The End of Fashion: How Marketing Changed the Clothing Business Forever
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Book Overview
The time when fashion was defined by French designers whose clothes could be afforded only by elite has ended. Now designers take their cues from mainstream consumers and creativity is channeled more into mass-marketing clothes than into designing them. Indeed, one need look no further than the Gap to see proof of this. In The End of Fashion, Wall Street Journal, reporter Teri Agins astutely explores this seminal change, laying bare all aspects of the fashion industry from manufacturing, retailing, anmd licensing to image making and financing. Here as well are fascinating insider vignettes that show Donna Karan fighting with financiers, the rivalry between Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger, and the commitment to haute conture that sent Isaac Mizrahi's business spiraling.
Customer Reviews
Rated 4 starsGood late 20th century fashion history book
As other reviewers stated, this would be an engaging book for readers who are interested in fashion history, particularly prominent designers in the 1980s and 1990s. I'm more interested in the business/marketing and cultural side (at a macro level, not micro), so there were parts of this book that were a bit slow for me. The author's writing style is wonderful though and she did a great job finding very different designers...
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Rated 5 starsHighly recommended for those interested in fashion
Teri Agins manages to write about fashion with authority and fluency and with no superfluous over the top 'fluff'. Although some bits may seem a bit too technical and not of much interest to some, overall it is a very well written and sophisticated piece of work about the workings of the fashion industry. After reading this book it is hard to look at clothes the same way again! For me at least, it really changed my perspective...
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Rated 5 starsFashion books tend to be vapid. This book packs a wallop
Teri Agins did a terrific job with her book "The End of Fashion". The title sounds a bit fatalistic, but the content and tome is fantastic. I've always wanted to know the history, business practices, personality and profiles of accomplished designers and Teri Agins delivers all this beautifully. No malice is detected and Ms.Agins' professionalism is evident throughout. No catty swipes are made, even when she discusses...
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Rated 5 starsIn-depth research plus great writing
This book will be a great read for anyone interested in fashion, and frankly it's a good read for any consumer who spends more than a few hundred dollars a year on clothes. It explains not only the rise and fall of the Paris couture houses, but also the impact of licensing and retail giants such as Tommy Hilfiger and the Gap. If you're at all interested in the fashion industry, this provides fabulous insight. Agins did a good...
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Rated 5 starsAn honest objective portrayal of the fashion industry
I have always felt that the comparison of the fashion industry to the "Emporer's New Clothes" was exactly what the consumer wanted and what the industry presented. But what so intrigued me about Ms. Agin's book is that she exposed the "Emporer" without clothes and the clothes makers without sarcasm or snide attacks. This made it possible for we aspiring designers to observe a realistic view and grounded attitude as we...
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