Journal Archive

According to Urbafash.com (2011), the term ‘street fashion’ did not emerge from fashion design studios, but from grassroots streetwear. Street fashion is broadly associated with elements of youth culture in the context of sub-culture. In history, the emergence of street fashion and its associated results in culture are based on the urban environment (‘Today’s fashion’, 2012). Moreover, from the perspectives of urban culture and lifestyle, street fashion is defined as “A type of fashion that is personal to you”. Additionally, While still highly trendy and fashionable, it is something that reveals personality (Hayes, 2006). Hong (2019) believes that street fashion reflects the sense of everyday life: “It is worth mentioning that street fashion is aimed at ordinary people who are interested in fashion and can reflect their personality, preferences and the status quo of daily clothes. Street fashion by fashion pioneers involves a variety of design inspirations and possibilities for styling.” In style, street fashion represents a variety of cultural characteristics of different regions and social classes. On one hand, it represents downstream cultural fashion that is related to the change of social concept, from a fixed style to a free style; on the other hand, it reflects the result of emotional responses towards certain styles (Kim, 2018).

In Japan, street culture with fashion trends has been broadly evolved since the 1980s. Also, the notion of street fashion reflects that traditional thoughts and modern western values coexist in Japan (Kim, 2018). In China, the definition of street fashion is focused on unorthodox youth in the 1960s. It aims to refuse the value of the mainstream culture and usually refers to (1) a theme of fashion phenomenon, (2) a campaign against orthodoxy and culture spread around the globe, and (3) resistance of youth fashion behavior which evolved into a large-scale fashion phenomenon from a specific group. In particular, implications of street fashion are connected to recreating an innovative style individually rather than tracing the current fashion trends by collective consumers (Liu, 2009).

Consumers in the three continentals show cross-cultural differences in their attitudes toward sustainable fashion products (SFPs) and eWOM intentions (Kong & Ko, 2017).Korea, China, and Japan acknowledged the need for serious political and economic attention to environmental issues, for achieving global cooperation in addressing environmental challenges (Kim & Kim, 2010), and for developing political and economic leadership in supporting global environmental conservation and sustainability. When interest in environmentally friendly goods and well-being increases, the Korean, Chinese, and Japanese SFP industry needs to have a better understanding of customer decision-making processes and business perceptions.

In the late 1990s, the Korean Wave such as TV dramas, movies, and pop music attracted Chinese as cultural exports. The impact of the Korean cultural phenomenon on China has been expanded to China’s fashion industry. However, a problem of the national image has emerged through publicity and marketing strategies including fashion brands in the Chinese market (Su, 2013). In contrast, the influence of Korean pop culture including fashion on Japan has built similarities between the two nations based on economic growth. For example, both countries show a common understanding of multiple trends, social networking services, artificial intelligence and generation gaps (Rhie, 2017).

The key context of the fashion market in 2018 renewed optimism for the fashion industry. McKinsey Global Fashion Index forecasted industry sales growth to nearly triple between 2016 and 2018, from 1.5 percent to a value between 3.5 and 4.5 percent. Emerging markets remained a crucial source of this growth (Amed et al., 2017); indeed, in 2018, for the first time, more than half of apparel and footwear sales were originated from Europe and North America. BoF and McKinsey projections reported the emerging markets in Asia (India, Vietnam, China, etc.) achieved revenue growth of 6.5 to 7.5 percent in 2018.

In terms of style, a number of core ideas on the trend are forecasted as follows: (1) Checkered Power Blazers with Shoulder Pads (revival of 90’s fashion), (2) Side Stripe Trousers (e.g. cigarette pants, straight-leg trousers or even jean), (3) Ski Sweaters (the best of this odd bunch feature striking knitted patterns and logos around the neck and shoulders), (4) Upsized Dots (most often spotted in a traditional monochromatic design), (5) Velvet Pants (e.g. wide-leg and flared pants), (6) Statement Suits, (7) Bold Stripes (bold lines with intense colors), (8) Balloon Sleeves (rounded style with a tight, fitted cuff), (9) Ruffle Dresses (midi or maxi dress in a lightweight fabric and loose silhouette), (10) Trans-Seasonal Layering (skirts and dresses, with items from your autumn/winter closet) (www.trendspotter.net). Although the data sources are limited, the findings can still be a reliable barometer to understand the comparative analysis between the three cities in this research.

As shown in <Table 1> that Jean and Easy have the highest frequency in all three cities in reflecting S/S 2018 trends. The frequency of Jean <Fig. 2> is 38.60% in Seoul, 24.00% in Shanghai and 23.00% in Tokyo; that of Easy <Fig. 3> is 20.40% in Seoul, 43.60% in Shanghai, and 17.60% in Tokyo. In the type of Minimal <Fig. 4>, Seoul, Shanghai and Tokyo record 15.20%, 11.00% and 21.40% respectively. The frequency of Elegance (16.20%) and Romantic (11.60%) are over 10% only in Tokyo.

