London is to host a fashion tech catwalk show aimed at bringing together technology innovators in fashion tech and wearable tech, as well as the key brands, academia and public, to help shape future fashion tech, and make fashion tech more relevant to its public.
To be held on 3rd September 2015, the event, called INTERLACED, will look at many different aspects of fashion technology, innovation and funding. The organizers say there is a boom in wearable technology, and this is inspiring many aspiring creatives to jump on the wearable tech and fashion tech bandwagon, creating yet another wearable piece just for the sake of it in a bid to put themselves at the forefront of design.
The resulting preliminary saturation in such a newly established market has triggered a pool of negative connotations with flashiness and lack of justification. As designers have started deliberately omitting the term ‘wearable’ when talking about smart garments and accessories, the event organizers suggest that the industry may want to rethink how we refer to smart fashion. Also, in order to speed up innovation within fashion houses and technology companies, an increasing demand from the end-consumer needs to be apparent.
The event features an agenda covering everything from the game changing potential of 3D printing in fashion and the boom in wearable technology, to crowdfunding and sustainable fashion through technology. The hope is that the event will bring the fashion tech industry and the public closer through talks, panel discussions and one of the first catwalk shows featuring wearable tech alongside innovative fashion brands.
The founding members of INTERLACED – Kristina Dimitrova, Karina Abu Eshe and Hristiyan Pavlov – say, “When it comes to fashion tech and wearables, there is a big education piece missing. It seems like no one wants to talk to the end-users who will essentially be the buyers for these products. We want to invite them to the party and start a dialogue around the next wave of fashion alongside the pioneers in the field, industry leaders, renowned academics and talented students. Moreover, we want to show them where this future is heading.”
The day will feature discussions around how technology is changing fashion, the way it’s impacting the industry and raise questions around rebranding wearables, retail channels for fashion tech and winning strategies for mainstream adoption. Confirmed speakers and designers for the catwalk show already include fashion tech pioneers Cute Circuit, Kovert Designs, Shoes by Bryan, XOO, Ada + Nik, Melisa Coleman, Moritz Waldemeyer and many more.
