides a tension in the fashion Industry over the role of design versus
marketing imperatives.
Fashion
designers do take formal training in business and marketing while the formal
training of marketing personnel can often lack an appreciation of the role of
Design in this business.
These
two seemingly different yet inherent views offer two diverse marketing
strategies for the Garment manufacturer.
Designers
are taught to approach problems as though there were no constraints on time and
cost so that creativity might flourish. Spontaneity, eclecticism and the
willingness to take risks in challenging the status quo are some values central
to traditional design training.
Marketing
training by contrast embraces different values. Marketers are taught to be
systematic and analytical in approaching problems. The foundation of a lot of
marketing involves the setting of Objectives and Quantifying inputs and
outputs. Success comes from careful research and planning, not spontaneity or
ignoring market realities like competitor price levels.
However
due to lack of training marketing personnel often fail to understand the
aesthetic dimension of a design or many qualitative aspects of product
development.
This
difference in perspective engenders a range of views about what Fashion
Marketing ought to be.
Two
Contrasting Views can be labelled as Design-Centred and Marketing-Centred.
