How Fashion Can Truly Embrace the Digital Age through Sponsorship
13th January, 2015
Developments in technology have provided the fashion world with an opportunity to increase sales with the capability to now target consumers in the palms of their hands. Collaborations between businesses as diverse as Burberry and Twitter demonstrate the extent to which fashion labels are utilising technology to drive sales and communicate brand values, which promises to increase creativity and innovation within this industry farther than ever been made possible previously.
Our top 3 fashion-tech fusions:
Topshop’s Unique AW13 show was one of the most innovative fashion shows to date. The collaboration with Google+ made the show an experience shared and enjoyed by a much wider audience, virtually placing them on the front row – proving that as long as you’ve got the internet you can access all areas without having to leave the house. The show was characterised through the way in which it was marketed, involving a wide audience through digitalising every aspect of a traditional fashion show. Consumers were able to buy any item from a model’s outfit right down to the nail polish. As well as being able to start online discussions with buyers, designers and editors using the Google Hangouts helping to drive revenue of products, the collaboration drove a significant amount of consumer engagement for both partners involved following the show.
For the Spring/Summer and Autumn/Winter ’12 fashion weeks, Richard Nicoll was sponsored by Vodafone to bring functionality to fashion and allow Vodafone to support British design, whilst targeting an industry with high digital activity. The collaboration produced a truly pioneering fashion product – a luxurious designer handbag that charges your phone – perfect for people on the go! This was a product the fashion industry had not seen previously and having only launched in 2012, it was ahead of its time. Nicoll and Vodafone created something which had a sense of necessity, making consumers question design as well as design collaboration with technology – inspiring other designers to follow suit.
Twitter began its venture into e-commerce with the addition of a ‘buy button’, a simple, accessible feature that could increase sales by enabling users to immediately buy an item directly from a firm’s tweet. This tool both diversifies and increases Twitter’s revenue streams by becoming a platform and conduit for online shopping. Burberry recognised Twitter’s potential and became the first to utilise this feature at its Autumn/Winter ’13 show, allowing consumers to simply touch the icon and have the desired product delivered straight to the billing address set up on their Twitter account. The collaboration of Burberry and Twitter was an experiment for both businesses and sets an example for other brands to consider how to maximise the potential of online networks to drive sales.