005. On shopping, saving, and self-presentation

The fashion girlies have the nosiest consumer journey & I've done a lot of shopping since my last email

In April, I championed the white background, Polyvore-esque, outfit flat lay (which, according to Glossy, is a content style amidst major revival in the beauty/lifestyle inspiration world) as a tool for self-discovery — revealing patterns in shopping, saving, and styling. Last week, Vogue Business dug into Gen Z’s use of iPhone’s native Notes app for outfit planning and Clueless-style wardrobe cataloging to a similar end.  

Both my thoughts for an earlier newsletter and Maria Santa Poggi’s insights for Vogue point to a clear shift in the consumer journey. There’s a lot more noise at every stage, from awareness to advocacy, than ever before. 

And calling it “noise” isn’t a value judgment — this noise is simply a byproduct of how we've fundamentally changed the ways we consume fashion and curate ourselves.