Paris Prêt-a-porter Spring 2010
Dates: Wednesday, September the 30th to Thursday, October the 8th, 2009

Fashion & the Comic Con

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (#6)
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (#6)

DALLAS, Aug 10, 2009 / FW/ — For all intent and purposes, there is no connection between high street fashion and the recently concluded Comic Con that was held at the San Diego Convention Center last July 23 – 26.

Except for the celebrities and movie stars who attended the convention to promote their latest movies who was wearing designer clothes (of course!), the Comic Con’s nerdy atmosphere and predominantly geek fans are as far away from Paris as the sun is to the moon. Yet, are they?

Comic characters, from Superman to Wonder Woman had inspired designers from various eras and various genres. Thierry Mugler, Bernhard Willhelm and Stella Cadente had brought the cape crusaders on the catwalk at different times.

But, while for Bernhard Willhelm and Stella Cadente, it was a passing fancy, Thierry Mugler on the other hand built his reputation on his “fashionable” interpretation of comics characters. And that distinction made Thierry Mugler unique to the point that if a designer references comics characters in their collection, reviewers use the term “Mugler-esque” to describe it.

As the Spring 2010 Paris prêt-a-porter season draws near, it is hard not to think of the Comic Con as a possible source of inspiration. After all, the hit movies of the summer from Star Trek to Transformers, including Harry Potter are all sci-fi / fantasy based.

True, they are not caped crusaders, unless you count Hogwarts wizard robes as a cape of sorts, but we have to accept that Captain Kirk, Spock and Harry Potter are strands in our collective pop culture DNA.

Interestingly enough, according to the NPD Group consumer tracking service, the big spenders online for apparel are the 55 – 64 years old age group, their numbers growing 11.1% compared to last year; followed by the 13 – 17 years old age group at 10.5% increase and the 18-24 year old age group growing at the rate of 9.7%.

Is it a coincidence that the 55 – 64 years old are in their tweens or just entered their teens when Star Trek first came out? And of course, the 13 – 24 age groups literally grew up with Harry Potter. The age groups are in the opposite ends of the spectrum.

How will designers cater to these three groups who are still spending money on clothes even in this era of the Great Recession? Finding out the answer to that question is one of several reasons why the Spring 2010 season is going to be very exciting.

Star Trek
Star Trek

[MARI DAVIS]
Photos courtesy of Paramount and Warner Brothers

NEWS:

Runway Shows: