Exploring Content Creation and Promotional Trends in the Fashion Industry

Introduction

Creative Industries are increasingly making their way in the market and in the economy at the same time. They cover a significant range of the economic activities which cannot be detached from both the generation as well as exploitation of information and knowledge at the same time. Some of the scholars would preferably refer to them as the cultural industries, or sometimes the creative economy which largely constitutes fashion, crafts, architecture, advertising, music, design, publishing and film among many others. Business dissertation help is especially sought after in navigating all the complexities of all these industries Based on this preamble, the discussion will focus on the fashion industry and the creative practice as well as the sense of content creation in it. Keen observation would be placed on the promotional activities and the trends. The discussion further selects TK Maxx as the business of choice while making an attempt of making a comparative study with the rest of the competitors in the industry.

Industry of Choice

The fashion industry presents a new discourse in the UK economy as it positions innovation, design and talent as a significant motor that oversees the knowledge driven economy. The creative industry essentially takes advantage of the meaningful political strategies said to emphasize on self-regulation and self-responsibility. The fashion industry is built on the sense of consumer co-creation which showcases the tendency of capitalist commodification while reinventing the new worlds amid the creative practices (Kant Hvass 2014). Under the industry of choice, which is the UK fashion industry, more focus is placed on creative practices, content creation, trends and news, marketing and promotions and creation of value.

The creative practice

The UK fashion industry prides itself with a reputation as well as a unique position defined through a wealth of creativity which is supported by the emerging talents and the most supportive environment. Amid the characteristic environment, the industry is driven towards successful commercialization and creation of new products (Perry and Towers 2013). The first creative practice includes professionalism and originality, which is thought to ignite imagination in the fashion world. Secondly, the UK fashion industry bears a commercial mindset exhibited in both the high street fashion and the haute couture. There is also a sense of educational excellence, breadth of expertise, adherence to the value and strong roots, which facilitates a link between the retailers and the designers (Pookulangara and Shephard 2013). More trends as well as innovations are increasingly exhibited on the catwalk cascade.

Content creation

Fashion in UK is regarded as a modern practice in the UK with more attention channelled towards design and other processes in the course of production. Content creation in the UK fashion industry is increasingly aligned to themes the designer has in mind. Recently, content creation has been directed towards sustainable themes with increased focus on the environmental friendly fibres. Most of the fabrics are essentially produced in a range of effects via weaving, dyeing and finishing processes among others.

Changing creative practice into viable business

In the face of finding value in the creative practices, there is more attraction towards the new technologies, new markets and the shifting consumer needs. Notably, the UK fashion industry is aligning the practices towards the growing consumer desire defined through affordability, sustainability and variety.

Marketing and promotional activities

The UK fashion industry takes advantage of the marketing mix in the course of the product life cycle. Most of the players in the industry are depending on market oriented pricing and cost based pricing, which supports market penetration, market skimming and the practice of winning significant market shares (TK Maxx 2018). Other players like H&M and Zara are equally taking advantage of public relations, sales promotions, and sponsorships.

News and Trends in the Industry

In the latest news, Karl Lagerfeld is believed to have abandoned fur. This comes in the light of the PETA announcement over the luxury fashion label which is believed to have agreed on the ban of fur cross the products. Among other popping trends, sustainability has recently received the ultimate attention while opening an opportunity to the key players in the industry.

The Business of choice

One of the most dominating UK fashion firms includes the TK Maxx, which is regarded as a subsidiary attached to the American apparel known as the TJX Companies. In the year 2008, history has it that TK Maxx opened stores on Kensington High Street in London (TK Maxx 2018). The company prides itself in providing affordable fashion to both men and women with a range of products and services bringing a new taste in the market. TK Maxx has recently attracted the attention of the market by introducing the commonly known gift cards that are provided via the online means and through the in store. Same attention is given to the “Give up Clothes for Good” campaign in which consumers and other well-wishers are encouraged to deliver unwanted clothes towards the Cancer Research UK.

Products or services

TK Maxx has an assortment for the men, women and kids fashion, accessories, footwear, home wares, beauty and lingerie. It carries with it a range of the price points for the local as well as international brands. With such products in the store, TK Maxx puts more focus on advertisements aligned to the big brands and the big labels tagged along the in store promise shoppers (Owler 2019). There is however 4 significant dispatches noted on the rails as well as the known labels which include Amaryllis Amphora, Frederik Anderson, Addison and Arabella as well as Kenar.

Revenue model

It is worth noting that TK Maxx heavily relies on the off-price business model, which attracts revenue from thousands of consumers in United Kingdom. The intention of the company’s revenue model is to provide affordable prices on the high street while delivering the best value in the market. Most of the retail buyers attached to the company are given room to essentially negotiate deals with time provided by more than 10000 vendors that cut across 60 countries including United Kingdom (Thompson 2009). There is also an equal focus on the out-of-season stock which also supports the benefit of high levels of product availability even during the retail downturn.

What is unique about it?

TK Maxx is common perceived as a department store chain which is selling its products at prices that are generally lower compared to the competitors in the UK market. It is remarkably one of the dominant fashion retailers across the country and also in the world (Rigby, 2016). The company is equally proud of the associates that are known for bringing in something more unique to the collective culture. The diversity of experience is increasingly inclined towards ethnicity, gender, viewpoints and even age.

