Performance and Wearable Technology - Case Study Example

Impact of Technology to the Fashion Industry By + Performance and Wearable Technology in the Fashion Industry Introduction Performance and wearable technology is a term used to define products that a person has to wear for a specified duration, significantly improving the performance of the individual’s experience as they wear the product (Fufezan, 2009, n.p.). These products have to contain wireless connectivity and advanced circuitry. Further, these products need to have a minimal level independent capability to process physiological information. Performance and wearable technologies have five categories of applications (SNS, 2013, 12). The first is the wellness and fitness category. Products that are both wearable and smart gadgets are used to monitor the emotions and the activity of the user (Gaimster, 2012, 170). The second is the medical and health care category. In this category, the devices require the approval of the FDA or an equivalent body, relative to the country in which the products are on sale. These devices assist in monitoring the user’s vital signs as well as the augmentation of the wearer’s senses (Editorialist, n.d., n.p.). The third is the military and industrial category. In this category, the performance and wearable technology has the ability to transmit and receive real-time data in both industrial and military environments. The fourth category is infotainment. Products under this category have the ability to transmit and receive real-time information for purposes of entertainment as well as espouse the enhancement of the wearer’s lifestyle (SportTechie, n.d., n.p.). Effects of Performance and wearable technology to the society Performance and wearable technology has diverse effects on the society (Gaimster, 2012, 176). To understand these effects, the paper herein shall examine them by assessing the different categories of performance and wearable technology as provided above. Effects on Wellness and Fitness Performance and wearable technology has contributed considerably to the development of fitness and wellness, especially through the devices that assist in monitoring an individual’s physical development (Scaturro, 2008, 471). The demand for Performance and wearable technology products in this category comes from professional athletes, managers of corporate wellness programs as well as consumers of recreational fitness. With more people seeking to become fit and improve the quality of their lives, Performance and wearable technology devices play a major role by helping them monitor their advancement as they train, as well as ensuring that they stay safe and that they do not strain (MENA Report, 2014, 4). More people are purchasing Performance and wearable technology clothing and devices. Over a period of three years, companies such as Adidas, Amer, Nike, Under Armour and GNC have increased their revenues, leading to an overall increase in revenue of 10% in the industry (Editorialist, n.d., n.p.). This indicates that more people are undertaking fitness and wellness programs. In addition to that, there are more than 230 million installs of fitness applications Effects on Health care and the medical field Performance and wearable technology devices have improved the medical field as well as the health care industry as a whole. Aside from reducing the costs of health care by enabling people to maintain healthy lifestyles by practicing, performance and wearable technology have made it easier for doctors to detect defects in the human body on time (SNS, 2013, 12). Smart glasses and head ware are increasingly being used in hospitals to manage diseases such as diabetes through a label reader, educating patients, accessing patient records and improving emergency responses. Further, they have enabled complex activities such as surgery and hearing augmentation to become relatively easier. Health care practitioners can treat inner injuries like brain injury with better technology (May, 2013, 7). Effects on entertainment/infotainment With the advent of technology came the manufacturing of smartphones. Of all the categories of performance and wearable technology, this category is the one that has been exploited the most (SportTechie, n.d., n.p.). It is estimated that almost half a billion smartphones were shipped in the year 2011 alone. Projections indicate that smart phone manufacturers will ship more than 1.2 billion smartphones annually by 2016. The number of people using smartphones keeps increasing every year, while smart phone technology keeps advancing (Editorialist, n.d., n.p.). Application developers ensure that with every new smart phone, new applications come into the market. As the number of smart phone owners increases and the smart phones fast turning into an information hub for their users, analysts foresee a situation where new devices will enter the market with the ability to connect to smart phones and exchange data with them (Scaturro, 2008, 474). Smart glasses and smart watches are already sharing data with smart phones, case in point being the i-Watch by Apple Inc. The number of people with access to video games has grown tremendously over the last ten years. All over the world, there are more than 35 million and 77 million registered X-box and PlayStation users respectively. This market has taken advantage of the opportunity for developing devices for augmented reality such as smart glasses and heads-up displays, which have enhanced the gaming experience (MENA Report, 2014, 4). Effects on industry and military In the industry, Performance and wearable technology has been applied in the development of heads-up display especially used in the production lines. The employees can know with relative ease the process of production aside from what they should expect as the process of production goes on. In warehousing and logistics, hand-worn terminals are evidence of performance and wearable technology. Further, the development of smart clothing has aided manufacturing companies to have the ability to track the location of employees as well as detect leakages of industrial gases in the premises (Editorialist, n.d., n.p.). The hand-worn terminals will form the majority of Performance and wearable technology products in the industrial sector according to experts (AP Online, 2014, 12). Further, they forecast the growth rate of the wireless device market in industrial applications to be at a compound rate of 18% between 2011 and 2015 (NPD Group, 2014, n.p.). In the military, several programs such as the FFW for the US, IAS for Israel and the FIST for the UK have been developed. These militaries, along with a handful others, have developed these programs to track the training of their personnel. The military has developed HUDs that help in the provision of information concerning routes and maps, as well as improving a soldier’s situational awareness. Smart clothing support these programs. They work by sensing and transmitting physiological parameters like body temperature and blood pressure. These clothing also adjust the temperature of the clothing accordingly (Scaturro, 2008, 478). Effects of Performance and wearable technology to the fashion industry Traditionally, the fashion sector and the technology sector were deemed to be incompatible. People had not given much thought to aesthetically pleasing accessories that contain built-in technology. This is not the case today, as manufacturers of luxury clothing brands have teamed up with technology developers to come up with clothing and clothing accessories fitted with different technological abilities to suit the needs of the user (Fufezan, 2009, n.p.). Impact of Technology to the Fashion Industry The fashion industry has always