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[thelifestylesaga]

Regulation vs. Support - Does It Really Matter? Both are About Development Anyway.

Hello y'all!

We have been talking about sustainability and innovation in fashion, and Business of Fashion’s ‘Sustainability’ vertical ran two articles in the past week - one on UK’s crackdown on greenwashing and the other on New York State’s launch of fashion sustainability grants. And while both target the fashion industry, we shall analyze the different approaches they employ to do so. 

The UK aims to protect consumers and push businesses toward truthful marketing, and uses regulatory enforcement like penalties to caution brands to avoid misleading sustainability claims. This means that they are using compliance as the tool for accountability. In contrast, New York governor Kathy Hochul’s initiative is a grant offer which supports innovation and sustainability by directly funding start-ups, farmers, and researchers to create sustainable materials and technologies. This encourages local supply chains and sustainable growth through financial and mentorship support. 

Also, the UK’s approach seeks to prevent exploitation of sustainability as a marketing tool, while the New York government drives the industry forward by directly incentivizing sustainable development. So the latter’s approach can be viewed as a long-term investment in the future of the fashion economy, particularly in a region where that industry’s employment has declined significantly.

And although the UK’s crackdown may result in higher compliance costs for businesses, it could increase transparency and consumer trust in the long term. And New York’s grants could enable the development of new technologies for an economic revamp so-to-speak via job creation, while addressing environmental challenges like textile waste and resource depletion. 

While I think both approaches align with the global push toward sustainability through different strategies - one regulatory, the other developmental - I am a little bit biased towards the New York government’s approach (and I promise it’s not just because I live here).

As usual, let me know your thoughts about this!

Until next time,

Cheers!

http://newhouse.syr.edu

[thelifestylesaga]

Sustainable Fashion Might Not be Sustained

Hello y'all!

In the previous post we talked about the Steve Madden and Trashie partnership, which revealed a nuanced view of sustainability’s impact on fashion, particularly in the e-commerce space. 

On Sept. 12, Vogue published an article talking about the financial impact of integrating sustainability in fashion, with insights from brands like Mara Hoffman and KitX. 

And both cases show how challenging it is for brands to maintain ecological responsibility while navigating the economic realities in the fashion industry.

In Steve Madden’s case, the partnership with Trashie employed a circular economy model where consumers could recycle old apparel in exchange for store credits, reflecting the growing sustainability trend in the fashion industry. However, the success of such initiatives is often limited to large brands with substantial resources, which Steve Madden is. So it can afford to offer credit to consumers and drive sales while also addressing waste reduction.

However, Mara Hoffman and Kit X’s experience reveals the difficulties that smaller, independent brands face when scaling sustainable fashion. Hoffman, known for pioneering sustainable practices, ultimately had to close her label due to a financial strain on operations. Sustainable materials, ethical labor, and environmentally responsible supply chains dramatically raised production costs and priced brands like her’s out of the market. So despite consumer demand for sustainability, fast fashion continues to dominate, offering cheaper alternatives and making it harder for sustainably focused brands to compete.

The intersection of sustainability and e-commerce has its fair share of opportunities and challenges. While e-commerce does allow brands to reach global audiences and integrate recycling, transparency in supply chains, and ethical sourcing into the online shopping experience, independent labels like Mara Hoffman are finding it difficult to maintain profitability on their eco-conscious models more than global brands, like Steve Madden, which can leverage customer loyalty to promote sustainability initiatives in e-commerce.

So I think that although sustainability in fashion is in demand, its economic viability remains uneven for the industry. 

What do you guys think? Let me know in the comments!

Until next time,

Cheers!

http://newhouse.syr.edu

[thelifestylesaga]

Trash(ie) in Fashion

Hello y'all!

Today we're talking about the integration of sustainability into e-commerce and fashion - specifically, Steve Madden’s recent partnership with Trashie, which is just the latter's latest in an ongoing collaboration with retailers like ThirdLove, Bombas, and Walmart.

This recycling initiative comes amidst a growing push toward circular fashion, with Gregg Meyer, chief sustainability officer for Steve Madden, saying that they aim to extend the end-of-life cycle of products by keeping them out of landfills and reducing environmental impact. It enables customers to purchase a Trashie “Take Back Bag” for $20, fill it with unwanted items, and send it back to the company’s recycling facility using a prepaid label. In return, they receive a $25 e-commerce credit for future purchases from Steve Madden.

Trashie’s recycling process categorizes items into over 250 grades based on material and quality, ensuring that up to 95% of the collected items are reused, downcycled, or recycled. The process includes categorizing items into over 250 grades based on material, condition, and recyclability and ensuring that the best possible outcome is achieved for each item. The company has already seen success with its other collaborations in the form of diverting millions of pounds of waste from landfills through its recycling platform.

For Steve Madden, this partnership is a key step toward following the broader trend in the fashion industry where brands are being held accountable for their environmental impact and are turning to circular models to promote sustainability. It also not only incentivizes responsible disposal of goods but also helps in customer retention by rewarding eco-friendly behavior with discounts, driving repeat purchases.

