A Wall Street Journal article (February 17, 2011, D1) describes changes in runway designs to accommodate the rising prices of cotton, silk etc.  One designer describes changes in material (leather to crinkled satin), length of the dress, number of bows etc that the article cites as decreasing prices from $ 798 to $ 398.  Other designers are purchasing local fabrics to avoid transport costs, or shipping by sea instead of air, or switching from cashmere to blended yarns.  This issue is particularly significant given the long lead times between design and production (up to 1 year).  In addition, consumer pressure on retail prices is also requiring redesign.  Can we expect retail demand to be maintained as these delivered designs deviate from runway samples ? Will the benefits of designs created  closer to the season cause an increase in manufacturing closer to demand locations ?