If you really wanna put some spice into fashion

World domination continues as the Spice Girls put their name to a range of clothes.

They've done everything else, so it seems only natural that the Spice Girls should consider putting their name to a range of clothes - one for each style-setting Spice, of course. What else is there for them to do? They appeared on Clive James Show last Sunday, News at Ten's "and finally..." slot on Monday, the Big Breakfast every morning, The Girlie Show last night, and that's just this week's TV. Radio airplay for their latest single is constant, and the tabloids are Spice crazy. Add to that the possibility of a Spice film (in the style of the Monkees films) and Spice Girl Dolls and we could be heading for a Spice back-lash. Heaven forfend.

The clothing range won't be on sale until early next year when the band embarks upon their world tour (if indeed it goes into production at all). By then not only will impressionable five-year-olds be the core customer base, but "Baby Spice" could be a Gucci-clad "Vamp Spice" and "Scary Spice" a Dolce e Gabbana'd "Tiger Spice" (just think what pounds 3 million in earnings could do to your taste in clothes). What's more the range will catapult their street cred to Mars. Who wears the Neighbours range of clothes? Zoe Ball's range? Exactly. In reality the Spice look is available on the high street, because it existed before the Spices had sung their first zigzigha, and is available to all women to interpret in any way they please.

The Spices and the high street are well matched. Even last October at the British Fashion Awards, the girls performed their second single "I'll Be There" on the catwalk when the prize for Best High Street Retailer was awarded to Oasis. On those grounds one could almost go so far as to attribute a high street store to each girl. But, today's stores have diversified and aim to cater to as many women and girls as possible. Kookai's customers, for example are not targeted by age, but more by their fashion knowledge and attitude. Some stores have noticed the Spice influence is having a direct affect on sales to their core customers. Warehouse believes the Spice's have encouraged fashion conscious girls into being more daring with trends. Their target customers are 20- to 30-year-old women who are independent, urban, and earn their own money.

Recently, the store has been selling out of their camouflage print mesh dresses and tops - like the one's Mel B wears. They believe The Spice Girls have helped young women understand the way to wear fashion because instead of seeing clothes on stick thin models on magazine pages, they are seeing them on an all-singing, all-dancing role model.

A recent example of Spice fashion power is the Union Jack dress Geri wore at The Brit Awards. Since it was splashed across TV and countless newspapers the company who designed the dress, Lipsy, have renamed it The Geri Dress, and it has consequently sold out from their Top Shop concessions up and down the country. Pictured left, they have offered a dress to the first thirty Independent readers who respond by post (with the assurance that for popular consumption the dress will be a few inches longer).

Send postcards to Geri Dress Competition, c/o Lipsy, 71 Mortimer Street, London W1N, 7DF. Include your home address, a contact number and dress size

SPORTY SPICE

Sportsman track-pants, pounds 29.99; white three-stripe T-shirt, pounds 19.99 and blue-and-white shell toe trainers, pounds 44.99, all by Adidas. Available from Cobra Sports, 172 Oxford Street and stores nationwide; enquires 0171- 637 0903.

BABY SPICE

Pink velvet A-line `Tilly' dress, pounds 28; green and lilac optical print shirt, pounds 28; baby pink clips and sunglasses also available. All from Top Shop, Oxford Circus, London W1 and stores nationwide; enquires 0171- 291 2351; white platform trainers, pounds 79.90, available from Buffalo (see Scary)

POSH SPICE

Burnt orange jacket, pounds 150; matching belted skirt, pounds 59.95, suit also available in blue and green, from Karen Millen, 17 Neal Street, London, WC2 and branches nationwide; enquires 01622 664032. Black satin Ultra bra, pounds 18.99, from Gossard, available at department stores nationwide. Black mock-croc patent knee-high boots, pounds 120, from Ravel, branches nationwide. Enquires 0171-631 0224.

GINGER SPICE

Purple two-part asymmetric dress, pounds 59, from Kookai, 123 Kensington High Street, W8 and branches nationwide; enquires 0171-937 4411. Black patent platform wedge mules, pounds 19.99, from Shoe Express, branches nationwide; enquires 0500 192192.

SCARY SPICE

Chocolate brown string-tie cropped halter top, pounds 14; leopard print bikini top, pounds 18; leopard print shorts, pounds 15; beige loose-fit military trousers, pounds 40 all available from Warehouse, 63-67 High Street Kensington, London W8 and one of their 75 nationwide stores; call 0171 278 3491 for your local stockist. Leopard skin super-elevated trainer/boots, pounds 99.90, from Buffalo, 59 Kings Road and 56 Neal Street, Covent Garden, London WC2; enquires and specific mail order enquiries 0171-379 1051, or check their Internet site on http://www.buffalo/boots.com which features an on-line catalogue, and a mail order service.