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Fashion Merchandising and Marketing
Terms
A-Line: A dress of skirt that is narrower at the top, flaring gently wider toward the bottom this resembling the
letter “A.”
Almond Toe Shoe: A shoe where the upper portion is closed, and comes to a soft point when viewed from the top.
This shoe is generally not elongated like a pointed toe shoe.
Appliqué: A decorative design made of one piece of fabric sewn on top of another.
Basque Waist: A low “U” or “V” silhouette.
Batwing Sleeve: Also called a Dolman Sleeve. This style is cut very large at the armhole and extends to almost the
waist where it is then tapered.
Blazer: A long-sleeved sports jacket open at the front.
Bolero Jacket: A loose, waist-length jacket open at the front.
Boot Cut: A pant style that is tapered at the knee and very subtly flares out to accommodate the bulk of a boot.
Camisole: A short, sleeveless garment for women.
Cap Sleeves: A sleeve that sits in between sleeveless and short.
Chalk Stripe: A broad vertical stripe.
Chemise/Skimmer: Simply a straight unbelted dress with varying sleeves and length.
Cheongsam: A traditional dress worn by Chinese women, defined by a high collar, long length (usually mid-calf
length) and button or frog closure near the shoulder. This fitted dress is often made of shimmering silk or
embroidered satin.
Coat Dress: A tailored dress featuring button, toggle and tie closures similar to those found on outerwear. This
dress is often made in materials similar to those found in suits (wool, wool blends, and menswear prints.)
Column Skirt/Straight Skirt: Also referred to as a pencil skirt, this skirt is a line with no flare or fullness at the hem
or waistline.
Covered Heel: A “covered heel” is any heel shape that is wrapped in the same material as the upper portion of the
shoe. Most high-end shoes have a covered heel.
Cowboy Heel: A “cowboy heel” when viewed from the side, the front face of the heel is perpendicular to the
ground, while the back face of the heel is angled, beginning at the rear of the shoe and slanting forward towards
the front of the shoe from top to bottom.
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Cowl Neck: A neckline featuring a piece of material attached to garment at the neck, which may be used as a hood
or draped loosely in a swag from shoulder to shoulder at the front neckline or back.
Crew Neck: A round neck with ribbed banding that fits close to the base of the neck.
Diamond Neck: A diamond-shaped cutout that fastens at the front or back neckline.
D’Orsay Shoe: A shoe where the upper portion is cut away on either one or both sides of the foot. The front or
back of the upper portion may be open or closed.
Dirndl Skirt: A full, wide skirt with a tight, fitted waistline.
Empire Waist: A dress or shirt where the waist is raised above the natural waistline, sometimes as high as right
below the bust.
Epaulets: A decorative shoulder adornment. Usually found on military uniforms and trench coats, an epaulet lends
an air of authenticity to replica styles. Balmain and Burberry Prorsum have been the greatest champions of the
epaulet recently.
Espadrille Sole: A flexible sole made entirely of jute rope or a similar synthetic material. This type of sole is usually
coupled with a “wedge” heel because of the flexible nature of the material used. This style is very popular in
spring and summer footwear.
Filigree: Ornamental work of fine wire, usually in silver or gold, with the addition of tiny beads.
Gaiter: A piece of fabric worn over the shoe, extending to the ankle or the knee.
Halter: A dress or shirt that consists of material that meets behind the neck. This style may range from thin
spaghetti straps that tie to draped fabric that crosses at the collarbone and meets behind the neck.
Hidden Platform: A shoe sole similar to a “standard platform” except the upper portion is attached in a fashion
that the thickening of the sole is not apparent when viewed from the side. (the material of the upper portion of
the shoe is used to cover the sole)
Jewel Neck: A high round neckline resting simply at the base of the neck.
Keyhole Neck: A tear shaped or round cutout that fastens at the front or back neckline
Kimono: A long robe with wide sleeves traditionally worn with a broad sash.
Kitten Heel: A short but narrow heel; less than 2″ with a diameter of no more than 0.4″ (1cm) where it reaches the
ground.
Knife Pleat: A sharp, narrow fold.
Louis/Pompadour Heel: A heel that when viewed from the side, the front edge slopes slightly forward toward the
ball of the foot, while the rear edge has an hourglass curve similar to a spool.
Petticoat: An underskirt usually a little shorter than outer clothing and often made with a ruffled, pleated, or lace
edge.
Prism Heel: A triangular heel of varying width and height.
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Raglan: The style of a sleeve, where a continuous piece of fabric continues to the neck with no shoulder seam.
Sarong Skirt: A long cloth which is wrapped around the entire body.
Shelf Bra: A bra built into a garment.
Slingback: A shoe where the upper portion is open at the back of the foot, with a thin strap running around the
back of the heel, that holds the shoe on the foot.
