Society (1994)

Social Movements

Republicans Take Over Congress

"What the GOP Hopes to Do in Congress Next Year." Human Events 50.37 (Sept. 1994): 47. Academic Search Complete. Terrell Lib., Washington State University. 28 Sept. 2008 http://ntserver1.wsulibs.wsu.edu.

Republicans agreed to sign a "Contract with America" that would lay out the ten bills they hoped to enact within the first 100 days in office, if Americans voted them majority of Congress. The 300 Republican House candidates would literally stand on the Capitol steps to sign this contract prior to the '94 election. Republicans hoped this plan would show Americans they were pro-middle America, not just for the rich. The contract had three main principles:
1. Accountability
2. Responsibility
3. Opportunity
By signing this contract, Republicans were telling America that if they did not follow through on their commitments, their positions could be revoked. American voters appreciated the straightforward approach to procedure. It was a dramatic change from policy of the past. Republicans hoped to change how Congress actually operated as well as the laws and policies that were taken into affect. The ten bills of the "Contract with America" were:
1. The Fiscal Responsibility Act --A balanced budget/tax limitation amendment and a legislative line-item veto
2. The Taking Back Our Streets Act --Effective death penalty provisions and greater emphasis on prison funding and law enforcement.
3. The Personal Responsibility Act --Discourages illegitimacy and teenage pregnancy by prohibiting welfare to minor mothers and denying increased Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) payments for additional children while on welfare, cuts spending for welfare programs, ends welfare for families collecting AFDC for five years and for non-citizens, and requires work.
4. The Family Reinforcement Act --Child support enforcement, tax incentives for adoption, strengthening rights of parents in their children's education, stronger child pornography laws, and an elderly dependent care tax credit.
5. The American Dream Restoration Act --A $500-per-child family tax credit, reform of the anti-marriage bias in the tax code and American Dream Savings Accounts/IRAs for first-time home buyers, education expenses and retirement.
6. The National Security Restoration Act --No U.S. troops under U.N. command, erection of budget firewalls between defense and non-defense spending to prevent raids on the defense budget, and a missile defense system against rogue dictatorships like North Korea.
7. The Senior Citizens' Equity Act --Increases the earnings limit to at least $30,000, repeals the Clinton tax hikes on Social Security benefits and provides tax incentives for private long-term care insurance.
8. The Job Creation and Wage Enhancement Act --Capital gains cut and indexation, neutral cost recovery, risk assessment/cost-benefit analysis, strengthening the Regulatory Flexibility Act, and unfunded mandates reforms.
9. The Common Sense Legal Reforms Act --"Loser pays" provisions to stop frivolous law suits, limits on punitive damages and honesty in evidence to exclude "junk science."
10. The Citizen Legislature Act --A first-ever vote on term limits for members of Congress to replace career politicians with citizen legislators, including six- year and 12-year term limits.
It was a very successful attempt by the Republican Party to truly nationalize the election process. Voters, already leaning conservatively, felt confident in the Republicans.

"The Political Reshuffle." U.S. News & World Report 117.25 (Dec.1994): 97. Academic Search Complete. Terrell Lib., Washington State University. 28 Sept. 2008 http://ntserver1.wsulibs.wsu.edu.

The Republican Party gained control of Congress for the first time in 40 years during the 1994 elections. Political scientists had seen signals of this change for several years. Voting patterns are often quick to change with cultural upheavals. And much like the change that occurred post-Great Depression when Americans strayed from Republicans, the continuous cultural confusion from the 1960's onward caused them to turn from Democrats. In fact, since 1968 the Republicans won five of seven presidential elections.


Baseball Strike

Chass, Murray. "The Day the Owners Killed the Series." The New York Times. 14 Sept. 1994. 29 Sept. 2008 nytimes.com.

With a 26-2 vote by baseball commissioner Bud Selig and team owners, the 1994 Major League Baseball season was cut short. It was the first time in 89 years that there was not a World Series. The players were on strike for 34 days, with neither side willing to compromise. The commissioner and owners put blame on the players, believing they were simply not responding to clubs' wishes for cost containment. Players refuted, saying it was the owners' sole decision that brought the season to an end. Fans were infuriated by the sudden decision to quit the season. Fan groups were even organized to promote peace within the league as well as remind the players and owners that they are needed. Fans are, after all, the customer base. It was the longest strike in baseball history; locking the gates to baseball stadiums from September of '94 to weeks into the '95 season. A judge finally had to intervene, forcing the owners to oblige by the old rules.


