Senior capstone case study
A case study presentation created using a rubric provided by the 2024 Fashion Scholarship Fund providing the basic outline of 1.) Coming up with an idea an existing brand’s market needs 2.) Conducting research to support the concept 3.) Identifying and building a consumer profile story 4.) Evaluating the metrics and financials of bringing the idea to life
Meeting the inclusivity demands of the fashion industry’s largest consumer base in their most expressive environment
As ASOS Design promotes
self-expression, creativity, & confidence
we are proudly launching an all-inclusive festival fashion merchandising campaign:
HEADLINERS
With half of the U.S. Generation Z attending music events, festival environments are an inclusive and popular place, resulting in almost 30 million new festival outfits annually. With so few limitations, Gen Z spares little expense when putting together their outfits. But they cannot ignore the limiting factor that is gender labels.
As the largest consumer group in the fashion industry, Gen Z has inclusivity demands. More than half say they want more gender inclusive options when shopping. They are tired of the restrictions that gender labeling brings when trying to express themselves.
Headliners is an assortment of existing product made for both female- and male-bodied individuals, categorized based on fit, not gender. The items will be available on ASOS.com under its own tab, putting all festival fashion merchandise in one place. Headliners will also be introducing:
preview tents to display new merch and allow festival goers to place pre-orders
limited time pop-up shops near large festival events leading up to opening days
Most of the merchandise will be allocated to ASOS.com, with only a limited amount being sold and displayed at the shops and tents.
In 2024, ASOS plans to increase marketing in the U.S. across all brands with Headliners kicking it off in the new year. We’ll be making a surprise announcement through preview tents at New Years Eve music events, accompanied by social media posts. Marketing will have a massive role in ASOS DESIGN Headliners, as they will also announce locations of the pop-up shops and post content from festival tents.
HEADLINERS WILL CREATE A festival FASHION EXPERIENCE THAT SHATTERS ALL RESTRICTIONS, ALLOWING CONSUMERS TO EXPRESS THEMSELVES FREELY
why
1. Alligned Purpose
“Our purpose is to give fashion-loving 20-somethings the confidence to be whoever they want to be”
2. FUN AND YOUNG VIBE
“From reimagining the hottest trends across the globe to making the standout pieces and style staples you’ll boss life in, we won’t stop until you’re feeling fire”
3. INCLUSIVE IDEALS
“We believe in a world where you have the freedom to explore and express yourself with-out judgement, no matter who you are or where you’re from”
the customer is…
CONFIDENT FREE-SPIRITED YOUTHFUL ALLURING EXPRESSIVE TRENDY
COCKY TAMED RIGID CONSERVATIVE CONVENTIONAL CLASSIC
THE CUSTOMER ISN’T…
| GENDER IDENTITY: NOT SPECIFIED | AGE: 18 - 26 | RELATIONSHIP: NOT MARRIED | CHILDREN: NO | LIVES: URBAN AREA | PROFESSION: STUDENT, ENTRY, OR MID | INCOME: $15,000 - $40,000 | RATIONAL: STANDS OUT, SELF-LOVE, BODY POSITIVE | LIFESTYLE: WORK/LIFE BALANCE, SOCIABLE | HABITS: ONLINE SHOPPING |
Emma she/her 2o
Emma is a fulltime student at the university, living in a five-bedroom campus apartment with four of her sorority sisters. Her weekends are spent with friends and strangers at exciting social events, but whatever the function, Emma is out for the whole night, mostly waking up the next day in the afternoon. She uses most of her paycheck to fund her constant attendance to the music events that come through town. Emma puts her outfits together keeping in mind her expressive style and making sure she feels
feminine, sexy, and confident
noah they/them 23
Noah works as an intern with a fashion magazine and is a part time dance instructor. They share a four-bedroom house with three of their best friends just outside the city. Noah goes out to happy-hour after a workday and uses weekends to disconnect from work, spending time out of the house with friends wherever there’s loud music and a dance floor. They are the first to buy tickets to any music event that interests them, even traveling for shows. They plan their outfits months in advance to ensure they feel
confidently true to themselves
kenneth he/him 25
Kenneth is pursuing his masters in graphic design, living in a small apartment in the busy city. He takes time putting together his outfits, disregarding societal norms for his identity. Weekends he spends his days painting and his nights with his diverse friend group, regulars at the bar and nightclub near by. Kenneth appreciates all types of music, always playing something on his speaker or in his headphones. He goes to music festivals with a large group of friends and carefully plans outfits, ensuring he feels
brave, unique, and confident
generation z
age 11 to 26
1997 - 2012
CONSUMER IMPACT
of all fashion consumers in the world are gen z
40%
annual spending in the fashion industry
$3 trillion
INCLUSIVITY DEMANDS
want greater equality and inclusion in fashion industry
70%
say brands should provide a gender-neutral search option
65%
think big brands motivations with inclusion come off as “tokenistic”
57%
generation z and music festivals
U.S. citizens attended a 2015 music festival
1 in 10
2015: 6% of gen z in 18+ years old* 2022: 53% of gen z is 18+ years old*15% increase in 7 years1 in 4
U.S. citizens attended a 2022 music festival
of U.S. Gen Z attended a music event in 2022
nearly 50%
* 18 years old is average minimum age to attend a music event in the United States
of Gen Z only wear an outfit once for a music festival
40%
of festival goers for a given event will buy a new outfit
42%
new festival outfits purchased annually
26 million
AN INCLUSIVE FASHION SPACE
Peace
Love
Unity
respect
Young festival goer’s explain that the outfits are the #2 reason they attend shows, with #1 being for the music
The music festival community culture is built on Peace, Love, Unity, and Respect for one another. This allows for an accepting space where in individuals feel free to express themselves without worry of judgement
The norms set by society are thrown to the wind where individuality is celebrated
Festival fashion is the perfect niche for a brand to create gender-inclusive options because the attendees are already trying to do it themselves!