Comparative study of the company

Mission statement

TK Maxx prides itself as the leading off price apparel as well as the home fashions in the market. The mission of the company is aligned to delivery of great value to the customers. This is a bit different from the competitors’ business missions such as Zara which aids towards sustainable development.

Size

Comparison of the company’s size can be determined by the number of employees, the current approval ratings and the revenues that can be compared to the close competitors. TK Maxx recently has an approval rating that is approximately 70 out of 100 (Owler 2019). The estimated number of employees attached to the company is around 1108 with annual revenue of $10.8M. Based on this, TK Maxx can be deemed to be bigger in size compared to Secret Sales which has an approval rating of 67, 200 employees and annual revenue of $40M. However, the annual revenues between TK Maxx and Secret Sales present an almost contradicting scenario. Brands like FarFetch, BrandAlley, the OutNet and Kering have higher scores in terms of the approval ratings and even the revenues.

Product

TK Maxx is known for sharing the competitive value along the generally low-priced apparel in the UK fashion market. While the company keeps an eye on the men, kids and women accessories, footwear, beauty and lingerie, companies like Kering, George Clothing and Primark Stores keep the high end fashion that comparatively sell at a higher price compared to the one adopted by TK Maxx. However, Zara and H&M are keeping an eye on pricing of their products while keeping in check a wide range of the products, as well as additional services provided by their close competitors. Notably, TK Maxx has not yet established a speciality for the local shoppers.

Revenue model

TK Maxx takes the advantageous use of the off-price revenue is business model. This model attracts revenue in terms of the highest number of customers that can be attracted to the products. The revenue model, therefore, puts more focus on the price sensitive market (Rigby, 2016). However, this model is different from the one adopted by George Clothing and H&M, which out more focus on diverse range of products that embrace diversity in the long run (Owler 2019). Zara, on the other hand, targets the sustainable model which taps on the customer desire to maintain an eco-friendly environment even during the consumption process.

Customer relations

Just like any other fashion company in the UK, TK Maxx would want to retain most of the customers and make them loyal to the brand. Same to Kering, Zara and H&M, TK Company enhances customer relations through the long-help principles of quality, integrity and provision of excellence in the course of delivering customer service.

Target audience

Despite offering a range of products for men, women and even kids, the prime target audience for TK Maxx include female aged between 25-54 years. This segment should equally belong to the middle and upper class, which is also sensitive to both the fashion and the value (TK Maxx 2018). While the company keeps an eye on this segment, it lacks local speciality, which is a segment that has been swept by Macy Shops, Zara, and Secret Sales among other players.

Marketing techniques

TK Maxx still depends on the off-price strategy as the marketing strategy that sells its products at 60% of the require retail price. The company insisted on the need for customers to get the labels they desire at the most appropriate prices (TK Maxx 2018). Similar to Macy, H&M, and Zara, TK Maxx is equally taking advantage of the online platforms while tapping into the fashion savvy shoppers that appear on either social media platforms or the company’s website. However, the internet retailing researchers have noted that TK Maxx works best with emails and phone calls compared to social media as one way of offering the online experience.

Challenges and opportunities

Challenges

A chain of challenges in the course of the daily operations faces the UK fashion industry and the TK Maxx. Due to the endless market dynamics, most of the players in the industry, including TK Maxx, are forced to rethink about the retail experience while trying to provide customers with significant reasons for the provision of the products in the market. On the other hand, health and safety risks are currently linked to the production of fur, which is a development that is likely to force the key players to focus on alternative means. For instance, some of the health risks have been linked to chemical processes that are affecting consumers in the market (Rigby, 2016). Some of the players are forced to change tact and focus on sustainable measures that would reduce the risks, and therefore maintain reputation.

Opportunities

TK Maxx and other players in the UK fashion industry are provided with an opportunity of investing in sustainability. This means that companies are required to focus on healthy measures while designing and producing fashion. More attention should be given to the advantageous use of innovation in the face of research and development in the industry.

Conclusion

The discussion has focused on four key areas which include the fashion industry, the TK Maxx as the business of choice, a comparative study and challenges and opportunities noted in the industry. More attention has been channelled to the position of the TK Maxx Company in the UK competitive industry that is taking a different landscape in the modern era.

References

Rigby, C., 2016. TK Maxx: active and effective. Available at https://internetretailing.net/research-articles/research-articles/tk-maxx-active-and- effective

Owler. 2019. TK Maxx's Competitors, Revenue, Number of Employees, Funding and Acquisitions. Available at https://www.owler.com/company/tkmaxx

TK Maxx. 2018. How we do it. Available at https://www.tkmaxx.com/uk/en/about-tkmaxx Thompson, J. 2009. Discount fashion: Taking it to the Maxx. Available at https://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/analysis-and-features/discount-fashion- taking-it-to-the-maxx-1774064.html

Kant Hvass, K., 2014. Post-retail responsibility of garments–a fashion industry perspective. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, 18(4), pp.413-430.

Perry, P. and Towers, N., 2013. Conceptual framework development: CSR implementation in fashion supply chains. International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management, 43(5/6), pp.478-501.

Pookulangara, S. and Shephard, A., 2013. Slow fashion movement: Understanding consumer perceptions—An exploratory study. Journal of retailing and consumer services, 20(2), pp.200-206.

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