-There's this part of
the fashion industry
that believes that,
once people can sort of reemerge
from their homes
and interact again,
that people are
going to be so sick
of wearing
the same thing over and over
or not being able to wear all
the fun clothes in their closet,
that they're gonna be itching
to get dressed up,
that they're gonna be ready to
just, like, burn the leggings
and the T-shirt
and move on to something else.
-It's no secret that athleisure
wear is having its moment,
thanks to
the coronavirus pandemic
and all the time we spend
at home nowadays.
-I think it's really hard
to get up every day
and want to get dressed,
but I think more people
have realized,
now, when they do like
what they're wearing at home,
they feel a little bit better.
Again, fashion always makes you
feel good when you look good.
-It's hard to say if athleisure
will be the pandemic
fashion trend that sticks,
but whether we're out
and about or stuck indoors,
the industry
is continuing to shift.
For some, getting dressed
in a particular style or brand
is essential to who they are
and how they express themselves
to the outside world.
But what happens to fashion
when there's no one to see it?
-There's absolutely delight
in that package
arriving in your home
and you put it on and you're
standing in front of a mirror.
But you don't get sort of
the full 100%
sense of delight in the purchase
until you go out into the world
and you're able to then
enhance the story of who you are
by this item of clothing
that you're wearing
because it communicates
something to people
that you see in real time.
We all have sort of
a different persona
that we present to the world,
than the one that is within
the confines of our home.
-The gratification of wearing
something you love in public
has also made the job
of merchandise buyers
more difficult.
A normal, hour-long showroom
visit
is now a days-long wait
for a mailed package.
Things take much longer
to get from the showroom
to the store's floor or website.
-I think just the overarching
thing,
especially in retail right now,
is how do you pivot,
you know, how do you
keep the consumer happy?
How do you keep them
a consumer of yours?
It's a really weird space
out there.
-The question,
for a lot of the buyers,
was, "How much do I buy,
and what mood
will the customer be in"?
And there's just, there's no way
to really tell.
It's really just
a bit of a crapshoot.
-I have to, first, figure out
what they have in inventory
or figure out
what I want to buy,
and they have to ship me
the samples.
I have to feel the samples.
Shipping has been impacted,
so I don't always get
those samples on time anymore.
It's just taking me longer.
-Online shopping has
already made a huge impact
on the fashion industry
in the last two decades.
But with more online shopping
now than ever before,
small businesses face
a tough challenge.
-Before, you know, the pandemic,
people regularly went online
and they made it easy enough
that people could buy
all the stuff,
try it on at home, and return
what they didn't want.
So I don't think that,
post-pandemic,
the idea of what people
are gonna be willing
to buy online
will have changed very much.
I think we've learned that
people will buy anything online.
The huge question, of course,
is will those stores
be able to ride it out.
-People are adjusting.
People are really making
their websites better.
There are online retailers
that are booming.
If a boutique has figured out
how to be online,
I think they
can totally survive.
-It's gonna be a bit easier
for those independent stores
who have a much closer
relationship to their customer.
-So, what will the future
of fashion look like?
Only time will tell.
