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THISTLE: ECO FASHION REVIEW BLOG & STORE

ROSSVIGEANTSENIOR THESIS

12.13.09

TABLE OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

DOMAIN

PROBLEM

SUPPLY

DEMAND

SOLUTION & NEXT STEP

APPENDIX A

B

C

4

5

6-7

8-9

10-13

14-15

16-17

18-19

20-21

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INTRODUCTION

Throughout my education at Parsons and Parsons-Paris I have been

exposed to a variety of paradigms. Between the course subject and the

individual teacher, I have been privy to new worlds of opportunity that is

unique to my experience. This class in particular has brought me through

an evolution of ideas and testing that has culminated in this synopsis of

what I what I wanted to do, what I’ve done and what I need to do.

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My domain has shifted with the assignments and insight I have

experienced through the class. Although it was always fashion based, it

originated in on the manufacturing side.

From the “Domain Presentation” Assignment (10/19/09):

“Consumers want to know where their products come from. They are increasingly

interested in the background of the product. I aim to provide this to the customer

through a domestically produced outerwear company that is transparent in

its manufacturing. Full disclosure of the origin of items used in producing the

garment along with information on its actual piecing together will inform the

consumer about its socially and environmentally conscience foundation. Each

piece is individually numbered to show its uniqueness and provide a reference

point for the consumer to make a deeper connection utilizing the online feature of

tracking its origins.”

Ihavenowspecifiedthedomaintotheemergingmarketof

sustainable fashion and narrowed my topic to a Sustainable Fashion Blog

& Review Website with an e-commerce component.

DOMAIN

PROBLEM

Similartomypeers,findingaproblemcanbehardestpartofthe

process. I went through several variations of analogous ideas before I

cametoonethatseemedlikeamodelIwouldliketoworkwith.Originally

I wanted to develop a sustainable outwear company that would off full

disclosure in terms of materials and production. That soon morphed

based on the coming assignments. The beginning of the process was

trackyourclothes.com,awebsitedevelopedinthe“Hook”assignment.Itis

described below.

From the “Hook” Assignment (10/14/09):

“TrackYourClothes.com was based on something that I would really like to

incorporate into my thesis project. In this venture one would be able to track

a piece of garment that one just purchased on the website. By entering the

name of the manufacturer one would have access to their labor practices and

sustainable practices (if any). Once companies become more transparent on

their manufacturing there would be a plethora of information regarding their

process. This would be incentive for the companies to become more socially and

environmentally responsible in all aspects of their clothing production.”

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Thenextassignmentwastotestyourchosenhook.Itestedthe

ideaasiftheoutwearcompanyofferingthetrackyouclothes.comfeature

couldbeplausibleifofferedforfree.IquicklyrealizedthatalthoughImay

notbeabletoofferfreejacketsout,thewebsiteportioncouldeasilybe

sustained with ads and different revenue streams. This just happened to

be the next project. I project several different revenue models that could be

usedtofundthewebsiteandpossiblyreturnaprofit.Therevenusfoundin

theappendixaresimplemockupsofpossiblerevenuemodelsdeveloped

earlier in the class.

Thisgavetheprojectclearerdefinition.Itwasnowapparentthat

to draw visitors, the website would have to provide a taste and rating

authority.Oncethisisestablished(usingknowledgeablereviewsand

suggestions) the website would be able to provide visitors opinions on

something stylish and sustainable.

It’sfromthispointthatI’veworkedbackwardstodeterminea

problem. With a plausible model I began to search if there was a demand

for this topic, and if so what did it entail?

SUPPLY

UtilizingachartthatIcreatedforcomparison,Iratedwebsitesthat

couldbeconsideredcompetitors.Icheckedeachsitetoseeitcontaineda

blog format, was fashion related, contained reviews or had an e-shopping

component. I discovered that none of the chosen sites had all four

qualities. And while most sites contained fashion content in blog format,

none of those offered an online store/e-shopping. In this sites compared

there is not one that offers a fashion driven blog with reviews and the

ability to purchase online.

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DEMAND

To help determine demand I released a survey to over 120 people

onFacebook.Itcanbeassumedthatthesubjectswerebetween18-30,

residingmostlyinNewYorkandthemajorityattendingcollege.Theaim

was to collect as many responses as possible. Over the span of 12 days I

received 78 completed surveys. I made the questions general in an effort to

avoid swaying the subject.

