Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.trends From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: trends Mon, Mar 2 1992 Date: Mon, 2 Mar 92 05:57:42 EST Message-ID: 03-02 0000 DECISIONLINE: Trends & Marketing USA TODAY Update March 2, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network SWIMWEAR TURNS CONSERVATIVE: Women's worst nightmare - buying a new swimsuit - may be a tad less terrifying this season. Fashion observers say 1992 swimwear is more feminine, more flattering and more conservative. The focus this year: The bustline. "There's a continued emphasis on ... the uplift trend," says Bob Cline of Jantzen Inc. swimwear. "A lot of underwires (and) removable push-up pads." (For more, see special Swimwear package below.) AMERICANS HATE VOICE MAIL: A growing number of Americans are becoming disenchanted with voice mail. It's still a growing business. About 85% of Fortune 500 firms use it and the business is growing 20% a year. But a recent survey by Plog Research found that 56% of consumers have at some point given up trying to reach a company because of frustrations with voice mail. And some companies are responding. `WE'VE REACHED GADGET OVERLOAD': Managers who bought voice mail technology thought they'd be saving money. "They didn't realize it would drive people nuts," says Ric Romo of NBC. Experts say the problem partly is psychological. "We've reached gadget overload," says Rustum Roy of Penn State University. Many companies have a rule of thumb: If a call brings in money, put a human on the line. CHILDREN ARE SPENDING: Children are serious consumers, according to industry information. Figures released recently at the Marketing Institute's Consumer Kids Conference in California showed that children ages 4 to 12 spend nearly $10 billion of their own money in 1991. Marketing experts say the kids are an underaddressed group and could make a difference for retailers in these tough times. MORE BUY SECURITY TIMERS: About 7 million security timers were sold in the USA, according to Intermatic Inc. In 1980, 4 million of the devices that turn lights on and off were sold. In 1985, 4.5 million were sold. The next five years saw a noticeable jump: 6.5 million were sold in 1990. EMPLOYMENT OUTLOOK BETTER: Spring's employment outlook is a bit stronger than the outlook in spring 1991, according to a nationwide survey of 15,000 businesses. Manpower, the temporary-help giant, reports Monday that 21% of companies surveyed last month will increase their workforces next quarter. That's up from 18% in last year's survey for the second quarter. Just 10% plan layoffs in the second quarter. STARS DO VOICE-OVERS: More ads are using screen stars as narrators. Most movie stars won't lower themselves to lend their faces to U.S. advertising, though many gladly collect fat fees for ads in Japan and Europe. Now they can get the best of both worlds with voice-overs. Among the familiar voices on TV: Michael Douglas for Infiniti; Demi Moore for Keds; Richard Dreyfuss for McDonald's. FACTORY PRODUCTION DOWN: U.S. factories are running at the lowest production-capacity rate since August 1983. In January 1989, the peak for the 1980s, factory operating rate was at 85%, according to the Federal Reserve. In January, it was 77%. FAA SAYS TRAFFIC DECLINED: U.S. airlines, cramped by recession and the Persian Gulf War, saw traffic decline last year for the first time ever, the Federal Aviation Administration said Friday. So far this year, "Jet fuel prices are remaining high, air traffic remains soft and profits continue to elude the industry," said the FAA's annual report on air transport. Airlines were hit by sharply rising jet fuel prices. SPECIAL PACKAGE ON SWIMWEAR: SUIT COST WON'T JUMP: Bustiers, bra tops, bandeaux, tanks and halters - all seen on high-fashion runways - are now in swimwear departments as the attention this season is on the bustline. Most manufacturers say that there's been no increase in the cost of fiber and fabric. Eleanor Walsh of Du Pont, top manufacturers of Lycra, found in nearly all swimwear, says the average suit will cost $40 to $50. SWIMWEAR GOES RETRO: The '92 bust awareness campaign is but one of many backward glances. Swimwear harkens back to the '50s for push-up bras, the '40s for halter necklines and skirts and all the way back to Victorian times for lace-up corsetting. Other swimwear elements are also getting more feminine, from tiny floral prints to Lolita gingham. Legs aren't cut as high this year, a relief to many. MEN'S SUITS GET SEXIER: In men's swimwear, boring boxers are making way for more fashion-conscious, sexier suits. Watch for bright colors, wild prints, iridescent hues, higher waistlines, bike pants, even bodysuits. "There is a concerted effort ... to flatter the male physique," says Tom Julian of the Men's Fashion Association, starting "with underwear and ... working its way out." (End of package.) Trends & Marketing Editor: Beth Mann. (1-919-855-3491) Making copies of USA TODAY Update (Copyright, 1992) for further distribution violates federal law. This article is copyright 1992 Gannett News Service. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM