WGSN, a firm that analyzes and researches the fashion and style industries, has released its Top 10 Industry and consumer trends affecting the fashion and style sectors for 2006. They include:

1. The impact of fast fashion. Retailers are responding more quickly to changes in fashion, with trends moving faster than ever before. This is the future of fashion.

2. Two-speed sourcing. Western retailers are developing two-speed supply lines with close-to-home sourcing for fast fashion product and long-distance (primarily Asian) sourcing for other products.

3. The new powerhouses: China, India and Brazil. The emergence of these nations as economic regional and global powers is creating new fashion markets and changing the dynamics of international business.

4. The search for higher margins: the brand imperative. Fashion businesses have to develop their own brands and be more sophisticated in marketing.

5. The new marketing: making noise in cyberspace. The Internet offers fashion companies a new outlet to market and develop a community of consumers.

6. Sustainability and corporate responsibility. These issues will become more important in the coming years; all fashion businesses must take them into consideration.

7. Fashion versus lifestyle. From mobile phones to MP3 players, personal technology is attracting more consumers than the fashion, which is a challenge for the clothing industry.

8. The growth of consumer power. Consumers use comparison shopping sites on the Internet and have increased understanding of how marketing works. Treat them with respect.

9. The high-low consumer. A new generation of consumers is happy to mix discount bargain fashion finds with Louis Vuitton handbags, buying both high- and low-end items.

10. Asia's role as a design and cultural influencer. An exciting new wave of influence will sweep the world.

Being that WGSN is such a reputable research tool in the fashion industry, their consumer and market trend forecasting is usually on point. Their accuracy is further demonstraed through the blog topics and events I chose to cover over the past few months, which has exhibited coverage of at least half of the top ten for 2006: Numbers One and Two: Empty sales racks: The European Trend of Fast-Fashion ; Number Five: The Luxury Online; Number Nine: The need of luxury; and Number Seven and Eight: Watch Manufacturing: Increased consumer consciousness & demand.

I am not saying that my blog is anywhere near as important in terms of industry forecasting standards, but the sheer fact that the events I covered over the past months are reflected in WGSN’s list, helps validate their predictions for 2006. One of the topics I want to discuss is the impact of Number Nine. The impact of fast-fashion, the need for luxury, and the increased consumer consciousness, all feed into this one trend of consumer’s choice for High-Low fashion.

People are no longer loyal to one company or fashion brand. Dressing in Chanel or Louis Vuitton from head to toe is no longer deemed fashionable or efficient. Fashion consumers will wear a Hanes tank top, with a LaRok skirt, and a Chanel purse, with Fendi sunglasses, and an Isaac Mizrahi for Target mary jane flat. They are more conscious of their own style, and are no longer insecure about stating prices and using them as a catalyst for defining their fashion. Myself included, I love Target’s Luella line, but I also love luxury handbags and sunglasses. I love to mix and match strong, detailed items from Target or H&M, mixing them with the luxury items I have in my closet.

I feel that out of all of these trends in the industry, number nine is the one that will have the longest impact in the coming years, affecting outsourcing options, the development of trends, and online shopping, as a whole.