From the Garden of Eden, fashion has evolved from fig leaves to cotton and silk yarns. Now, it is about Artificial Intelligence, writes PELUMI BOLAWA
Fashion has been one of the biggest industries globally, and revenues in the apparel market are expected to reach $2.25tn by 2025.
However, the business may not be a leader in Artificial Intelligence, according to Forbes.
“Over time, industries are embracing new technological ways of improving their businesses and join the global trend. However, designers and brands that embrace the latest technology to push the limits of design, manufacturing, and production will come out on top in the fast-changing world of fashion,” Forbes reported.
In his book, Tech Trends in Practice, British strategic business and enterprise technology advisor, Bernard Marr, lists 25 powerful technology trends that are transforming 21st century businesses. With tech trends, fashion designers can transform the industry, he asserted
Predicting customers’ needs
This trend is labour-intensive due to the combined usage of both manual and digital observations, and gathering data from influencers and designers. According to Marr, harnessing data directly from users, brands and platforms like Finery and StitchFix can have fast, easy access to information that helps them plan the styles people will love and know what quantities to manufacture.”
Trends with machine learning
Platforms like Stylumia uses its AI and machine learning to help fashion and lifestyle brands forecast demand, spot trends, manage inventory, and make better business decisions.
“Shoppers can benefit directly from AI during their online browsing experiences, too. TrueFit platform uses behind-the-scenes data to help their customers find the perfect bra fit, and constant solution. Virtusize organisation helps brands build in virtual sizing tools to increase customer satisfaction and reduce returns.
“Virtual models not only help designers show their latest creations worldwide (even when large fashion shows are prohibited due to Coronavirus Disease restrictions), they also help reduce waste by showcasing clothes that haven’t actually been manufactured,” Mar said.
‘Shudu Gram’ is a Computer Generated Imagery model created by visual artist and fashion photographer, Cameron-James Wilson. Since her creation, Shudu has generated a following of over 200,000 people on Instagram. Many of her followers assumed she was real after Wilson launched her online presence, and followers were surprised to discover that Shudu is entirely digital. Now Wilson is the Chief Executive Officer of The Digitals, the world’s first all-digital modelling agency.
Reduction in fashion pollution
Fashion is known as one of the world’s most polluting industries, and several companies are using technology to try to make fashion eco-friendlier and sustainable. For instance, The Fabrikant creates interactive experiences for brands by creating photo-real, 3-D fashion design, and animation. The clothes are never created in the physical world, making this a potentially more sustainable way for companies of all kinds to make a statement without creating a big footprint.
Meanwhile, with Dress-X, one can buy digital clothes for online persona on social media. You simply upload a photo of yourself, pay for the ‘garment’, and get back an image of yourself wearing the new item. You’ll never see the item in person or hang it in your closet – but you can give the online persona a makeover while reducing textile waste in the fashion industry.
Drive to fashion future
Technological advances are transforming most aspects of the fashion industry, from the initial sketches, to fashion shows, to the individual online shopping experience.
Automation and predictive modelling are creating better customer service experiences for consumers, while the fashion industry takes innovative steps to eliminate waste through digital fashion.
With the help of AI, one would soon be able to buy a new outfit for their Zoom persona, so they can stop showing up in pajamas and start sporting the latest in Paris fashions on those remote conference calls.
Nigerian fashion designerband creative director at KEERAH Couture, Lagos, Shakirat Adesina, said, “Technology has really impacted my business, unlike when I did my business from my house. So, mostly, what I do is online, an I met most of my customers through the social media. Most people who come into my store are ones who probably saw my work on my media pages. Seventy per cent of my clients are outside the country and we communicate online.”
On AI, she added, “I believe it’s a great move for fashion designers. Recently, I have seen colour manipulations being done to pictures, where a person wears a particular cloth and it is duplicated in different colours. I am open to outsource to those who know more about this.”
