vienna

“Many of the changes in the nature of and terrain of fashion
can, nevertheless, be grasped by examining the power of leading
clothing retailers and, in particular, the relationship that
they have with fabric producers and garment manufacturers
and their involvement with production and design issues.” 113
Thus, the retailer and the point of sale play an important
role in determining the nature of fashion. But our investigation
is more about the symbolic nature of the retailer’s power
within the fashion cycle, as we will not focus on economic or
social science issues.
Ritual Mastery
Beside their main purpose to sell things, stores can fulfil
symbolic social functions as well. 114 This insight does not come
from sociology or social anthropology, but from marketing. It
is especially important to mention that the function of brands
is to gather group members. Rituals, too, have the function of
stabilising groups. This makes the institution of the store a good
place to perform rituals since it is a space for a special group
with which it shares similarities, and therefore excludes others.
Marketing literature calls the materialisation of the store – what
we can see, experience, touch and smell – “retail branding” . 115
The design of the stores has developed over many years and is a
special discipline today that is far beyond what has long been
called the shop-fitting business. The first impression we get
of a retail brand is the storefront and the show windows as well
as the logo with the retailer’s name on it. The importance of
show windows was recognised at the beginning of the twentieth
century itself, when magazines in different countries started
publishing for window dressers. The following quote is taken
113 Du Gay (1997:149).
114 Tongeren (2003:23).
115 Tongeren (2003:44).
Ritual Mastery
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