NEW YORK, Sept. 20 (UPI) -- The look is loose and breezy. The colors distinctly pale, with a smattering of pastel and an emphasis on gauzy pink. And the runway models are as elongated, fragile and aloof as ever. Floral romantic is definitely in, accompanied by clean, fresh make-up and simply blow-dried or chignon hair.
In short, no gothic silhouettes or combat boots here. Think instead of Laura Ashley and J.Crew together being inspired by Giorgio Armani.
New York's Fashion Week for the 2003 spring and summer collection, which runs Wednesday to Monday, has attracted over 60 U.S. and international designers to present formally their latest collection to over a thousand journalists. And capitalizing on the drawing power of some of the world's biggest brand-name designers such as Calvin Klein and Donna Karan, swarms of aspiring designers and models have flocked to Bryant Park, next to the New York Public Library, which has been the show's home base for the past decade.
But while air kissing and carefully calculated ennui about the endless cocktail parties are de rigueur in the circuit, the fashion industry is facing a major challenge trying to recover from the double blow of a weak economy and continued fears about another terrorist attack. After all, Ground Zero is only a 10-minute taxi ride away from where the glitterati and paparazzi are camping out, and the shows were actually cut short last year because of the attack on the World Trade Center.
"Apparel is definitely lagging behind ... people have been buying cars, durable goods, even houses, but not clothing and accessories," said Sarah Thompson of the National Retail Federation. She added that consumers were more willing to take on debt to finance luxury goods that benefit the entire family, but not individuals.
According to market research agency NPD Group, fashion sales for the first seven months of this year reached $89 billion in the United States, down 1.4 percent from the same period in 2001. Meanwhile, last year's sales lagged behind that of 2000.
"Apparel has been the most affected of industries by the issues from 2001 ... and is the only sector that has not been able to recover," agreed NPD's Marshal Cohen, co-president of NPDFashionworld.
"The continued challenge is consumer reluctance," Cohen said, pointing out that consumers often put off spending money on clothes and "just make do with last year's coats," as consumers continue to fret about their job prospects and the general direction of the U.S. economy.
Another problem is that ladies who lunch have become a dying breed, so that women with the disposable income to spend a fair wad of cash on clothes tend not to have enough time to go out shopping.
According to Women's Wear Daily, a leading industry publication, the number of women saying that they spend less than an hour shopping for clothes increased to 19.2 percent in the second quarter of this year, up from 15.1 percent in the previous quarter.
Meanwhile, only 21.4 percent of women claimed to "love shopping," down from 28.7 percent during the first three months of this year.
"Shopping itself is a luxury. People don't have the idle time they did years ago. There are just so many demands on everyone today," designer Nicole Miller told Women's Wear.
Instead, those who simply cannot wear what they had worn last year because they have grown out of it are the biggest spenders on new clothes, buying out of sheer necessity.
"The women's plus-size interest ... and the teenage market driven by jeans, is doing well," Cohen said. Another area that has been able to hold relatively steady are clothes for special occasions, with consumers willing to spend on a frock that they may end up wearing only one or twice, but are prepared to pay for.
So there is obviously a disconnect between what the designers and retailers are promoting on the runways, and the needs of those who are actually buying clothes. A runway model must fit into either a size 4 or 6, and the industry labels those above a size 10 as "full-figured," while more Americans actually wear sizes considerably above that.
Also, some designers such as Anne Bowen are all too fond of couture that leaves little to the imagination, shamelessly baring breasts and bottoms, often at the same time.
So why do designers continue to make garments that would look odd even on the waif-like models off the runway, and no person beyond that impossible size could contemplate even leaving the dressing room with?
After all, putting on a collection showing doesn't come cheap. A 20-minute showing at the Bryant Park runway can easily cost $250,000, taking into consideration the number of models, make-up artists, seamstresses and other staff members that are needed in putting together a presentation.
"It's a tremendous expense to generate that kind of PR, so I see a lot of designers opting out of fashion shows," NPD's Cohen said, adding that most consumers actually don't see the shows at all. Moreover, while fashion shows were initially dominated by the buyers who would actually offer contracts to stock the clothing based on what they saw on the runways, collections today are largely geared towards the media and generating publicity.
Still, the prestige of holding a fashion show in New York, Milan, Paris, London and other major circuits is undeniable, and a certain cachet is developed, simply because a designer can thereby become not just any run-of-the-mill designer, but a fashion show designer on equal footing with Vera Wang and Oscar de la Renta.
Meanwhile, because less than 20 percent of the clothing shown actually is sold, designers are looking more for publicity rather than contracts, and how better to do that than with attention-grabbing dresses?
Not all designers at the shows, however, are more into the shock factor than design, even in the same collection. For instance, BCBG Max Azria's casual clothing was so light and casual that even the models had problems keeping their clothes on them whilst strutting out on the runway at a steady clip.
But Azria's evening gowns took full advantage of the light chiffon and silk fabric to create whimsical, strappy "sunburst" dresses, that showed off a subtle rainbow of floral pastels.
