Alternative Fashion's Influence On Mainstream Fashion
Mainstream culture, particularly retailers and the media, have often looked to alternative fashion for up and coming trends and, increasingly, as an easy way to market products to a niche group that may not be having its tastes supplied elsewhere. Some in the alternative community view this as flattering and as a positive expansion of what is socially acceptable, and easily available, fashion. Others consider the involvement of mainstream institutions in alternative fashion as a desecration of what the concept stands for and feel the mass marketing of previously underground styles, particularly to impressionable youth markets who are more concerned with a look than the meaning behind it, amounts to a non-violent form of cultural genocide. When a previously non-mainstream style becomes popular the core group of a certain alternative niche may be watered down with dozens or even hundreds of individuals who are not genuinely invested in the advancement of alternative culture or its precepts of individuality and present an image of the subculture not at all related to its traditional members' behaviors. For instance, rave culture was heavily associated with ideas of racial, gender and sexual orientation equality and encouraged unity, creativity and individuality amongst its members. The commodification of rave fashions in chain outlets and internet botiques coincided with a media frenzy focusing on drug use in the rave community. These factors led to an insurgence of young people interested in emulating rave style, and obtaining the substances associated with it, rather than in promoting the utopian precepts originally associated with raves.
Alternative fashion is expressed, discussed, viewed and proliferated through many of the same channels as mainstream fashion, such as fashion shows, websites, blogs and magazines. The use of these avenues in the alt community traditionally tend to follow similar principles to traditional alt fashion itself - existing outside of mainstream outlets, fueled by personal creativity. It is common for projects related to alternative fashion to be independently run by individuals or small groups and to be offered to the public cheaply or free of charge. However, just as alternative fashion has been commodified by chain stores some level of commercialization may exist within outlets of alternative fashion seeking to exploit certain styles as 'the next big thing' or taking financial advantage of customers with limited options. The sheer volume of literature about alternative and subculture fashion,ranging from serious sociological studies to 'guide books' for the casual reader, display how involved, or at least interested, in alternative fashion a large portion of society is.
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