High-street fashion is becoming increasingly urban by design. These fashion styles are emerging out of fresh, new fashion houses and brands which come from urban centres and are inspired by their local populace. Brands such as Diesel and Fly London embody a distinct urban image throughout their ranges and this feeds through to the population.
Musical Effect
As it’s always been since the birth of radio and popular music, high-street fashion and contemporary music scenes are inextricably intertwined. This relationship works both ways, with bands both setting and following high-street trends and vice versa.
Bands seem to set fashion trends inadvertently. The do this by acting as an advert for certain clothing styles associated with the genre of music in which their music falls. A semi-popular clothing style can go viral overnight if it’s seen being sported by a band or celebrity in public or during an official appearance.
Bands are not sponsored in the same way as some movie stars and sports stars, they’re not bound by contracts by big brands, and as a result fashionable high-street brands such as Top-Shop and River Island are just as likely to produce clothes in which band members are seen.
One thing that has really driven urban fashion in the UK in recent years is the fact that the domination by American bands and artists has been steadily declining. British music artists have become more and more popular and in turn their exposure has also increased the expose of the fashion styles which they wear.
Multicultural Influence
London is regarded as a premier fashion capital. It has this reputation because of the high profile London Fashion Week and the host of fashion houses and brands which come from the capital. Throughout British history the nation has been heavily involved with other nations of the world, both in trade and occupation. As a result individuals from far flung corners of the world travelled back to London to make their homes. As a result London boasts a diverse population, as does much of Britain, and British fashion and society is all the more better for it.
This multicultural influence does undoubtedly affect urban fashion here within the UK and this has made many British fashion brands more accessible to international markets. Local brands such as Fly London now enjoy huge success in other European countries such as Spain and Germany, Germany of course having its own distinct industrial image and Spainish fashion also enjoying urban image from brands such as Desigual.
In Conclusion
Ultimately urban fashion is thriving here in the UK due to a number of factors and a cycle-like motion. High-street fashion houses such as Top-Man and Urban Outfitters release new urban designs regularly which are picked up by great British bands, through the exposure of the bands these urban clothing styles are soon picked up by the masses. This continues to operate in this way as new urban fashion trends emerge, driving a continuing love for urban fashion in the country’s cities and further afield.
Citations:
- Photograph by Thatslegit (Own work) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
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