September Issue 16 – The GRAND Issue

Fashion players are accelerating their transformation to adapt to the new post-pandemic world, and our September issue attempts to throw some light on what these changes are likely to mean for the industry in the longer term.

I have been associated with the fashion industry for over 9 years, and have had a front seat for hundreds of game-changing innovations. It’s always exciting to see what’s coming next. From a young model / stylist to co-founding ‘The Victor Closet’ and then launching my first magazine, there’s one thing I am sure of…fashion has always been known to push the envelope.

Fashion forecasting has long been an artform.  The future of fashion now is more data-driven; by leveraging data on consumer trends, and then creating pieces consumers are most likely to purchase. E-commerce businesses are working towards developing machine learning programs to automatically assess if an item is ‘stylish’ or not. Google is testing user-driven ‘AI fashion design’ that uses algorithms to create new pieces and styles. Every kind of data will get sewn into every aspect of fashion.

At the end of the day, the mantra is to go above and beyond to create new bonds with customers in both the digital and physical space. Consumers are driven by a very strong sense of self with an insatiable need to project value systems while asserting their presence, in both – the virtual and the real world. The most important thing to remember is: be intentional, for chance favors the prepared.