Technology is changing the back end of fashion

images-1Technology is hitting the gas on changes in the fashion world.  Materials are one of the biggest changes.  I invested in Evrnu that creates new materials out of old materials without using massive amounts of water and producing carcinogens into the environment.  That is a big win.  There are so many other new companies out there creating materials that are lighter, better for weather conditions, can easily connect to devices to monitor our bodies, are completely fire resistant, etc.  The change in textile manufacturing is happening rapidly.  I have seen a handful of these innovations come through my inbox.

From a manufacturing point there are tools to create products with less waste.  It can cost the same to make one unit vs 1200.  Garments are being made faster, easier and smarter.

I am convinced that we will not see multi-million dollars brands such as a Tory Burch or Lululemon in the next decade but we will see multi-million dollar companies that are the applied technologies behind a brand in materials and manufacturing.

The making of shoes is finally changing too.  Just like being able to make one garment, we can now make one pair of shoes that are made specifically for your foot.  That template can be used again and again, season after season for you.  There is no reason for you to try and be comfortable in a killer pump because the shoe is made for you foot only so it will always fit like a glove.  That is why I invested in True Gault.

Wearable technology is just the beginning.  Eventually we will be able to take that microchip that monitors our personal data and put it into anything wearable.  Perhaps that chip will be talking to the materials you are wearing and monitoring your stress.  I really believe we are just at the beginning of this.

Comments (Archived):

  1. awaldstein

    Other large changes are–mass producing of customer products, ecommerce innovations that are putting a lot of expense and smarts into customer acquisition through the buying process.I’m a segment watcher as well.

  2. Pointsandfigures

    What is interesting to me is that we embrace the technological advances that you highlight above-and we enjoy watching athletes use technological advancements in uniform, equipment and shoe design. But, when it comes to robots society is totally fearful. When it comes to AI, society is totally fearful. When it comes to tech ripping up existing institutions and remaking them, society is totally fearful. Interesting dichotomy.

    1. Gotham Gal

      In the end, technology always wins.

  3. panterosa,

    Materials are part of my vocabulary as a maker, but also as a thinker, and a recycler/re-user/waste reducer. I love the new school ethos changing this – living in the imagination of what could be is closer than we think, and here, now, with some tinkering.My friend Brian Kane teaches wearables at RISD which veers into the device range as much as fashion. Some excellent work worth following.http://briankane.net/risd-whttp://www.designboom.com/d… have some great projects.

  4. Amanda Curtis

    Technology is allowing for new business models to emerge in the fashion space which will expedite change. On demand manufacturing powered by tech is allowing brands to operate leaner and more sustainably- after all you can make the best zero-waste product but if you don’t already have a buyer for that product then it isn’t sustainable. True Gault is a great example of this model of pre-purchase combined with on demand manufacturing. Full disclosure my company is Nineteenth Amendment (www.nineteenthamendment.com) and we allow brands a platform to operate with this business model by giving them a place to take in on demand orders and have those orders made with quick turn around through our production management software and US manufacturing network. I’m excited to see how larger brands will utilize new technology to create new ways to sell to consumers, streamline their supply chains, and create smarter, more sustainable ways of bringing their product to market. I think that technology will increase brands’ D2C business and also allow bigger brands to test new concepts, designs, and materials quickly – much like how the tech startup world tests and iterates on new products!

    1. Gotham Gal

      definitely allowing new business models to emerge. it will be an interesting next couple of years in this space.

  5. Pranay Srinivasan

    You’re spot on.. In the end sell-thru must determine production. Not just fashion.However, I am of the opinion as well that just one kind of distribution will not exist and we’ll see multiple kinds of both distributions and manufacturing plays work in this industry.In the end, the fittest will survive – Design will sit on the top of fulfillment / on-demand manufacturing and we’ll be using robots to produce clothing to custom fit profiles that clients have already mapped out during purchases.