Spool Heel: A heel that is wide at both ends, but narrower in the middle; resembles an hourglass shape when
viewed from the back.
Stacked Heel: A wooden heel in which the stacked horizontal layers of wood are visible; popular for spring and
summer styles.
Standard Sole: A sole of minimal thickness; extends from the front end of the shoe to the heel and is of even
thickness throughout.
Stiletto Heel: A heel that is long, narrow, 2″ and above with a diameter of no more than 0.4″ (1cm) where it
reaches the ground; generally round or square shaped.
Welt Pockets: A pocket set into the garment with a slit entrance, as opposed to a patch or flap pocket.
Wing Collar: A collar with projections which cover the seams of bodices and doublets.
Yoke: The part of the garment around the neckline on the front and the back.
Fashion Trends
Fashion trends are always changing, thus it is up to you to stay updated! Check fashion websites
MEN’S BASICS
Tops
 Solid-coloured t-shirts
 Short-sleeve polos
 Long-sleeve oxford-cloth button-downs (OCBDs) – typically white or blue
Bottoms
 Jeans – slim/straight fit – indigo with variations of grey or black washes
 Chinos – flat-front & slim-fit in tan/khaki, olive green or navy
Shoes
Accessories
WOMEN’S BASICS
Tops
Bottoms
Shoes
Accessories
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Suit Fitting
1. Shoulder pads end with your shoulders.
2. Your flat hand should slip easily into your suit under the lapels
when the top (or middle) button is fastened. If you put a fist in, the
suit should pull at the button.
3. The top button of a two-button suit — or the middle button of a
three-button suit — should not fall below your navel.
4. With your arms at your sides, your knuckles should be even with
the bottom of your jacket.
5. Jacket sleeves should fall where the base of your thumb meets
your wrist.
6. Between a quarter and a half inch of shirt cuff should be visible.
7. One inch of break.
Fabrics & Patterns
Brocade: Brocade is a class of richly decorative fabric that has the design woven into it. Brocades are often made in
colored silks and with or without gold and silver threads.
Cashmere: A fiber obtained from Cashmere goats and other types of goat. Common usage defines the fiber as a
wool but in fact it is a hair, and this is what gives it its unique characteristics as compared to sheep's wool.
Cashmere is fine in texture, strong, light, and soft. Garments made from it provide excellent insulation.
Corduroy: Corduroy is a type of fabric that has stripes on one side alternating between flat and slightly fluffy,
which gives a ribbed effect. Corduroy is quite thick and is often used to make trousers and jackets.
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Cotton: Cotton is a natural fiber and is used in a wide variety of clothing and home furnishings. Cotton is easily
washed and/or dry cleaned. Cotton is a good strong fabric that is absorbent, and easy to work with. Cotton has a
tendency to wrinkle very easily.
Felt: Felt is a fabric that predates weaving and knitting. Felt is made by rubbing wet fibres until they stick together
in a thin, matted layer. Felt is often made from wool or hairs from an animal like a rabbit or beaver.
Gingham: Gingham is a kind of woven fabric pattern, also called plaid and sometimes called checked, but it is not
the same as a checkerboard pattern.
Houndstooth: A duotone textile pattern characterized by broken checks or abstract four-pointed shapes, often in
black and white, although other colours are used.
Lace: Lace is a kind of fabric that is made up of loops and holes. Lace usually has flower shapes in it, and is very
pretty. It is often found on the edges of dresses.
Linen: Linen is a fabric woven from fibers of the flax plant. Linen was once used to make so many household items
that things like sheets and towels are still collectively called linen.
Seersucker: A printed cotton or synthetic fabric that has a surface consisting of puckered and flat sections, typically
in a striped pattern.
Silk: Silk is a fabric made from the cocoons of the silkworm. The fabric itself has a natural shine to it because of the
way light passes through the silk fibres. Silk has been a highly prized fabric for thousands of years.
Suede: Suede is a fabric made from leather, but instead of presenting the smooth skin side of the leather the soft,
slightly fluffy inside is shown instead. Leather can be made into suede by removing a thin layer from the surface of
the leather.
Tartan: Tartan is a fabric pattern made by weaving different colours together in stripes in both directions. The
stripes can be different widths, and there can be lots of different colours, unlike gingham which is made from two
colours with equal width stripes.
Tweed: Tweed is a rough woolen fabric. It is usually quite thick and warm, and has a distinctive herringbone or
check pattern in it. Tweed is usually made in fairly dull colors like grey or brown, and is seen as a very oldfashioned fabric.
Velvet: Velvet is a type of fabric that is smooth on one side and tufted on the other side. The tufts are fine and
even and give velvet a very soft, rich feel. Velvet has a pile and the sheen will change if you stroke it in different
directions.
Velvet can be made from anything - velvet is simply the name for the weave. The best velvet is made from silk, but
it can also be made from cotton or artificial fibres like nylon or polyester.
