“In fashion, you cannot expect anything to hold, regardless of the circumstances,” - Anna Francesca Marcesar
(Picture source: Thejakartapost.com/2018)
The Corona outbreak forced many people to leave their comfort zone and think more out of their routine. To cut off the spread of Covid-19, several significant events have been postponed or canceled, such as 2020 Olympics, The Met Gala, and Cannes Film Festival. This situation also forced immediate action to cancel the main runway performances and close the physical store, which certainly impacted the drastic economic downturn. Brands and retailers have no choice and must keep moving by making a quick and efficient backup plan. At the moment like this, many questions arise about how a pandemic affects business and what will happen for their future.
Postponement of the fashion show
Many Indonesian labels feel that Covid-19 is an unexpected and unimaginable situation. The fashion industry has a very bright future before. In February, an Indonesian brand named Major Minor was in Paris to present their Fall/ Winter collection. One month passed, and all had to change where they need to cancel their show at Plaza Indonesia Fashion Week 2020, which was supposed to run in March 2020. Moreover, the Sejauh Mata Memandang brand is also affected by this pandemic. They have to postpone scheduled events such as the Fashion Nation XIV Edition Senayan City and Plaza Indonesia Fashion Week that should be held in March. But as a sustainable fashion brand, their first step is always to prioritize the health and safety of the workers and local artisans who contribute to the running of the brand.
Supply chain obstruction
The biggest blow to RAITO was the obstruction of their supply chain. When the COvid-19 pandemic began to emerge earlier this year, the contemporary eyewear brand believed that this situation would impact the launch of their 2020 collection. Why does this happen? This happens because most of the hardware material is obtained from China and Hong Kong, so the producers' activities are greatly affected. With a pandemic reportedly attacking the rest of the world, logistics companies are now cutting back their services, along with stockists, and limiting their consumption. Hardware is the most crucial material so if it is not available, the RAITO goods production process must stop first.
Offline to Online
The most steps taken by fashion labels are to switch to digital facilities. The local sustainable brand Sukkhacitta wrote about how the pandemic affected their activities and informed them how to protect labels from continuing to survive. In addition, Niniveh Space has changed to semi-online by releasing e-catalogs for buyers who want to explore the products they offer. Several brands previously focused on offline stores, such as RAITO and Toton The Label, start to promote their online presence through social media. Most of them close their bricks and mortar stores (temporarily). The founder of Toton The Label felt that changing marketing to online had no major effect on sales because people would focus more on important things and fashion would retreat far in terms of priorities.
What the future looks like?
With so much uncertainty in the industry, fashion brands can only hope that the emergency strategy or back up plan they choose can survive and save their brand. This situation tests the ability of labels to be able to adapt to any circumstance. Here we learn to improve how online promotion is most effective in business and manage finances well to maintain employee welfare. This pandemic can be considered a pause for brands to reorganize strategy and think carefully about improving conditions after the situation is over. Many designers feel that the world will not be the same again after a pandemic, and we will be forced to have a different mindset.
Reference:
Hendhy Hutomo, h. (2020). REMOTELY: The COVID-19 Impact - Manual Jakarta. Retrieved 22 April 2020, from https://manual.co.id/article/remotely-covid19-fashion-industry/
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