Fashion is a term used to describe the prevailing style of dress, or other modes of personal expression. Throughout history, people have used clothing to convey their status and identity, as well as to signal solidarity with certain groups. Keeping up with the latest trends is considered an important way to show that one is an active participant in the culture of a given society.
Clothing is a form of art and can be designed in many ways. The fashion industry is a multibillion-dollar global enterprise that encompasses the design, manufacture and sale of clothes. It is often divided into the high fashion that is shown on runways in Paris or New York City and the mass-produced clothing that is sold in shops and markets around the world.
The popularity of a particular style may be influenced by cultural, social or economic factors. It can also vary by age, gender, class, generation, occupation, and geographical area. Moreover, fashion changes over time as new ideas are brought in and old ones fade away.
A change in the style of garments or footwear can be triggered by events, such as wars, new discoveries in other parts of the world or a desire to experiment with materials and designs. The rise of a new era, like the 1920s, for instance, was marked by dramatic shifts in fashion, especially for women.
Fashion is usually thought to change more quickly than other aspects of human culture, such as language or thought. Some people feel that the rate of change in fashion is excessive and encourages wasteful spending, while others enjoy the diversity that changing styles can provide.
Clothes and other accessories with unique patterns or motifs are sometimes referred to as “fashionable” and can inspire the creation of similar styles for other items, such as shoes or bags. Similarly, a particular fabric, such as silk or wool, may inspire a style of garment for another material, such as cotton or polyester.
The creation of a new style of garment or accessory can be sparked by the influence of a famous person, particularly a celebrity, who is seen as being influential in their field. This type of influence is often referred to as “fashion forward.” The popularity of a particular style may be created through the dissemination of information about it, such as through newspaper and magazine articles or television shows.
The most common way that fashions are distributed is by commercial retailers, such as department stores. These stores offer a wide selection of clothes, shoes and accessories for sale to customers, including both high-fashion lines and more mass-produced clothing. When a retailer sells a fashion line for more than it costs to make and market the garments, the profit is called the markup. This markup is often significantly higher than the cost of production, which is reflected in the retail price of the garments. A garment’s manufacturer may also produce a secondary line of less expensive clothing, called a diffusion collection, that is sold at a lower price point.