The fashion industry's old business model is out of style

The $300-billion fashion business is in the midst of an epic shake-up that is changing the way clothes are designed, marketed and purchased. The Internet -- the same force that has splintered the media and music industries -- is challenging the taste-making role of the fashion elite, a shift that is being accelerated by the rise of cheap chic and a recession that has blunted more-is-more spending.

In turn, many retail businesses, confronted by changing spending patterns, are becoming less brand-centric and more consumer-centric. And the logic of the runway shows -- now underway in New York and scheduled next month in Milan and Paris -- is being questioned by some of the top names in the business, who understand that shoppers don't want to wait six months between seeing designer clothes on the runway and being able to buy them in stores.

"It's the first time I can remember this kind of shift in the fashion paradigm," said David Wolfe, creative director of the Doneger Group, a New York trend forecasting firm. "The flashy addictive fashion [is] becoming less and less relevant to people's lives."

What's more relevant, it seems, are shopkeepers who keep the customer in mind and instant access to style and fashion advice provided by the Internet.

Not only does the Internet allow the convenience of shopping any time, anywhere, it's also a platform for a new generation of style arbiters who can dictate trends from their living rooms.

Aggregator websites let shoppers sift through styles and compare prices from dozens of online stores at once. Shopstyle, for example, offers cross-shopping by brand or search term at www.shopstyle .com and sends personalized e-mails with sale alerts. Covet ( www.covet.com) edits styles shown to individuals based on a questionnaire about preferences for color and silhouette. MyShape lets users input their measurements (www.myshape .com) and shop only for the items that fit their size and style profile.

And for those who can't be bothered to sit in front of a computer, mobile technology is making it possible to shop from the palm of your hand, which is why fashion designers are rushing to launch their own iPhone applications.

The result of all this interactivity is that there is more information than ever about fashion.