There is a trend followed by people in everything today. Social influence is changing fashion every second.
People are following influencers to make choices in clothing, eating, and managing workloads. Fashion and fad are the two terms used alternatively in the fashion world, but the difference in period is followed by society.
Key Takeaways
- Fashion is a prevailing clothing, accessories, or behavior style that reflects cultural trends and preferences.
- Fads are short-lived, intense trends that gain popularity quickly but fade away just as fast.
- Fashion is more enduring and evolves, while fads are temporary and can disappear suddenly.
Fashion vs Fad
The difference between fashion and fad is that fashion is the present acceptance of societal behaviour and style that changes and transforms itself with society. On the other hand, a fad is a fashion that a particular group of people accepts, but its acceptance declines in a short period.
Fashion is a term used to denote the trend followed by society in terms of clothing, living, and the acceptance of new things. Fashion is accepted slowly and then reaches popularity.
It continues to be popular or widely accepted until the decline stage of the trend cycle.
On the other hand, the fad is a fashion that is accepted widely in the beginning stage of the cycle and disappears as everyone has accepted it.
It is a seasonal fashion that goes to a decline stage in less than a year. The fad may be accepted for a long time, or it may vanish from the fashion trend as if it was not present.
Comparison Table
| Parameters Of Comparison | Fashion | Fad |
| Definition | It is an activity that evolves, changes, and is accepted by society for a longer period. | It is an activity that is accepted by a group of people impulsive for a short period. |
| Growth | Fashion grows slowly and reaches higher metrics before going to a decline stage. | Fad grows metrically and then goes to a decline stage. |
| Term used for | Clothing, behavior, makeup, hairstyles, and other accessories | A fad is used to denote the fashion in food, dance movements, clothing, and other short-lived things. |
| Duration | Longer as it transforms itself with societal changes | Shorter and less than a year |
| Targeted audience | Worldwide | A selected group of people only. |
What is Fashion?
Social media platforms have more impact on individual choices. People follow fashion to become popular and influence others.
Business organizations also use social media platforms, highly liked influencers, actresses, and celebs to market their products and services. Fashion is a term used to introduce new things in society.
Fashion is used for evolving, transforming things like clothes, accessories, electronic items, gadgets, makeup products, etc.
Every product has a life cycle from the introduction to the decline stage. Fashion of a particular thing is introduced to the world through influencers by which its demand is increased slowly.
Fashion growth is slow and steady. It continuously improves and lasts for a longer period.
Fashion is accepted by everyone, irrespective of the segments. Fashion is used to transform and get better results, not only in clothes and accessories but also in the business.
Fashion is a present behaviour and acceptance of things by people. A new fashion evolved when the old declined.
Some fashions have unique places and demands depending on the seasons. Trends, craze, and fad are the terms used in the fashion cycle to determine the demand and duration of a particular fashion.
What is Fad?
A fad is one of the terms used in the fashion environment to denote short-term fashion. Fad fashion becomes popular overnight and declines overnight.
It is a fashion that lives for a short period. When people get bored of fashion, it declines.
A fad is a permanent fashion in some context that never changes as time passes. In some contexts, the fad is a temporary fashion that only follows for some time in the season.
Fad fashion targets only particular fashion and leaves the group in a stable. A fad is less significant in society.
Fad fashion does not transform the previous fashion but adds substitution to it. Fad fashion easily gets out model within a short period, and people soon get bored of the fad fashion and leave it.
Fad fashion is adopted only by the desired people as per their needs and requirements. Fad fashion is stable, and there will be no improvement, but it has many substitutions.
Fad fashion is used for dance movement, music, and food that becomes old but has value in the present and future for the shooter period. Fad fashion is followed collectively by a group of people.
A fad is a seasonal, occasional, and cultural fashion followed for a particular time.
Main Differences Between Fashion and Fad
- Fashion is a trend accepted by everybody, whereas fad is a fashion accepted only by a particular group of people.
- Fashion is low in the initial stage and then steadily grows to high, whereas Fad is high in the initial stage only.
- Fashion is used with clothing, footwear, and other accessories that have a transformation, whereas fad is used to denote clothes and behaviour that is used only at a particular time for a short time.
- Fashion is longer-lived than fashion.
- Fashion may become a fad but not vice versa.
- https://www.google.co.in/books/edition/Elements_of_Fashion_and_Apparel_Design/4oO1sxv8jBwC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=difference+between+fashion+and+fad&pg=PA101&printsec=frontcover
- https://www.google.co.in/books/edition/Fashion_Forecasting/ZhKTCwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=difference+between+fashion+and+fad&pg=PA29&printsec=frontcover
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Chara Yadav holds MBA in Finance. Her goal is to simplify finance-related topics. She has worked in finance for about 25 years. She has held multiple finance and banking classes for business schools and communities. Read more at her bio page.
