Look Who’s Influencing Your kids’ Choices!
With a fast paced life and faster paced kids, have we wondered where kids these days are drawing inspiration and attitude from?
My 11 year old today knows exactly how she wants to look at a party, an outing, at a friend’s place and the now-so-in pajama party! Sure I tell her what to buy, but so far as styling is concerned, she and her group of little fashionistas know it all already! I’m certainly surprised at the new age kids’ sense of style, comfy yet fashionable, but I also feel proud of the way kids are learning to shape their personality.
Kids are an experimental bunch. They have their own language, own trends, and own fashion. Often on the cutting edge of what’s cool, they are frequently the first demographic group to embrace new technologies, new apps, and new ways of communication – leaving the typically more cautious older age groups to trail. They also have lesser inhibitions to add to that!
In a digital age where social media is available right at your fingertip, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, etc., are no longer just means of connecting with the world but have moved to the next level where kids can follow their favourite fashion trends, music, celebrities and much more.
With social media becoming the dominant source of information and one of the fastest ways for people to communicate, several industries, including fashion, are changing their marketing strategies to cope with the changing trends of the industry.
The trend of occasion-specific clothing has started gaining momentum among kids, thanks to the pro-selfie generation.
Consumers, especially those of premium segment, prefer products with attractive designs and innovative patterns in kidswear. 612 League was conceptualized with the aim to provide a differentiated offering to the age group of 6 months to 12 years. With kids showing enthusiasm with regard to styling their wardrobe and parents taking this age group seriously, we felt we’ve tapped the right nerve.
This drastic boost of social media in the fashion industry allows user to not only participate and follow but also to discuss and dissect any fashion trend and even purchase fashion items online. Today not only do brands and retailers use social media to speak with their consumers, they use it to listen to them as well.
TV trends and inspirations are a passé now. Engaging in various social networking sites mostly for fashion is a routine activity that research has shown to benefit children and adolescents by enhancing communication along with being creative and interactive. Compared with other social media platforms, the viral nature of Instagram is much more potent in spreading the latest styles when it comes to fashion. With over 400 million monthly users, Instagram is the eighth largest social networking platform in the world. But in the fashion world, it’s probably number one.
The willingness of kids to try new grounds make social media like Instagram and Snapchat the perfect platform for them to follow their passion. A recent study has shown that 59 percent of kids from across the world join social media below the age of 10! The study also observed that Indian users not only share pictures but also follow brands on social media.
On social media, fashion is more open and conversational. It allows space to display taste, creativity and talent. The advent of digital media has resulted in emergence of fashion bloggers, advertising and brand promotion through Instagram, Pinterest and Snapchat, the budding concept of mommy bloggers. It helps tweens develop better perspective to the on-going trends around the world; which helps the stylists get an idea of their needs and preferences. So it works two-ways.
The fashion tastes and needs of kids today are not for a specific outfit or a specific occasion, but of an entire wardrobe solution. Tapping this nerve of kids fashion sense, 612 League has been defining the new age trends of kids wear from the age group of 6 months – 12 years. We have observed that kids from the age of 6 years become an individual in their own right, who have a choice and are willing to exercise it so far as their own clothing is concerned. This is also the age when they enter the world of peers and friends and start observing what’s around them.
612 League is a “western inspired Indian in outlook clothing”. However, the clothing is not blindly replicated as the regional preferences and ethnic sensibilities play a crucial role in Indian environment. We identified the need to differentiate offerings within the age bracket and tweaked the global trends as per Indian sensibilities.
From functional, durable and affordable, the movement is towards a full planned wardrobe with the complement of trends, styles and focus on product design, fabric, quality and safety. Due to the recent boost from the social media in the fashion industry, the Indian market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 10.7 percent to reach 1,38,540 crore in 2024.
While kids fashion trends are playing a major role in the fashion world, designers are evolving with more and more innovative designs. From the accessories to the shoes to pretty little handbags, every element of the outfit is given utmost importance. The designers of all sectors are paying attention to the different aspects of kids’ lives and keeping in mind the latest trend, design and sell clothing and accessories.
Having studied the market trends closely, and tapped the pulse of the new generation, we constantly endeavour to keep pace with the fast paced kids’ imagination and offer them what they would appreciate and feel comfortable in.az