Compiling assortment of past, current, and future asos design product from BOTH WOMEN’S AND MEN’S CATEGORIES that fit with a FESTIVAL FASHION style. Producing ADDITIONAL VARIATIONS of each piece made to fit both FEMALE-BODIED AND MALE-BODIED individuals. By doing this we make every style available to EVERY GENDER IDENTITY. Paired with asos design’s wide range of size options, results in an ALL-INCLUSIVE FESTIVAL FASHION ASSORTMENT. Not only is this easier for customers to access styles for their next music event, but it’s also a unique way to begin incorporating a greater INCLUSIVE CULTURE, named:
merchandising strategy
the WHY
asos has a variety of product that can be used for festival attire, there’s just no way to find it all in one place. Already inclusive with their choice of models and styling, making gender inclusivity easier to achieve.
SCREENSHOTS of COMPLEX CONTENT FROM original PRESENTATION
launch plan
march ’24 : official launch
DECEMBER ’23 : LAUNCH ANNOUNCEMENT
december: announcement & Merch Tents
PREVIEW & PRESALE AT NEW YEARS EVE SHOWS
set up tents to introduce what’s coming in 2024, allowing festival goers to place merchandise pre-sale orders for merchandise preview items before official online launch at midnight
april - august: Merchandise Tents
PRESALE & SMALL MERCH SALES AT LARGE EVENTS
allows festival goers to try on items, place orders for future events, and purchase limited stock pieces at same venues as pop-up shops and chosen smaller events
april - august: EXCLUSIVE POP-UP SHOPS
OPEN NEAR VENUES SEVERAL DAYS BEFORE EVENT
April: Coachella (CA) | May: EDC (NV) | June: Summerfest (WI) July: Rolling Loud (FL) | AUGUST: Lollapalooza (IL)
MARCH: aSOS.COM LAUNCH
ADDITIONAL TAB UNDER ASOS DESIGN DROP DOWN
allocation of product
80%
PRODUCT PRIMARILY AVAILABLE ON ASOS.com
maintaining e-commerce
15%
POP-UP SHOPS: LIMITED AMOUNT OF PRODUCT AVAILABLE FOR FINAL PURCHASE
“first come, first serve”
5%
limited amounts of accessories or small items available for sale
FESTIVAL TENTS: MERCHANDISE FOR DISPLAY AND FOR TRY-ON PURPOSES
Headliner Collection will remain mostly online for purchase
ASOS is currently in select U.S. Nordstrom stores, but the style of Headliners doesn’t necessarily align with Nordstrom’s brand
Headliners will NOT appear in stores to start out
Limited product allocated for pop-up shops and festival tents makes these set-ups more of an event for consumers to attend
Resulting in a more unique and meaningful consumer experience
ASOS as a whole company is making steps to increase marketing to reach their consumers
Pop-up shops and merch tents are a perfect way to contribute to this marketing goal
marketing
“Invest in marketing to win in our most important markets to drive the next phase of our growth”-‘23 ASOS strategic report
set-up merch tents during festivals in venues and pop-up shops near festival grounds a few days prior
utilizing live-streams and 24-hour posts for updates
increase marketing directed to the U.S. consumers through social media
ESTIMATED…
6 POP-UP SHOPS
30 festival tents
14 million followers
2 million followers
196 thousand subscribers
UTILIZING INSTAGRAM: Using Instagram stories to show where festival tents will be located and sites off. limited time pop-up shops | Post videos of customers at festival tents to encourage traffic | Using hashtags to repost customer festival photos to gain engagement | Linking apparel items in posts so viewers can make their own purchase
additionally using social media platforms to make abrupt announcement of launch date at the new year's eve events Less stress
creating and curating festival fashion will lead to a less stressful experience for consumers looking for a festival outfits
benefiting the consumer
POSITIVE REPRESENTATION
seeing a name brand promote a positive representation of gender inclusivity makes a relevant impact on how gen z consumers feel when shopping
CREATING COMMUNITY
promoting positive inclusivity while helping consumers find ways to best express themselves ultimately provides a safe space to anyone who doesn’t want to be put into a box by society
PROVIDING SAFE SPACE
putting the consumer in a physical environment creates a community beyond that of online
expansion
GENDER INCLUSIVITY
growing beyond into other occasions (professional, casual, formal, lounge etc.). moving towards removing the label of “man” and “woman” instead focus labeling based on style
ASOS HEADLINERS
stand alone brand just for festival fashion with an original collection exclusively available on asos.com. able to filter different styles and festival genres to appeal to the limitless consumer aesthetics
