Guest blogger Cheryl here, from the Harveys design team!
I
was recently asked to be a part of an event called "Fashion Forward" at my alma mater Orange Coast
College (their fashion program is amazing) and speak to the fashion
students about fashion trends and how they relate to Seatbeltbags. As part of the event, I got to
meet some really great girls that were representing other brands, which was awesome!
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| Me, on the very left and the other panelists who presented at the event! |
Since you couldn’t be there I thought I would share the presentation with you!
A lot of people ask, "HOW do you come up with new product every
first Friday of the month? Where does your inspiration come from? Why do
you choose the colors and prints you do?!"
Well, it starts with a LOT of research. Like most
fashion houses, we use a trend forcasting service to begin with a base. The
design team always laughs when we see all the colors that are "on trend" for a season, because it seems like they include every color possible! But really, there
are over 2,100 colors in a Pantone guide, so this really does help narrow it
down.
Trend forecasting aside, our main source of inspiration, is YOU, our customers! We show up to almost every single event, not just for the drinks and food (although, those are nice, too), but because we love to hear your feedback and write mental notes of what you are looking
for next. Facebook and other social media sites are also great for this; we
love hearing what you have to say, whether positive or negative. We hear it ALL and reference this information when starting a new season!
A fresh new green, you say? We got it in Mint! And why not trim
it in black for a new take on the Marilyn collection?
A mouth watering pink? Yup, that’s Grapefruit!
Melanie MIGHT have had some input on this color… she loves pink!
And of course, we're always inspired by all things vintage at Harveys! We want to keep all prints classic, so we knew we
wanted to bring back the polka dots in a spring grey, and add some fun with the
black and white floral and polka dot mix.
From here the season starts to take shape, and since all of this collection reminded us of a garden party, our official theme for our Spring collection became “a whimsical garden
party celebrating all things spring!” We give our marketing team the
images on the right along with this quote that sums up the season perfectly,
and they make it come alive in our season images, like this image with
Katrina and the Lily Rose in Grapefruit.
Needless to say, I had a great time hanging out with the OCC
students and meeting some new friends with similar jobs. I got to hear
how the seasons come together at Fox Racing from the men’s merchandiser and
designer, the DC women’s clothing designer, and a buyer for an online store
called Revolve.
Thanks for having me, OCC!
Xoxo,
Cheryl