Survey:

1. “Have you studied environmental sustainability?”

This question was meant to determine if the subject had prior experience or

exposure to the domain.

2. “Rank what’s most important to you when shopping for clothes.”

The chart was made most important to least important, and the subject were

asked to rank is order Price, Style, Brand and Green/Organic.

3. “Have you purchased green/ethical/organic clothing before?”

The possible answers were Yes, No and Maybe. I included Maybe because

I wanted to give the subjects freedom to choose in case they were unsure or

confused about the terms.

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4. “Would you be more willing to purchase clothing knowing it is made

ethically or organically?”

Again, the answers were Yes, No and an answer box for Other. This gave

subjects a chance to provide an answer of their own (I guessed that most would

not wholly agree or disagree).

5. “Have you heard of/visited any of the following sites?”

I included the most prominent sites available. I drew from classes, friends,

personal knowledge and top 10 rankings from other green sites.

The data obtained was a huge help. I always had general trends to

claim and data based off other polls, however I now had concrete data that

was legitimate from my target consumers. Roughly 60% of the subjects

have studied environmental sustainability, meaning that the majority of the

peoplesurveyedhavehadsomeexposuretotheissuesandzeitgeistof

going green.

Theaggregaterankingofwhat’simportantwhenshoppingwas(in

orderfrommostimportanttoleastimportant)Style,Price,Brandandfinally

Green/Organic.Theserankingshouldcomeasnosurprise,considering

thecurrenteconomicclimateonewouldexpectorganicattributestotakea

backburnercomparedtoPrice.

Arguably the most important piece of information is the 3rd question.

Surprisingly 39% of the subjects have purchased organic clothing before.

Theresultscanbeinferredtomeanthereisanavailablemarket.Usersthat

answered No or Maybe were near equal, which also proves there is a huge

marginoferrorwhenitcomestoconsumersknowingwhat’ssustainable

and what’s not. It is evident many of these people believe that in the past

theymayhavepurchasedorganicclothingandnotknownit.

The4thquestionproveddifficultforsomeofthesurveyed.When

askediftheywouldbemorewillingtopurchaseorganicclothing,therewas

an overwhelming majority answer of Yes (64.5%), while 13% simply would

not be more willing, and 14% replied Other (noting in the answer box that

they would only be willing to do so if the price was comparable or cheaper).

Thefinalquestionwasmeanttoascertainanycompetitors.Whilethe

answer None was most popular, it was a mere 2 people away from www.

treehugger.com. It is now evident that this website is a competitor to model

and innovate.

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I believe that if I am able to accurately determine and solve the problems of

www.treehugger.com, while simultaneously matching its content and level

of authority, I would be able to run a successful review site. The remaining

websitesaveragedtwoacknowledgments.

InsummaryI’velearnedthatwhilethemajorityofpeoplerankstyle

andpriceaboveorganicasattributestheymostlookforwhileshopping,

they also would be more willing to purchase clothing that was made

organically.Thedistributionoftheanswerswhenaskediftheyhave

purchasedorganicclothingbeforesuggeststheyarenotknowledgeable

about what clothes are organic.

A sample survey and the collected results can be found in the

appendix.

SOLUTION & NEXT

My proposed solution is an Eco-Friendly Fashion Review Blog with

anonlineshop.UsingtheplaceholdernameThistleIbegantomockupa

basic palette and interface to give the project a persona.

Thenextstepstoworkonwouldbedevelopingaworkingblog,a

rating system, designing an interface and curating a list of vendors.

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APPENDIX A

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studied eco sustainability

48yes30

no

have you purchased organic clothing?

23no

31yes

24maybe

49yes

14other*

14no

would you be more willing to purchase clothing knowing its organic?

* the 14 other responses indicated they would only do so if the price was the equal or cheaper

what’s most important to you when shopping for clothes?

style

most important

least important

price

brand

organic

APPENDIX B

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APPENDIX C

Green Topics Exit this survey

1. Default Section

1. Have you studied environmental sustainability?

2. Rank what's most important to you when shopping for clothes?

Most Important Least Important

Price

Style

Brand

Green/Organic

3. Have you purchased green/ethical/organic clothing before?

4. Would you be more willing to purchase clothing knowing it is made ethically or

organically?

5. Have you heard of/visited any of the following websites?

Yes

No

Yes

No

Maybe

Yes

No

Other (please specify)

treehugger.com

ecofashionworld.com

greenfashionline.com

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