Don’t be the loudest voice: How fashion can adapt to a community-led landscape

Opinion

Community and peer advice matter to consumers. Fashion brands have an opportunity to be part of these communities, but only if driven by a real desire to become a constructive member.

When you made your last fashion purchase, why did you buy it? Did you see someone at work wearing it? Did your housemate tell you that you just had to buy it? Or did you look to an online forum for trusted peer advice?

Regardless of the catalyst behind the purchase, your online communities and real-life networks were almost definitely a key influence. 

Within the fashion world, community platforms like Reddit, Substack and Discord are proving to be invaluable sources, particularly for men, as they actively turn away from traditional marketing. 

The r/malefashionadvice subreddit has over 5m members swapping tips on everything from £30 Uniqlo basics to £3,000 coats. This community, in smaller numbers, has also migrated to Substack and Discord.

This online behavioural trend confirms what brands are realising: community matters to consumers, as does peer advice, when it comes to purchasing conversion. 

While surveys show that social media is the top way Gen Z discover new brands and products, consumers are growing much more aware — and wary — of sponsored content and marketing tactics. They’re bombarded by messages encouraging them to spend all the time.

What consumers seem to be lacking in this noise is honesty and reliability. 

Community forums deliver trust

There’s been slowly disintegrating trust between consumer, brand and influencer.

If you’re paid by a brand to talk about a product, do you actually like it or are you just fulfilling the contract? Can I, as a consumer, completely trust your product recommendation? Or do I actually trust you more because I’ve been following you for years?

So where do marketing-shy shoppers turn but to community-driven platforms? These are forums where they can ask crucial questions about potential purchases and get honest, unfiltered answers from a dedicated community. 

This shift offers an opportunity for discerning fashion brands to join these communities. But only if they are driven by a clear sense of purpose and a real desire to become a constructive member of a community containing some of their most honest, authentic advocates.

The RealReal Substack is an example of a brand understanding its consumer. Its first newsletter’s subhead reads: “Some people study the stock market; she studies the resale market.” 

Chatting with consumers

Consumers want to be informed. They want to understand what their clothes are made of or why they’re manufactured in certain ways. And this isn’t just luxury consumers any more — information is being demanded from high-street brands as well. 

As such, people are talking to each other, sharing opinions, insights and observations. On Reddit. On Substack. In forums and spaces where brands historically haven’t been invited. 

Brands with robust, truthful perspectives on their business and products can find an opening in these spaces. On Reddit, this is about building trust by engaging genuinely in relevant subreddits instead of posting overly promotional content. Acting like power users, not marketers.

Patagonia uses staff engineers rather than its PR team to host Ask Me Anything sessions in relevant, outdoor-focused subreddits. The advice they deliver quickly solves problems and, crucially, never links to products first.

Commitment to longevity

The doors these new behaviours are opening for brands are plentiful and exciting. They also speak to the idea of longevity permeating the fashion industry, both for environmental and attitudinal reasons. 

While mainstream fashion brand behaviour remains driven by the trend cycle, consumer purchasing behaviour has become more considered. It’s time for brands to pay attention to what their consumers want, where they want it and, crucially, how they’re buying it.

People aren’t spending like they used to. So, when they do, they don’t want to waste the purchase. Consumers want honest answers to sartorial questions. Which pair of shoes won’t fall apart after the 10th wear? Which pair of jeans won’t tear at the crotch after one season?

Subreddits like r/bitcheswithtaste or Substacks like Blackbird Spyplane and Shop Rat are serving up answers to shoppers’ burning questions.

Opportunity for brands

This shift in consumer behaviour towards community-driven, peer-trusted platforms offers an opportunity for fashion brands that understand what their consumers are looking for. They can offer real answers to questions consumers have about products they’re deciding to buy. 

As a brand, these aren’t spaces you can control like owned social media platforms or billboards. Consumer conversation reigns supreme. Brands must respect that and join with an authentic desire to listen. 

Because brands shouldn’t seek to be the loudest voice in the forum. They should be the most useful. Leverage authentic advocates already present in community forums in ways that feel genuine and honest. And to meet their consumers where they actually are.

Lara MacAlpine is associate talent director at Amplify