Dressing "black": urban fashion


Has urban fashion come to this? The "white tee"

Looks like the whole trend of dressing "black" (i.e. urban) is going through a slump, according to the New York Post.

The across-the-board slowdown is alarming some of the major department-store retailers that had allocated a growing amount of space to these brands on the belief that the double-digit sales growth of recent years would continue, sources said.

Federated Department Stores, which operates the Macy's and Bloomingdale's chains, for instance, is seeing recent sales of urban brands decline in the double digits, compared with year-ago levels, said one person, who added: "It has everyone worried."

What has happened to "Urban Fashion"? We're in the day and age where you have groups doing songs like "White Tee". You see artists in videos wearing white tees, kids in the streets wearing white tees, and there was nobody who could cash in on that. Who would buy a $100 white tee?

Urban style moves fast like the music itself. That could make the work of an urban designer label much, much harder. White tees, Rocawear and Sean John I see on alot of kids in this area. Fubu is played out. Phat Farm never got any play here in the District, that's a New York thing. Nobody is messing with Snoop Dogg wear or Shady Wear at all.

I would say that Urban fashion merchants should do 3 things:

1) Lower your prices

2) Go for the women. Women are more loyal consumers, they buy more clothes, and they love to shop!

3) Don't just go for the kids who have no money, dirty money, or their parents money. Sell clothes to adults too, and make them good quality. I'll never forget the FUBU dress shirts I bought once. I liked them, but the quality was just not as good as shirts I brought from Ralph Lauren or Tommy Hilfiger. Dont half ass!

Urban fashion just doesn't have the same variety it once had. Who remembers "Wu-Wear", Cross Colours, The African American College Alliance, Tribe Vibe, Mecca Wear, Karl Kani, Maurice Malone Designs, and countless others whose names just escape me. Urban fashion isn't what it used to be!