‘Here, design this for our customer.’ says the in-house buyer of a large clothing retailer, as she hands the fashion designer a blouse she picked up at a Paris fashion show. Which translates into; the designer retrieving the same staple blouse the company insists on having in the store season after season, and just makes it in the new color, print or fabric that is used in the Parisian garment. Then comes that inevitable sensation of, ‘Where’s the creativity in this process?’ for the designer.
Unfortunately, many experienced fashion designers know all to well that this is a common occurrence in the world of fashion. Why? There are many reasons. A large clothing retailer that designs, manufacturers, and sells their own clothing places a vast sum of money into producing one garment. Think about it, let’s say this company has 500 stores across the country and in that store there will be 100 of the fore mentioned blouse hanging with the hopes of selling fast. That’s 50,000 blouses, which cost the company $10 per blouse to produce and ship to the store; equaling half a million dollars that was risked of the company’s cash with no guarantee that the garment will sell. Looking at it from this angle, it’s simple to see why most large companies ‘play it safe’ with design and wait to see what’s trickling down the fashion ladder.
It does not, however; help fashion designers bursting with creativity find an outlet for their ideas. Fashion designers have to provide food and shelter for themselves just like the next person, so few have the luxury of ‘taking the plunge’ into starting their own line or company. Luckily, Sam Sisakhti feels strongly against this ‘traditional practice in the fashion industry’ and that’s why he started Us Trendy, the online place where EVERYONE can be a part of the fashion industry and trend setting.
UsTrendy is awesome in two unique ways. It gives indie designers and artists a ‘platform to be discovered’ and consumers or ‘fans’ of the site get to rate and give feedback for the designs on UsTrendy.com. Asking the customer to tell a company exactly what they want and then giving it to them? This Sisakhti fellow must be one sleeve short of a completed jacket or better yet, perhaps he’s a genesis, you decide. The ‘fan’ favorites can even win seed money for their line, have UsTrendy produce and sell their designs, as well as be chosen to design and present a clothing line at London Fashion Week. Regardless of if you are a fashion designer, artist, model or consumer, this site runs with you and best of all it does not dismiss you. Sam is working hard to make the site even easier with each passing day, so check UsTrendy.com out often and pass on the knowledge to any talented Houston fashion designers that you think should get a chance with UsTrendy.
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