In the spirit of TrendHunter.com and their Top 20 Trends of 2009 I composed my own Top 10 Trends.
10. Adult driven streetwear. This year we will see brands like Rogues Gallery, Ransom and InSight thrive.
09. Death and decline of streetwear due to the current economic down slide. I think we will smaller brands slip off the radar translating to a Robin hood scenario where the big brands like the Supreme's, Alife's, the Hundreds and Mishka’s thrive and the small brands die out. The large brands will diversify entering into other means of income then clothing.
08. For those companies who are able to continue there success through the days of economic uncertainty I think the direction of the offerings will move towards a more mature adult driven market. I think we will see some more cut and sew items from brands that are not already known for this look.
07. Much more cross branding opportunities and projects. We already have seen Subaru team up with DC shoes this year but I think that this trend will thrive. This year will bring an array of collaborations from extreme ends of the business spectrum. I expect to see more electronics companies, car brands, maybe even beverages teaming up with companies like the Hundreds.
06. The year of the affordable tee shirt. I think with the economic hurt, all clothing companies were seeing in 2008, we will see the introduction of an affordable tee and even more warehouse sales. I think we will still see the $40 tee shirts but I think there will be alternatives.
05. With that being said I think we are going to have even more limited editions items like the DG Water Project tees that went on sale with editions of 24 and 30. These tees will probably generate incredible revenues.
04. eBay becoming the new Macy’s, Nordstrom’s and Neiman Marcus. Again with the economy eBay and thrift stores will thrive especially in the United States. People are still going to want to look good with designer clothes but will not want to pay the retail prices.
03. More Canadians selling items online through sites like solecollector.com and eBay, capitalizing on the successes of the US dollar. Canadian dollar will continue to decline.
02. More companies teaming up to do charity events and collaborations in an attempt to differentiate their products.
01. Finding your voice. More people moving away from mainstream culture like the American Eagle’s, Facebook, and Mall life. We will see even more efforts of creative expression in the form of clothing and blogging. We will see more online communities replacing Facebook and Myspace like Twitter (which makes no sense to me at all).