"Fashion is made to become unfashionable"- Coco Chanel

The rate of fashion has changed, and we now live in the era of speed chic. The systematic hierarchy of trends are now producing at a fast pace. High end fashion creates a look which then is sent down the runways. That look goes to certain boutiques. Soon afterward, magazines are writing the 'trends' in style columns then the looks are found all over in different department stores. Then the style hits the masses and then you walk into the mall and you see tweens wearing this fad. Then that trend gets old, in the span of less than a season. And another fad comes into style. It wasn't like this in the past, certain styles stayed vogue for years. (ie. 80s look spanning a decade, what look has spanned a decade in 2000?- Would you still wear a ruffle skirt today?) This is why when you go shopping in summer, you can sometimes find fall clothing up on display, during winter, spring colors and skirts are already trying to be sold, when there is still snow on the ground.

We all know trends come and go, yet we still give in and buy it. Two, three, four pieces later once you've worn them all, they're not even stylish anymore. But if these fads come and go so quickly how does everyone keep up? It's all powered by the entertainment industry. Turn on the television, the actors and actresses will be wearing the new styles. Shows like, Say Yes to the Dress, What not to wear, E!'s spotlight on dresses actresses wore on the Red Carpet add fuel to this fad process. Magazines and advertisements are no different. Magazines often have editorials on how to dress like certain actresses, and where to find certain trends for cheaper.

We all want to dress the latest trends, but we all want to pay lower prices; since keeping up with trends gets pricey. Then the crack cocaine of fashion was born- stores like Forever 21 and H&M. Let's be real, ever been in Forever 21 and H&M- the shoppers running around ransacking the store are the crack addicts of fashion. This is the true definition of Speed Chic. Forever 21 and H&M can re create trends in a less expensive form. Diamond studded Dresses from runways can be mass-produced with cheap crystals. Fur vests can be turned into faux jackets. Yet we all know these mass produced clothing don't last long, and we all have the same answer "Yeah but i'm only gonna wear it to go out/ I'm only going to wear it a few times". Look in the closets of my sorority sisters and you'll find numerous Forever 21 shirts. H&M and Forever give the buyers satisfaction because they pay a fraction of the price for the trend rather than buying the designer brand. Thus when high end designers take their time in creating a garment to be what's in next season, stores like forever 21 and H&M copy these styles mass produce them at cheaper prices and stylish trends that was once worn by the wealthy has spread to the normal citizen speeding the process of speed chic. Therefore, designers are back to the drawing board trying to create a new look since department stores are already selling the trend they created.

Yet copying has been around for many years. American clothes makers paid fees to French fashion houses (ie: Christian Dior) for rights to copy designs. But today it's very different. Many high end designers are suing forever 21 for copying their designs and Louis Vuitton suing counterfits because these copy cats aren't paying these fees and people buying into these cheaper products are now posing a threat to designers. And with today's economy, designers like Zac Posen, Vera Wang, JP Gautlier are creating lines at department stores like Khols and Target for the masses.

Don't be fooled when you go shopping either. There are so many tactics that are used on buyers these days. Today shoppers are impatient and want to walk in and walk out of stores but retailers want to keep customers in the stores longer. Clothes put in bins often make shoppers feel like it's a good buy while items in glass cases imply luxury. For example, ever been in Express during winter break? Before you even go into the store you see all these women hovered over these bins digging through the clothes when we all know its the same 4 shirts in those bins. On the other hand shopping for watches, your eyes draw attention to the ones in the glass cases ignoring the fully functional watches displayed outside. Stores also play with our senses. Walk past Abercrombie or Hollister with your eyes closed and you'll still know you walked passed it. The scent can be sensed 2 stores away. The look of employers are also standardized and stores want you to belong to this look/lifestyle. Ambercrombie gives off that athletic young vibe. I remember I started to shop there when I was in 6th grade. It was the transition from elementary school to middle school. I wanted to wear shirts that said Abercrombie on them rather than the plain shirts my mom bought me from other stores. Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago my mom wanted to browse in the store and I tried to talk her out of it. She asked my why I didn't want to go in, but when I was in middle school I practically would drag her in. I simply responded, "Because I'm not in middle school anymore I can't wear that." A store that I believe does a great job at attracting the masses is Victoria Secret. You'll find the tweens and young girls in the Pink Section. The young adults in the Sexy Little Things Section and the older adults in the plain Victoria Secret section (you know the full butt underwear sold in solid colors). Yet each different line in V. Secret gives off a different vibe. And once the semi annual sale comes, V. Secret becomes crack cocaine of fashion along just like H&M/Forever 21.

So metaphorically, H&M and Forever 21 are fastfood restaurants- quick and cheap places to satisfy our hunger for trends.