This business model taps into the eco-conscious Gen Z and millennial population by combining e-commerce and sustainability in the fashion industry, by incorporating recycling directly into the purchase cycle. The logistical infrastructure of Trashie’s pre-paid shipping bags to a recycling facility and handling the sorting process also shows how e-commerce can help make circular fashion practices efficient.

Let me know what you think in the comments, guys!

Until next time,

Cheers!

http://newhouse.syr.edu

[thelifestylesaga]

The Mixed Realities of Fashion and Tech

Hello y’all!

For one of our assignments in the Digital Media class, I watched and reviewed a TED talk by Willie Williams about the use of technology to create emotionally and physically immersive experiences. 

And while I’m a little late to the party, I recently came across this article by XR Today which discusses how SYKY, a luxury fashion platform, collaborated with Apple’s Vision Pro to create an app which integrates Mixed Reality (MR) into the retail and fashion world. This app provides immersive experiences which allow users to interact with high-fashion designs like Anrealage's transformative Pyramid Dress through spatial computing. Is this fashion’s new future - merging digital and physical realms? 

For Apple, this app speaks to its ambitions in MR, and signals the company’s somewhat late foray into consumer interaction with fashion and retail. It also opens a door for the tech giant into exploring other such possibilities and applications across industries. 

But more than this, Apple’s Vision Pro 2, which has been rolled back for now, if launched,  will mark a significant milestone for the company and might cement the company’s stronghold in Extended Reality (XR). This might be Apple’s chance to tap into demographics including but not limited to the differently abled and old(er) people or anyone who might not be able to experience what we call everyday things like traveling, sightseeing, or shopping due to certain circumstances. Research into facilitating an emotional and physical experience using interactive digital environments that seamlessly merge with the real world could just be the key that guarantees a future where Apple’s ecosystem could dominate the XR industry, from fashion and retail to entertainment, travel, and education.

And as more platforms like SYKY experiment with using MR in retail and fashion, other sectors will likely follow. If researched, produced, and marketed correctly, XR might hold the key to delivering personalized, immersive, and interactive customer experiences that fundamentally alter how industries like fashion, sports, and even healthcare operate.

Let me know your insights in the comments!

Until next time,

Cheers!

http://newhouse.syr.edu

[thelifestylesaga]

Gaming + Fashion? If this were the 2000's, we'd all be laughing at this collaboration - but it is 2024, it is serious and it is here

'Roblox to Sell Physical Goods Through Shopify Integration' reads the headline for one of Business of Fashion's (BoF) September 6th articles.

Hello y'all!

Today we're going to be talking about the integration of Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) into gaming and fashion.

The gaming world is no stranger to the use of AR and VR, from games like Gran Turismo incorporating VR into GT 7 - “Witnessing the same Gran Turismo 7 we know and love, but now in VR without the hangups felt liberating. Like Arsenal under Mikel Arteta, finally, the potential of virtual reality for driving games on console has been realised,” writes Thomas Harrison-Lord in his opinion piece for Motorsport - to Fortnite providing interactive experiences to its users in the form of virtual concerts (popularly called V-concerts) featuring artists the likes of Travis Scott, BTS, Diplo, and Ariana Grande.

And Roblox - the online game platform and game creation system that allows users to program and play games created by themselves or other users - is already familiar with using VR to branch out of the gaming world. Similar to Fortnite, Roblox’s V-concerts also boast an impressive resume - from Lil Nas X and Zara Larsson to Twenty One Pilots - the platform is accustomed to using Gen AI to create and deliver unique experiences to its users. 

So I see Roblox’s latest partnership with Shopify as an effort to diversify its portfolio and an opportunity for both profit and exploration. According to BoF’s review of a demo video, users would be able to see “a “Buy Now” prompt next to a virtual T-shirt that calls up an e-commerce product page where they can see photos of the physical item, select colours or sizing and make their purchase. Customers will be able to pay using any method accepted in the seller’s online store, according to Shopify. Purchasing will be restricted to users 13 and older.” I believe that Roblox, with its loyal customer base, can help boost Shopify’s sales (and earn commission in return, if they choose to include that in their partnership), while also boosting user activity on the gaming platform using social media and word-of-mouth to market its foray into the world of metaverse fashion. 

BoF’s article states that “The companies said the integration will start to roll out soon, with a larger launch arriving in early 2025.” So it shall remain to be seen whether or not Roblox can indeed successfully leverage VR and what impact, if any, will the partnership make on Shopify’s sales.

Until next time,

Cheers!

http://newhouse.syr.edu

[thelifestylesaga]

Hello everyone!

My name is Manaswini (affectionately known as Wini)!

I am a Magazine, News and Digital Journalism student at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, Syracuse University.

In the past, I have worked as a content strategist for GalleryRa, an art and heritage NGO in Ahmedabad, India and as a freelance content/copy writer for several clients ranging from EdTech start-ups to academic institutions and Ad/Digital agencies. I started my blog in 2017, and have since amassed a loyal readership of over 7000. You will usually find me either reading, networking, or searching for my next travel destination.

As a journalist, my area of focus is the intersection of fashion, travel, sports and psychology, and as a student of the Trendspotting in Digital Media class, I hope to learn how we can incorporate XR (including but not limited to AR, VR, and MR) in the world of journalism and storytelling.

Cheers!

http://newhouse.syr.edu