<Fig. 1> 
Comparison of Styles between Three Cities (Photo by Author, 2018)

<Fig. 2> 
Jean in Seoul (Photo by Author, 2018)

<Fig. 3> 
Easy in Shanghai (Photo by Author, 2018)

<Fig. 4> 
Minimal in Tokyo (Photo by Author, 2018)

As a result of the investigation <Fig. 1>, Korean street fashion style is similar and femi- nine, mainly focused on easy, jean and Minimal. Japanese street style is more feminine, evenly distributed and very diverse. Chinese street fashion is relatively relaxed and casual. In addition, women's easy style is the most common in China. Japanese street fashion has more personality than that of Korea and China.

A comprehensive analysis of street fashion silhouette in the three cities in S/S in 2018 is provided. As known in <Table 2> that H-line< Fig. 6, 8> shows the highest frequency in all three cities, with Seoul (81.40%), Shanghai (85.00%) and Tokyo (56.40%). In the case of A-line, Seoul, Shanghai and Tokyo record 8.20%, 5.40% and 9.00%, respectively. O-line shows the lowest frequency in Seoul (2.00%), Shanghai (2.80%) and Tokyo (0.80%). X-line <Fig. 7> obtains 8.20%, 5.40% and 9.00% in Seoul, Shanghai and Tokyo, respectively. The frequency of Others is 1.40% in Seoul and 2.00% in Shanghai. It’s noticeable that Tokyo has a value of 22.00%, much more than that of Seoul and Shanghai. In terms of details, Shanghai has more Straight, Long torso and H-line; and Tokyo has more Fit & tight, Y line.

<Fig. 5> 
Comparison of Silhouette between the Three Cities (Photo by Author, 2018)

<Fig. 6> 
Slim in Seoul (Photo by Author, 2018)

<Fig. 7> 
Princess in Shanghai (Photo by Author, 2018)

<Fig. 8> 
Tubular in Tokyo (Photo by Author, 2018)

As a result of the analysis <Fig. 5>, it can be seen that the types of O-line and X-line show the lowest frequency in all three cities. In silhouette, the example of Tokyo presents a significant difference from that of Seoul and Shanghai. In detail, the silhouette is more varied in Shanghai. In other words, silhouette in Seoul, Shanghai and Tokyo shows a relaxed and natural way, which may be attributed to global fashion trends of casualization.

<Table 3> and <Fig. 10, 11, 12> show the analysis result of street fashion patterns found in S/S season 2018 in the main cities of Korea, China and Japan. A summary of the primary categories is given below <Fig. 9>. No pattern has the highest frequency for all three cities, specifically, 56.80% in Seoul, 56.40% in Shanghai, and 55.20% in Tokyo. The frequency of Geometry is 19.20% in Seoul, 18.80% in Shanghai, and 25.00% in Tokyo. Overall, pattern has a larger variation than others in frequency for the three cities. Brand identity also shows a high frequency, with 23.40% in Seoul, 24.00 in Shanghai, and 25.40% in Tokyo. Furthermore, the frequency of Character is 10% in Seoul, followed by that of Geometry. However, the proportion of Geometry in Tokyo is higher than that in Seoul and Shanghai. The proportion of Character in Tokyo is lower than that in Seoul and Shanghai, and the frequency of Geometry in Tokyo is over 5% higher than that of Seoul and Shanghai. Although there are some differences in the result, the street fashions in the three cities are almost identical in terms of the tendency of patterns.

<Fig. 9> 
Comparison of Patterns between the Three Cities (Photo by Author, 2018)

<Fig. 10> 
Abstract in Seoul (Photo by Author, 2018)

<Fig. 11> 
Gingham in Shanghai (Photo by Author, 2018)

<Fig. 12> 
Line in Tokyo (Photo by Author, 2018)

According to comparison of colors between the three cities <Table 4, 5, 6>, achromatic colors appear at the highest frequency, with White (39.60%), Black (85.80%) in Seoul, White (35.80%), Black (83.80%) in Shanghai, and White (50.00%), Black (72.60%) in Tokyo. Furthermore, in Seoul, Vp/R (5.00%), Vp/YR (9.20%), V/B (6.00%), Gr/B (6.20%) and Dk/PB (8.20%) shows high frequency of more than 5%, so does Shanghai with Vp/R (6.40%), Vp/YR (5.80%), V/B (6.80%), P/B (5.40%), Lgr/B (5.20%), Gr/B (8.00%), and Dk/PB (6.00%) more than 5%. In Tokyo, the colors with a high frequency of more than 5% are Vp/YR (8.60%), V/B (10.00%), B/B (8.60%), Dk/B (6.00%), and Dk/PB (6.00%).

As shown in <Fig. 13, 14, 15> that achromatic colors have the highest preference in street fashion in Seoul, Shanghai and Tokyo. In Chromatic colors and in Tone, B and Vp show the highest frequency in the three cities, respectively. The results of Seoul, Shanghai and Tokyo show a tendency of coordinating colors even though there are some differences in specific figures. In addition, the study identifies that all three cities display a visible preference for blue. Compared with Tokyo, Seoul and Shanghai have more abundant colors. L, Gr, Dgr, Dl, Dp and Dk in Tokyo are less. Also, GY, G, BG, PB, P and RP are rarely seen in the three cities. The frequency of DK/P is more than 5% in all the three cities.

<Fig. 13> 
White in Seoul (Photo by Author, 2018)

<Fig. 14> 
Black in Shanghai (Photo by Author, 2018)

<Fig. 15> 
Light gray in Tokyo (Photo by Author, 2018)