Food for Thought...

-Each year, over $250 billion is spent on fashion (including accessories) in the United States and over $20 billion in revenue is generated annually.

-Over 4 million people are employed in this industry which includes the following areas: design, manufacturing, distribution, marketing, retailing, advertising, communications, publishing and consulting. -In 2006, the United States captured $595.171 billion in total exports following China,Hong Kong, Italy, Malaysia, Germany, Pakistan, and Thailand respectively. Could a deeply rooted American quest for total dominance over everything have influenced a spike in the industry due to the need to compete? Are big businesses inciting the growth of the industry in order to beat the competition and add another somewhat more secure layer to the troubled economy? Only time will tell.......

-The following is an interesting page on fashion designers themselves including employment outlook, competition and average wages. The page says that "Competition for jobs is expected to be keen as many applicants are attracted to the creativity and glamour associated with the occupation". There are not too many jobs out there that allow for creativity and economic prosperity. Creativity, glamour, and generally making people feel better about themselves are the rudiments of the industry. Bright colors and shiny objects tend to appeal more to most than
charts and sets of data in any other typical job. If one cannot design it due to the stiff competition, then why not use all of it as a distraction from the mundane world?...