Independent Bookstores Outsold

Tabor, Mary B. W. "In Bookstore Chains, Display Space Is for Sale." The New York Times. 15 Jan. 1996. 4 Oct. 2008 nytimes.com.

A culture change was signaled at the end of 1994: chain bookstores outsold independent bookstores. Rather than store owners choosing to display books that represent their personal character, large chains display the books whose publishers pay the most money. Independent bookstores simply could not keep up with growing consumer demands. Chains sell the popular books, gaining mass-appeal. And by offering publishers programs like advertisements, displays, member discounts, and more, chain bookstores make a significant profit. In 1994, independent bookstores could not keep up with the competition from large chains.

The industry of fashion 1994

Handbag and Accessory Industry (Jessica)

1994 Fashion Innovators compared to now

Reflecting this youthful skew, most of the Fashion Innovator females are single (67%) and almost two-thirds have household incomes below $50,000. There is a large and increasing representation of non-Caucasian Fashion Innovators: 22% are African Americans (up 5 points since 1994), 9% are Hispanics (up 1 point), and 9% are ‘Other’ (up 4 points).

In 1994,when the Monitor first asked the Fashion Innovators if their office allowed corporate casual dress from time to time, 53% said ‘yes.’ Now 71% have casual days, although the average number of days per week where casual dress code is allowed has not increased significantly over the past two years (averages 1.7 days a week). The Innovators are more likely to say neat jeans are appropriate for office attire than they were in 1994 (92%) but less willing to find shorts appropriate (62%).

Away from work the trend is definitely toward dressier. Sixty-one percent now say they would dress nicely to go shopping at the mall rather than dressing comfortably (that’s an increase of 19 points).

Asked whether they would rather be on time and look okay or be ten minutes late and look great 68% said, look great, (up 11 points).

More than two-thirds of the Fashion Innovators would rather be slightly overdressed at a party rather than slight underdressed (up 3 points).

Asked to select clothes for an evening of dinner and dancing, 68% choose clothes that look better rather than clothes that are more comfortable (up 2 points).

And, given the choice of the type of restaurant for a birthday celebration, Fashion Innovator women are most likely to go for fancy and elegant (45%) instead of more casual, laid-back alternatives (the second most popular choice, cozy bistro garnered 29% of the votes).

In a dramatic shift from last year, almost half of Fashion Innovators now say that they would rather wear casual slacks than denim jeans. That’s an increase of 18 points in women favoring slacks.

Given the choice between regular cotton slacks and wrinkle-resistant cotton slacks, 70% said wrinkle-resistant (a gain of 16 points).

When asked what a good looking man looks sexiest in, 30% of women Fashion Innovators now say slacks and a nice sweater (up 9 points). The choice of denim jeans and a casual shirt is still the highest response, at 49%, but not by as large a margin as two years ago (down 6 points).

So are Fashion Innovators growing tired of denim or merely broadening their wardrobe selections to other areas? Happily for the denim industry, most indicators are still highly positive with the Fashion Innovator group. The Denim Barometer itself is at 65, up a point from last year. Eighty-one percent of Fashion Innovators say that jeans are in my future.

And, despite wardrobes already overflowing with denim items (22 garments each), 84% of Fashion Innovators indicate an interest in buying more denim items in the near future irrespective of whether they need any more denim or not (up 1 point).

Their major concern when purchasing denim is looking good (73%) rather than being practical. While that may seem obvious for the Fashion Innovator group the ‘looking good’ response has jumped by an astonishing 23 points in the past two years.

Despite perceptions that prices are up, they love shopping more than ever. We asked Fashion Innovators how much they would expect to pay for a man’s dress shirt and for a pair of dress shoes (men’s or women’s). The average price for the shirt is $32.42, up $6.10 from the price reported when the survey began two years ago. The average for dress shoes (men’s and women’s responses combined) is $53.36, up $10.05 from 1994.

In total, about half of the fashion innovators spend over $1,000 on clothes each year; 15% over $2,000. Given an extra $500 to spend on whatever they want, Fashion innovators today would spend $359.46 on clothing, up $4.94 from 1994.

1994 vs. 2008

Images above: 1994 vs. 2008 (respectively)
Color palette used and overall silhouettes are almost identical.
*wwdfashion.com

"NEW" TECHNOLOGY of 1994:

Article: Ideas & Trends; The Chip on Intel's Shoulder

By JOHN MARKOFF

Published: December 18, 1994

Interpretation:

New York Times newspaper headlines the latest technology's flaw for the year 1994. This "Pentium microprocessor chip", IBM has been labeled as unsafe and faces thousands of uproars and lawsuits between consumers. People began to question Intel's corporate culture because of their 'righteous attitude', "We're better than everyone else and what we do is right and we never make mistakes" and consumers looked more toward the Apple. In short, the Intel chip error brought upon an accumulation of hatred that consumers suddenly perceived Intel as an extremely unethical "military style" business.

