On a cold Melbourne morning, fashion names gathered for a discussion of new retail models and the changing face of the consumer. Erin O'Loughlin relays the ideas that flowed forth at Melbourne Spring Fashion Week.
It is almost as though the organisers of Melbourne Spring Fashion Week's (MSFW) Business Breakfast series have carefully planned the menu to reinforce the message of their speakers.
As retailers, researchers and the like deliver their talks on increasingly localised retailing, eco-conscious consumers and the endurance of the luxury market, guests sipped Australian-made orange juice, coffee brewed from fair trade beans and eggs piled on plates of ciabatta, chipolatas and pancetta (as opposed to bread, snags and bacon). And the meatiness of the seminar doesn't end there.
Four speakers take the stage, one after the other, for what MSFW has dubbed the 'exposition of new retail', or a discussion on how retailers and consumers are changing, and why.
Director of consulting firm MO Luxury, Melinda O'Rourke, confirms what everyone in the room already knows: in the wake of the world's economic woes, consumers have been more considered and covert in their shopping.
O’Rourke has also observed the development of ethical purchasing among high net-worth consumers, something that is causing Melbourne luxury accessories store owner and fellow speaker Christine Barro to stew over her choice of shopping bags.
“Do I have the ecological bag or something fancy?” Barro ponders. “I'm at the moment getting it designed but [for] some of my clients, it's not just about hiding it from your husband, it's about walking back into the office and being anonymous that you've just shopped. Some people say, 'Can I leave it here and pick it up on the way home?'”
Despite the rise of 'covert' shopping, anyone who expects luxury brands to represent a smaller share of the market than they did two years ago will be disappointed.
“Honestly, a lot of the luxury brands we work with ... were wondering why there was no effect in this market, or very limited effect,” O'Rourke reveals. She says the number of luxury brands in Australia has trebled since the 1980s, with the opening of Chadstone Shopping Centre in November 2009 ensuring Melbourne has the largest swag of luxury names in the country.
Soon, Sydney will give Melbourne a run for its money with the opening of Westfield Sydney. And these days, it's not just ageing dames toting Chanel purses.
“Research has shown us that in China, 60 to 70 per cent of [luxury] consumers are in their twenties,” O'Rourke says. “This is very, very different to what has been existing for many years in the traditional markets.”
Retailers are changing too. In Sydney, Louis Vuitton is one name that will not be listed on Westfield Sydney's store directory. The brand is set to move from Sydney's existing luxury strip around Castlereagh Street to a stand-alone site in 2012.
“For them to be moving outside of that immediate strip and next to Apple, I think signals something very interesting and very strong and a huge amount of confidence,” O'Rourke says. Given that O'Rourke pegs Louis Vuitton as an “early adopter” and “pioneering brand”, one gets the feeling she expects more stores to follow its lead.
For now, other stores are working to become more localised and infused with an artisan feel in other ways. Christine Barro's eponymous store – “an Aladdin's cave” of accessories – was a reaction against shopping strips, she says.
This sense of intrigue and personalised setting is something architect Clare Cousins spotted regularly on a recent trip to New York. Freeman's Sporting Club is one example she cites, with the two-store business wearing “understated but interesting” shop fronts.
Inside, Cousins says, there's “a real celebration of artisan qualities”.
“One of the things they do is encourage the local manufacture of clothing and take product back to the bespoke. I think all the clothing is made within 15 miles of the store.”
The trend for multidisciplinary and personalised service is reflected in Freeman's inclusion of a barber and tailor in-store. In Melbourne, Captains of Industry offers food and haircuts alongside bespoke footwear and vintage clothing.
It feeds into another trend Cousins has observed: cultivating relationships with customers for ongoing success.
Finally, the trend for pop-up stores and other types of fast fashion is not disappearing. They imbue the customer with a sense of urgency and keep them interested, Cousins says.
Consumer behaviour expert Paul Harrison is less interested in discussing the trends than examining why they are taking flight. He says its all about our often unconscious and emotionally based decisions.
“Once we move past the necessities of food and drink, so much of our consumption behaviour is about fitting in, being noticed and getting recognition,” Harrison says.
“The opportunities for retailers, designers and marketers in general is to move beyond transactional and simplistic consumer self-interest notions of relationships with brands and actually have a look at the underlying human need to belong”.