This week, Antwerp has hosted the Digital Fashion Futures conference. Delegates discussed how digitisation continues to change and influence the fashion industry. Europeana has its own wonderful digitised fashion project which you can browse here.
Wearable technologies were identified by the European Parliament’s Scientific Foresight Services as one of the top ten tech trends for 2015.
And according to a report by e-consultancy a number of factors are combining to ensure that the market is growing:
- Commercial platforms – retailers are helping get wearables to the market by developing wearable departments
- Commercial pressure – tech companies are constantly looking for new sources of income
- Consumer demand and choice – the customer value proposition is improving
- Diversity in the market – several companies have developed their own platforms and devices
- Open standards and a wider ecosystem bring new opportunities – linking between more devices
Wear your own device
The fashion industry is also a key driver for the growth of wearables. According to Euromonitor designers are keen to get some of the cash consumers are currently spending on smartphones and other gadgets. Designers are looking for ways to integrate smart gadgets into garments and wearable fashion has been appearing on the catwalks at London and New York Fashion Weeks.
Organisations need to plan ahead for WYOD. There are security and network performance issues of course. Mobile strategies need to be re-examined.
Other sources: The Telegraph; The Guardian; Information Age