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A06EFDE1238F93BA25751C1A962958260

Nike extends Nike+ technology with new launch
WGSN NEWS TEAM 03.04.08

The latest development in the Nike+ line is to be launched on April 10, with the Nike+ SportBand opening up the technology to a wider audience.
The new Nike+ SportBand wristwatch links with a sensor in the Nike+ footwear, enabling runners to get real-time performance feedback with details such as distance, pace, time and calories burned.

http://www.nikeplus.com/

*I just wanted to demonstrate the advance in technology since 1994 through two key examples of past technology and what is going on in the present. Also, the image in the top corner is an example of the nike plus project and how there is a direct connection between the ipod and the nike shoe.

"ON THE MOVE" for 2008

Trend Report

Colors

Faux monochromes with flashy accents:

• Raspberry reds


• Burgundy


• Cool blues
• Purple


• Split pea

(to name a few)

Fabrics

• Basics-dense but light, textured fabrics
• Wools for jackets, cashmere broadcloth moleskin
• Thick, stretchy macro diagonal cottons
• anti-pollution/anti-radiation treatments/waterproof-breathable treatments
• double knits, double-face jerseys
• Simple or coated fleeces.
• Bonded, laminated fabrics, light soft shells, padded nylons.
• Free expression. Bands placed like color blocks. Printed or knitted disrupted stripes.
  Spontaneous graphics in prints, mix of writing and stripes, felt-tip and ball-point pen drawings, tags, typography, stencils.

Accessories

• Clip and go. Pouch bags for mobile phones, all-in-one "techno" bags.
  
• Flash dance. Dancer's legwarmers, socks with graphic motifs, ultra-supple shoes in color stripes.
  
• Color splash. Multicolor spray effects on canvas totes, gloves, pumps and trainers.
• All provided @ http://www.fashiontrendsetter.com

Economics and Politics in 1994:
Economics:
US Economy in 1994:

• Low Inflation Rate: caused consumer spending and real disposable income to rise due to
  the decrease in the price of goods.



• Unemployment trended downward from 6.7 to 5.4 percent over the year: caused more people to have jobs and earn more money to buy more luxury type items such as expensive purses and shoes.

• Discount Rate Rose: (discount rate is the interest rate the Fed charges for loans to banks)
  people were more likely to get loans, which raises spending trends in households.
  


• Medical Costs Rose: caused some consumers such as the elderly to concentrate on medical expenses instead of unnecessary spending.
  
  
• Sizable Trade Deficit: made it more dificult for the Fashion Industry to get products overseas which caused an increase in the total cost of goods.
  


• Stagnation of Family income in lower Economic groups: made it harder for lower classes to spend money on fashion products, instead they had to spend money on necessities.
  




• Labor Productivity grew by 4.9 for manufacturing (the largest gain in 7 years): gave businesses the ability to spend more on producing goods, lowering prices and causes consumers tend to buy more inexpensive items.
  



• Gross Domestic Product Grew 4.1 Percent (the largest in 10 years): A major indicator of a healthy economy, this meant consumers were more willing to spend money on fashionable items.
  


• “The country is in the midst of profound economic change. We're going from an essential blue-collar economy and relative easy affluence to a time where we're in an international economy and the blue-collar jobs are disappearing, and where in many homes there is more anxiety and more and more the middle class depends on education.”




• Lower class families are less likely to make spontaneous purchases of material goods such as fashion accessories and expensive clothing.

(Source: THE 1994 ELECTIONS: VOTERS; 'It's Like a Call to Arms, Which the Democrats Will Ignore at Their Peril')

Links to Articles:
http://www.world66.com/orld66.com/ New York Times
Consumer Prices in 1994 Collective Bargaining in Private Industry 1994
1994 Economy

Authors: Joseph Pavalone, Lisa Williamson and Phyllis Brown.

Politics:
THE 1994 ELECTIONS: VOTERS

• Republicans seem to have evoked in their call for no government or less government or smaller government. Somehow, the Republicans have captured that insurgent feeling against all politicians in general. And now it's their turn to try to prove that their solutions for the complex problems of America -- the balanced budget, lower taxes, somehow magically reducing the deficit, and welfare reform and harsher measures on crime -- will actually work. Alan Brinkley Professor of history at Columbia University.
  