Wool: Animal fibre that is the protective covering, or fleece, of sheep or such other hairy mammals as goats and
camels. Wool is readied by washing, carding, sometimes combing, then spinning. Coarser than such textile fibres as
cotton, linen, silk, and rayon, wool is resilient after limited stretching or compression, so fabrics and garments
made from wool tend to retain shape, drape well, and resist wrinkling. Wool is warm and lightweight and takes
dyes well.
Marketing Mix
Product/Service
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Consumer products can be categorized as convenience goods, for which consumers are willing to invest very
limited shopping efforts. Thus, it is essential to have these products readily available and have the brand name well
known. Shopping goods, in contrast, are goods in which the consumer is willing to invest a great deal of time and
effort. For example, consumers will spend a great deal of time looking for a new car or a medical procedure.
Specialty goods are those that are of interest only to a narrow segment of the population—e.g., drilling machines.
Industrial goods can also be broken down into subgroups, depending on their uses. It should also be noted that,
within the context of marketing decisions, the term product refers to more than tangible goods—a service can be a
product, too.
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What does the customer want from the product/service? What needs does it satisfy?
What features does it have to meet these needs?
Are there any features you've missed out?
Are you including costly features that the customer won't actually use?
How and where will the customer use it?
What does it look like? How will customers experience it?
What size(s), color(s), and so on, should it be?
What is it to be called?
How is it branded?
How is it differentiated versus your competitors?
What is the most it can cost to provide, and still be sold sufficiently profitably? (See also Price, below).
Place
Distribution (also known as the place variable in the marketing mix, or the 4 Ps) involves getting the product from
the manufacturer to the ultimate consumer. Distribution is often a much underestimated factor in marketing.
Many marketers fall for the trap that if you make a better product, consumers will buy it. The problem is that
retailers may not be willing to devote shelf-space to new products. Retailers would often rather use that shelfspace for existing products have that proven records of selling.
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Where do buyers look for your product or service?
If they look in a store, what kind? A specialist boutique or in a supermarket, or both? Or online? Or direct, via a catalogue?
How can you access the right distribution channels?
Do you need to use a sales force? Or attend trade fairs? Or make online submissions? Or send samples to catalogue companies?
What do you competitors do, and how can you learn from that and/or differentiate?
Price
Pricing is one of the most important elements of the marketing mix, as it is the only mix, which generates a
turnover for the organisation. The remaining 3p’s are the variable cost for the organisation. It costs to produce and
design a product, it costs to distribute a product and costs to promote it. Price must support these elements of the
mix. Pricing is difficult and must reflect supply and demand relationship. Pricing a product too high or too low
could mean a loss of sales for the organisation.
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What is the value of the product or service to the buyer?
Are there established price points for products or services in this area?
Is the customer price sensitive? Will a small decrease in price gain you extra market share? Or will a small increase be indiscernible,
and so gain you extra profit margin?
What discounts should be offered to trade customers, or to other specific segments of your market?
How will your price compare with your competitors?
Promotion
Promotions for a restaurant are a good marketing tool to draw traffic and customers into the restaurant. Often
times people will assume your restaurant services the same food/meals as everywhere else (unless you special in
say Italian or Seafood cuisine), but even then it’s important to differentiate your restaurant. Promotions such as
50% appetizers or discounted meal deals for certain days are great promotional strategies. Other examples
include, two dine for $25 etc.
Promotion involves a number of tools we can use to increase demand for our products. The most well-known
component of promotion is advertising, but we can also use tools such as the following:
 Public relations (the firm’s staff provides information to the media in the hopes of getting coverage). This
strategy has benefits (it is often less expensive and media coverage is usually more credible than
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advertising) but it also entails a risk in that we can’t control what the media will say. Note that this is
particularly a useful tool for small and growing businesses—especially those that make a product which is
inherently interesting to the audience.
Trade promotion. Here, the firm offers retailers and wholesalers temporary discounts, which may or may
not be passed on to the consumer, to stimulate sales.
Sales promotion. Consumers are given either price discounts, coupons, or rebates.
Personal selling. Sales people either make “cold” calls on potential customers and/or respond to
inquiries.
In-store displays. Firms often pay a great deal of money to have their goods displayed prominently in the
store. More desirable display spaces include: end of an aisle, free-standing displays, and near the checkout counter. Occasionally, a representative may display the product.
Samples
Premiums
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Where and when can you get across your marketing messages to your target market?
Will you reach your audience by advertising in the press, or on TV, or radio, or on billboards? By using direct marketing
mailshot? Through PR? On the Internet?
When is the best time to promote? Is there seasonality in the market? Are there any wider environmental issues that suggest
or dictate the timing of your market launch, or the timing of subsequent promotions?
How do your competitors do their promotions? And how does that influence your choice of promotional activity?