The Flux Generation

Understanding the cultural influences on tweens, teens and all that falls between.
Aug 1, 2008

Any adult raising an adolescent can tell you it's tough to get a good read sometimes. And with nearly 54 million U.S. children ages 8 to 19, marketers targeting these lucrative consumers have the same problem: How do they attract this tween and teen demographic?

Raging hormones are enough of a challenge to navigate, but today's youth also are immersed in an intense, constantly changing, integrating and upgrading technological society. They have to keep up with a sophisticated, in-your-face pop culture, so it's no wonder today's average kid has a short attention span and, often, a volatile personality.

Global brands and national retail chains spend a lot of money to research what drives the purchase impulse in teens and tweens. And even though custom apparel decorators don't sell directly to these kids via retail, you can bet your bottom dollar that style-focused kids influence what T-shirts and uniforms are ordered by coaches and parents.

So, Impressions has collected some teen and tween market research for you. In the following pages, we present the low-down on teen/tween trends in a visual style your young end-users would recognize.

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Outerwear Breaks the Mold
Soft-shell construction, year-round usability and high-tech features top 2008 trends for jackets and outerwear.
Technological advancements are flourishing across many industries. Apple just released its second-generation iPhone, and Philips recently demonstrated a 3-D television that doesn't require viewers to wear plastic anaglyphic glasses. Even apparel is becoming more and more futuristic. Workout gear featuring heart rate monitoring and motion sensors is now in stores, and "smart clothes" that fend off insects and mask cigarette smoke are in the pipeline.
September 01, 2008

You Can't Win If You Don't Enter
Follow this guide to enter your best work in embroidery contests.
I confess, I'm a competition junkie. I loved winning the 2007 Impressions Awards Grand Championship. The First Place, Second Place, Best of Show and Grand Championship ribbons, along with plaques and awards from various magazines, other organizations and EMB magazine, proudly adorn my office walls.
September 01, 2008

How to Create Easy Embroidery Effects, Part 1: Appliqué & Tasseling
Follow these simple steps to add pizzazz to basic embroidery designs.
Several processes in embroidery are a little outside of the norm and are used to give different looks or effects to designs. Many people avoid anything unfamiliar because they think it requires some great skill they do not possess. But often, they are just intimidated because they know nothing about these techniques.
September 01, 2008

Patch-Making Made Simple
Thanks to the introduction of two products from Gunold USA Inc., Kennesaw, Ga., small embroidery shops now have an efficient two-step method for producing small quantities of patches.
September 01, 2008

Fashion Fleece Takes Centerstage
What comes to mind when you hear the word "fleece?" In today's fleecewear market, you should be picturing sleek, full-zip hoodies instead of bulky, oversized sweat shirts. The fashion-forward looks that infiltrated the T-shirt market a couple of years ago have overtaken the fleecewear niche. Now, manufacturers are producing fleece collections to target fashion-conscious consumers who not only want to stay warm, but look good doing so.
August 01, 2008