  
• Americans begin to trust Republicans over Democrats. Republicans assure Americans that changes can be made, and that the government should play a smaller role in the American lifestyle.
  


• This assurance typically creates a wider spending range on non necessary items.
  


• Clinton signed the Family and Medical Leave Act, which required large employers to allow their employees to take unpaid leave because of pregnancy or serious medical condition.
  


• This act allows families to have more job stability and security, providing a better income and allowing them to spend more on leisure activities such as shopping, traveling, and out door activities.
  
• Source: http://www.nationmaster.com/, http://www.nytimes.com/, http://www.infoplease.com/, http://www.indyweek.com/
  
  Region of residence, Average Annual expenditures and Characteristics, Consumer Expenditure Survey, 1994-95
  
• Region tables contain expenditure data from the four regions of the country:
  This information is helpful to sellers and producers for predicting what consumer buying trends will be in the to come.
  

Research: 1994: Apparel-styles:

The 90’s was a generation for individuality. Hairstyles, clothes, and body decorations varied an immense amount while “Generation X-ers” insisted on their right for individuality. The largest way people went about this trend of individuality was with different types of body decorations. People of all ages were getting tattoos and body piercings, expressing all different types of meaning.

Abercrombie and Fitch was a large and very popular department store during 1994. The store used many different approaches to contribute their lines to consumers. Their innovated way of introducing the “magalog” helped them advertise the trend they were trying to set.
Sports:

“international year of sports and Olympic ideals” –voted by the United Nations

Interior designs:

Materials which were found favorable in 1994

Metals: satin finish aluminum, raw steel, copper and other unique metal finishes

Woods: natural maple, zebra wood, black walnut, brazilian cherry

Naturals fibers: seagrass, sisal, jute

Glass: sandblasted, safety, textured, stained, etched, colored

Fabrics: plush velvet, natural silks, cotton, other natural fibers, sheers

Colors: browns, neutral tones, greens, bold colors

Lighting: gels, LED, fiber optic, sconces, backlit lighting effects

Misc.: faux finishes, cork, leather floor tiles, granite and all types of stone
Raw materials: Influencing Inventions of 1994

• The wonder bra

Cost of Living 1994

• How Much things cost in 1994
• Yearly Inflation Rate USA 2.61%
• Year End Close Dow Jones Industrial Average 3834
• Interest Rates Year End Federal Reserve 8.50%
• Average Cost of new house $119,050.00
• Average Income per year $37,070.00
• Average Monthly Rent $533.00
• Cost of a gallon of Gas $1.09
• Movie Ticket $4.08
• Average cost of new car $12,350.00
• Loaf of Bread $1.59
• Dozen Eggs 86 cents

New Rave Fashion - Party Like It's 1994

The year 1994 is back and glourescent mini dresses, UFO overalls, and lime goggles are hitting the fashion scene. Leading the charge is Donatella Versace’s protégé, Christopher Kane. This trend, known as New Rave, is hitting everywhere from East London to New York’s Lower East Side.
Radar Online puts it best: “Get your glowsticks ready—for better or for worse, twinky, tacky raver fashion is coming back. .... According to the British Sunday Times, the hip and the beautiful people are doing it too: “New rave is a second coming: not just a throwback to the lawless euphoria of its golden age, but an aesthetic focus for a new generation of club kids, artists, fashion students and night-time celebrities who just want to dress up and get down.”

Source:
http://www.trendhunter.com/trends/new-rave-fashion-party-like-its-1994

Wonder Bra

'Hello boys' was the slogan for an invention that promised to have the same effect on a woman's pulling power as feeding a bloke ten pints of lager.
The Wonderbra was fundamentally a sophisticated vice which could squeeze a vital extra inch out of a lacklustre cleavage. They sold by the truckload.

Source:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/ilove/years/1994/fashion2.shtml

Television Knowing Me, Knowing You with Alan Partridge: Comedian Steve Coogan's most famous creation was the cringe-worthy chat show host Alan Partridge. Along with a strange obsession with ABBA and his catchphrase "A Ha!" Partridge gave the nation hysterics with his tactless interviewing technique. ER: The scarily realistic medical drama which followed the lives and work of the doctors and nurses of a Chicago emergency room and launched the career of international heart throb George Clooney. Fashion Wonder Bra: A huge seller from the minute it appeared in shops and on billboards thanks to the famous slogan, "Hello boys", and the promise to help boost any girl's natural assets.

