Here's an explanation of each stage of the trend cycle

Innovators: The innovators are the people that come up with the trend. They are the ones responsible for the start of the trend. They may not have created the original idea but they communicate in a way that is easy to understand to other members of their group. A good example would be Burberry with the first ever garbadine coat, a creation that has been replicated countless times by various companies.

Early adaptors: These are the people that are close to the innovators and therefore are exposed to new ideas that they trust. They usually have a good connections with other groups and are essential for spreading the trends. This is the stage that trend forecasters label 'the tipping point', which is the point at which the trend tips over from becoming a minority interest to a majority one that is highly visible. 

Early majority: The early majority really take on the trends from the early adaptors for example  your fashionable celebrity icons and bloggers. These people make up a fairly large percentage of the public and will stay with the trend for quite a time before it filters down to the 'late majority' 

Late/Later majority: The late and later majority require quite a lot of reassurance and explanation about how a new idea will work and how they can benefit from it before they buy into it. Trends are often watered down quite a lot before they are adopted by the late majority, and this group have easier tastes to define. This is the stage in which the trend is extremely popular and visible on the high street and in most shops. 

Laggards: This is the last stage that is reffered to by forecasters as 'flatlined', when the trend is no longer useful to them. The laggards are the slowest to adopt new ideas, and need a lot of reassurance to try something new. In other words-once a trend is only sold in Primark and Supermarkets, you know it's time has come and gone.

Bryony 

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