Colour forecasting
The business of predicting which colours will be popular in fashion and products in coming seasons.
Also: trend forecasting, colour trends
Textile mills, paint makers and car companies must choose colours a year or more before goods reach the shops. Forecasting agencies and trade committees study fashion shows, street style, art, technology and social mood, and publish palettes for future seasons. Because much of the industry consults the same forecasts, the predictions partly fulfil themselves. The colour of the year announcements from paint and colour companies are the public face of this trade. Forecasts are informed opinion, not science, and many predicted colours pass unnoticed.