August 30, 2006
by Joe Taylor
Local Education Columnist
Most candidates for an associate's degree in fashion design like to keep their eyes peeled on the runways of New York and Paris. However, an unusual trend is developing in America's Midwest that aims to put a new spin on the fashion design world. In Detroit, Michigan, where designers usually work on cars instead of camisoles, the fashion design industry is helping the region's largest employers update their images by integrating automobiles into their latest lines.
Detroit's "big three" automakers desperately crave the attention and the credibility of the fashion design world. In today's saturated media market, traditional advertising in newspapers and magazines isn't enough to catch the eye of trendsetters. Ford's Mercury unit used Miami's Fashion Week to launch a new vehicle aimed at a Latino audience.
Detroit Icons Appear in Fashion Design Lines
Fashion design professionals are even integrating some of Detroit’s biggest brands into their own designs. It's not uncommon to see a Mercedes logo -- now part of Detroit's DaimlerChrysler empire -- on a fashionable clothing line. Another Detroit icon, the Jeep, frequently shows up in lines of casual wear and branded accessories. As a challenge to Detroit's automakers, one prominent fashion design professional even integrated an Audi TT Coupe into her spring line.
Candidates for an associate's degree in fashion design at any of Detroit's top ranked colleges and universities frequently draw inspiration from their industrial neighbors. Whether requested by a fashion design instructor or simply a source of fresh ideas, the sleek styles and fast lines of Detroit's biggest business will continue to influence fashion design professionals.
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About the Author
Author and business coach, Joe Taylor Jr. helps professionals change careers. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Communications from Ithaca College.
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