Fashion Marketing

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Last week, I visited 'Practicum: British Fashion-2' an event that was organized by the British Council in partnership with the 'Local fashion' and Center for contemporary culture 'Garage' (see link). 

Very talented designers presented their work and creative approach. The event program is here (see link). Here is a list of the young designers brands that were presented during the fashion event:

Michaela Mazalanova from Slovakia

MAREUNROL'S from Latvia 

D.EFECT from Lithuania 

m*faganel from Slovenia

R/H from Finland

Soulland from Dania

Kristian Steinberg from Estonia

Lisa Shahno from Russia

Nadia Nurieva from Russia

[Пять Пять] from Russia

FortyTwo from Russia

The UK fashion marketing experts  Toby Meadows, Janine Passley, Amelia Gregory, Clare Lopeman, Michael Salac raised some marketing general questions that are relevant for the young up-and-coming designer to go through and they shared their UK business experience with the creative young audience. Their speech was not tailored specifically to the Russian market but to the UK and how things are done in the West for Western customers.

Some observations relevant to the Russian market raised during discussions

MOST RUSSIAN MARKET CHALLENGES

"What are the challenges designers face when entering the Russian fashion market?"

Finding the right fabric can be challenging for a designer in Russia

Moscow is not as developed in terms of international fabric supply as it is in London, where you can buy almost any kind of fabric by visiting shops on a  single street. While some designers use locally produced fabrics, most Russian designers import  good quality materials from abroad in small quantities. Ordering and delivering materials to Russia can be pricy.  For that reason, some Russian designers offer their 'Limited edition collection' for a small or even 'elite' audience.

Location. Location. Location - finding the store to place your collection can be difficult in Russia

In Russia, designers face the retail distribution issue. I would say that in Russia there are three main types of outlets.

First are retail chains such as Zara, Gap and other mostly Western brands, second is a private small Russian boutiques shops that are already selling Russian designer brands to the public.  Some stores are willing to take just small orders for sale. Even though there are lots of shopping centers in Moscow and other Russian cities, I still think that most lower middle class Russians go to the market to shop for clothing. The question is that if you are a starting designer, how will you find place to sell your collection? Will you open a new store? That can be a challenge.

The educational gap can be a big issue for a designer

In Russia, it is quite difficult to find fashion education that is in-tune with the global fashion market and also have affordable fees.

There are a few institutions in Russia to study fashion such as the Moscow State Textile University 'A.N. Kosygin' (see link) and a recent entry the British Higher School of Art & Design (see link).

The confidence issue

There are many talented designers who have creative vision but how many of them make this vision happen? How many are there  who can make it happen by staying in the market for at least three years? Not so many. Apart from other obstacles the designer faces, the psychological barrier is just one of the strongest ones and it concerns self-confidence and having the tolerance to wait sometimes while you are establishing your name as a brand.

NO money for marketing? Free press, advertising and the word of mouth.

How do you advertise your brand in Russia if you have limited financial sources ?

The main trend these days is doing free social media marketing ("SMM"). This doesn't  actually work for every brand that implements it. SMM is not about sales but about buzz and connection and also a conversation between the brand and potential client. SMM is about strategy not 'shouting in the space' about your product. It takes time and a good craft.

Online marketing in Russia compared to the UK is a bit different. There are some issues that are relevant to the Russia - for example, in Russia online stores exist but not as many as you see in the UK. Part of the problem is that there are not many people ready to pay online in Russia. It is an issue of trust and also online banking development across the whole country.

There does not yet exist 'a signature Russian style' that can recognized internationally

At the conference, UK fashion marketing experts asked designers to consider the following questions:

What is Russian fashion?

What is the Russian identity? Is it a folklore?

What is unique about the Russian fashion identity ? How is it different from the rest of the Fashion world?

Will your "Russian brand" will be recognized abroad because it is Russian?

How would you position 'Russian brand abroad' ? Will you position it to the Russian people living abroad or to the locals?

One question was about the future of the ethical brand development in Russia. One designer half- jokingly said that it won't work in Russia and we are not ready for it. Let's define what an ethical brand is.

TERM: Ethical brand is associated with minimal harm to or exploitation of humans, animals and/or the natural environment. From the expert fashion presenters I get that by talking about 'ethical brands' they were talking about  'green and organic brands'.

(I think that, the word 'ethical' can  be perceived as confusing word for Russian business environment, instead of using 'green').

Is there a future for the 'green' brands in Russia?

I personally believe that green brands should exist in Russia. Many think that Russians are  'living in the past' and are not concerned with being green. On the other hand, from the global/planet point of view, Russia is one of the biggest countries on planet and with  awareness and education  the Russian consumer will want to be green too. Of course it will take time to do. I think that you might be surprised by the positive outcome  - 'if you don't create the change first - than change will create you' - meaning that becoming a pioneer in the green brand establishment in Russia - will almost definitely have a positive impact on your customers.

I just came across this Russian brand "Low Fat" (see link) that positions itself as 'green'. 'Low Fat clothing uses eco-friendly materials like organic cotton, hemp, and fabric from recycled plastic. They also focus on natural dyes such as powdered natural minerals, juice, fruit, and pollen. They stick to recycled materials for their packaging and marketing, as well' (source). The Body Shop Russia (see link) is doing it. It's only a matter of time.

Source: PRACTICUM: BRITISH FASHION-2, image source, Personal observations


Additional readings - The Russian Fashion Retail Market.pdf (see link)