Source:
http://www.lep.co.uk/1990s/Fashion-and-trends-from-1994.3528858.jp

1994 End user research

Mature Market

The dominant market segment in 1994 was the 50+ age range. Not only were these the largest single group, but they also possessed half of the quantitative discresionary income. This definitely placed them as a target market for the luxury goods industries. This was because the baby boomers were reaching this older age. However because babyboomers do not necessary like to be considered old, so it doesn't follow that the products would aim toward growing old, but perhaps focusing on staying young. This might spur advancements in products that would appeal to their interests.

Source: "Mature Market" on the Academic Search Complete database

Global Teens

In 1994, a survey called "The D.M.B.& B. New World Teen Study" was conducted that showed that teens around the world showed similar consumer behavior. This study focused on attitudes, lifestyles, and trends of this market that was almost 1 billion consumers. What made these teenagers different from past generations is that they were linked together worldwide because of the new forms of media technology. This market had the common characteristics of being independent and skeptical. Not only is their thinking similar, but they are also choosing similar clothing styles.

Source: “The Media Business: Advertising;
Whether in Asia, Latin America or the United States, teen-agers in a study dress and think alike.” on the Lexis Nexis database.

Social Causes

Even though social causes supported by businesses is a big trend currently, it was also a factor in 1994. Statistics of the time showed the affect that company’s causes have consumers’ choices as follows:

Boosting a company’s image

34% agree strongly

51% agree somewhat

Switch to comparable brand if associated with a good cause

41% somewhat likely

Switch to comparable stores if associated with a good cause

25% very likely

38% somewhat likely

These statistics were common among different ages, genders, and cultures.

Source: “If you're not committed, don't bother.” on Academic Search Complete database.

Consumer Response to Media Marketing

From this article it seems that in 1994, the general consensus was that newspapers are not going to become obsolete because of the internet, but about 75% use the TV as their primary source of local news.

Source: “What consumers read in newspapers.” on Academic Search Complete database.

Environmental choices

This article is building consumer awareness of how their choices impact the environment. It mentions the fact that Americans consuming more than they need to maintain their high standard of living. However, it foreshadow the truth that lifestyles will have to become more eco-friendly in the near future.

Source: “How Green Are You?” on Academic Search Complete database.

Strategic Plan

Group Name: Color for the Soul

Group Members: Laura Ward, Brianne Holden-Boushey, Lokelani Lee, Devin Hendrickson, Elizabeth Lange

Question: How do we capture the hidden momentum to develop innovative products for 2010?

Plan Outline:

Gather information for chosen categories:

Product Trends (Lokelani, Devin)

• colors
• apparel / styles
• textiles
• sports
• cars
• interior design
• architecture
• raw materials
• technology

End User (Elizabeth)

• consumer needs
• psychographics
• geographic
• behavioral
• demographics

Handbag and Accessory Industry (Jessica)

• companies
• sales data
• price points
• upcoming company strategies

Economics (Brianne)

• inflation
• recession
• employment

Culture (Laura)

• shared beliefs
• values
• rituals

Politics (Brianne)

• domestic
• international
• political movements
• elections

Society (Laura)

• lifestyles
• social movements

II. Analyze information to identify hidden current:

• find the gaps that drive innovation
• find the curve
• recognize patterns in collected data

III. Synthesis of information:

• compile information into one-page forecast
• summary of data
• use collected data to find dominant trend

Color for the Soul

Group Members from left to right: Jessica McCorkle, Brianne Holden-Boushey, Devin Hendrickson, Lokelani Lee, Elizabeth Lange, Laura Ward


Group Introduction:

Jessica McCorkle:

• I am a junior in Apparel Merchandising and Textiles with a Design option. I am also working on a English minor and hope to write for a fashion magazine someday.

Brianne Holden-Boushey:

• I went to Western Washington State for 2 years where I was a Fine Arts major. I always knew that I wanted to design clothing. I transferred to Washington State University this past year and am majoring in Apparel Design. After I graduate I plan to work under a designer and eventually start my own line.

Devin Hendrickson:

• I am a sophomore in Apparel Merchandising at Washington State University. I also plan on receiving a minor in business. After graduating my plans are intended to be a buyer for a major department store.

Lokelani Lee:

• I am a senior in Apparel Design at Washington State University. After I graduate, I plan to pursue a master’s degree in business administration and eventually set up my own boutique in California.

Elizabeth Lange:

• I am a senior in Apparel Design at Washington State University. With a passion for art, fabric, and creativity, I plan on designing costumes for theatrical productions.

Laura Ward:

• I am a sophomore at Washington State, majoring in both Apparel Merchandising and Professional Writing. My long-term goal is to become the editor-in-chief at a fashion/entertainment magazine.