From innovative interiors to fancy frontages to wacky window displays, the world of retail fashion is constantly changing and always on show.
New manufacturing and distribution systems have allowed chains to update their offerings every few days, instead of twice a season, while the rise of online shopping has opened up catwalk creations to customers around the world.
If you work in retail – and why ever not, as every day there are Ab Fab vacancies on s1jobs? – it’s cool to keep pace with all these changes.
After all, as a sales assistant or store manager, if a customer quizzes you, having the answers makes you a VIP.
To put you in the mood, let’s test your knowledge of the retail fashion industry.
Supermodel Elle Macpherson designed her first lingerie brand because:
A) She couldn’t believe British women wore underwear that didn’t match.
B) She couldn’t find a G-String that fitted her figure.
C) She had time between photoshoots to start sketching.
Answer: A) It was the lack of co-ordination in womens’ underwear that got her started.
Fashion chain Jaeger began in 1884 by manufacturing long johns. Among its famous customers were:
A) Queen Victoria, preparing for the draughty corridors at Balmoral.
B) Explorer Ernest Shackleton kitting out his South Pole expedition.
C) Actress Lily Langtree who wore them riding a bicycle.
Answer: B) Ernest Shackleton, whose boxers helped keep him warm for two years stranded on the polar ice.
High street fashion retailer Laura Ashley:
A) Began her company by making head scarves at her kitchen table.
B) Was inspired to begin by a set of curtains at Granny Ina’s.
C) Was started by a Japanese entrepreneur with a name from the London phone book.
Answer: A) Laura Ashley’s fashion empire began at the kitchen table, when she spotted a trend for clothing harking back to Edwardian times.
The company set up by the Duchess of Cambridge’s parents is called:
A) Party Princess
B) Party Pieces
C) Party & Picnic Supplies
Answer: B) Carole and Michael Middleton run a company called Party Pieces, selling the kit essential for a knees-up.
Marks & Spencer started life as:
A) A small grocery store in the north of England.
B) A company merger by two fashion retailers.
C) A stall in Leeds Market.
Answer: C) It was begun by Polish refugee Michael Marks in 1884 as a stall in Leeds and later joined by cashier Thomas Spencer.
Well done! Now why not use your knowledge to wow customers with the latest Retail opportunities from s1jobs.