attracted considerable interest from people, with human beings developing an interest in different types of dressing for different occasions (Inside FMM, n.d., n.p.). The improvement of the technology in this sector has helped the fashion sector to develop tremendously. The improvements in the technology have revolutionized fashion in every part of the world. In this paper, we shall asses the history of technology in the lifestyle and fashion industry, the technology that is currently in use in the industry as well as the future trends that the lifestyle and fashion industry will most likely experience from technological improvements. History of technology in the fashion industry Archaic technology was used to create clothing from centuries ago. This technology was constant for a long time, until well into the 20th Century when technological improvements brought about tangible changes to the fashion industry (Khan , 2014, n.p.). The late Victorian era saw the development of a regenerated fibre called the Rayon. The development of synthetic fibre took place in the period between 1930 and 1950. Chemists such as Julian Hill from Dupont developed the initial superpolymer fibre in 1930 (McClaud, 2010, 152). Acrylics such as polyacrylonitriles and polyester, polyamide (Nylon), polyurethanes and polyolefins like Lycra and Spandex became considerably popular in the post war period. Wallace Carothers gained popularity in the fashion industry for inventing the Nylon (Pasricha & Kadolph, 2009, 122). Julian Hill in his lab. By the turn of the century, designers were adding Spandex or Lycra to other fibres such as acetate and viscose (Seymour, 2008, 61). These fabrics were easier to manufacture, because advanced machines were in use for mass production. Fashio lines that entered the market include RocaWear, FUBU, Hugo, Sean John and Tommy Hilfiger that appealed to the portion of the society that were affiliated with the hip-hop lifestyle, especially in the United States (Quinn, 2010, 42). Designers and their marketers adopted technology as a way of reaching the consumers. However, with the revolution that brought about the internet, designers have become capable of researching for new designs from online sources (Smart fashion, n.d., n.p.). Aside from research, designers have used the internet to advertise their products on websites run by their companies or by hired publicity agents, advertising and marketing companies. Technological advancements has contributed immensely to the ability of cloth producers to produce in massive quantities to satisfy the growing demand for clothing (Pasricha & Kadolph, 2009, 127). Current and future trends of technology in fashion The fashion industry took a considerably long time to adopt new technology in production, sales and advertising. This slowness to react to technological advancement has been a major factor in the devaluation of the fashion industry and its poor performance in many markets, especially the emerging markets and markets in developing countries. Fashion has only recently witnessed the complete adoption of advanced technology in product development, distribution, manufacture, advertising and marketing (Edwards, 2008, 45). There are various ways that technology has been adopted in the lifestyle and fashion industry in the contemporary world. Technology use in advertising and marketing The advent and constant development of the internet has provided manufacturers of clothing to share their new designs with the consumers. Today, every major fashion brand has a running website that it constantly updates. These websites contain information on the products that these fashion lines have always produces as well as the products that they currently produce. The use of websites has become increasingly popular especially among the young consumers of apparels. Websites act as a one-stop shop for all the needs of a consumer, and most websites allow consumers to apply for purchases through the websites (Fashion Future, n.d., n.p.). The development of social networking websites has also helped players in the fashion industry to market and advertise their products online. Facebook, for instance, allows users to open pages where they can post all the information on new products and products that were previously produced by specific organizations (Wang, & Chen, 2014, 2689). Twitter allows its users to have twitter handles through which they can interact with their followers and arrange for business transactions. Social networking websites provide for advertisement space on their interfaces, where users can see fashion products as they use these websites. These developments have given manufactures and distributors of apparels a cheap and reliable way of reaching the highest possible number of potential buyers from different places in the world (McClaud, 2010, 158). Use of Technology in sales In history, people traditionally visited stores physically to purchase a clothing item of their preference. However, technology provides the different players in the fashion industry with a better and more economical way of effecting sales to customers. With the development in technology, online stores came to existence. Today, the biggest online store is Amazon Inc. Other online stores include eBay and Ali Baba. Fashion houses and designers use these online stores to sell their products to buyers from any part of the world. The buyer visits an online store and selects the products that they wish to purchase. Payment is then done through the internet, where the consumer provides their credit card details to the administrators of the online store, who then ship the products to them (Benedetto, 2012, 106). The use of online stores to effect sales is a popular trend (FT, n.d., n.p.). The advantages of online selling are that it saves the consumers time to physically go shopping for apparels and the time that one would spend fitting and selecting among the options available. In addition to that, fashion designers and large companies that manufacture apparels have taken advantage of the presence of online stores to break into markets in which they do not have physical presence. An example is Louis Vuitton, a luxury brand that produces high quality apparels for the niche market. Louis Vuitton products are expensive as well as attractive (Mackinnon, 2013, 1025). The company commands the second largest share of the market in China. Louis Vuitton has made in-roads into other Asian markets as well. However, the company does not stock its products with any other stores other than its own. The number of stores that Louis Vuitton owns is not sufficient to supply the great demand that Louis Vuitton products have globally. In that case, buyers apply for these products on online stores, and after payment is complete, their orders are delivered to them wherever they may be in the world (Edwards, 2008, 48). Use of Technology in production Companies that produce apparels have involved technology in their production for a shorter period compared to manufacturers in other sectors. In fact, fashion design and production has always been regarded as an art. In recent history, manufacturers of apparels have increasingly adopted technology in the production of apparels. The inclusion of technology in production of apparels occurs in different ways (Ames, 2008, 103). First, the apparel industry has improved the technology it uses for its manufacturing. So that they satisfy the high demand for apparels in the world, manufacturing companies have increased their capacity through the use of state-of-the-art technology machines and software. The latest trend in the inclusion of technology in production is in the manufacture of wearable technology. Wearable technology refers to fashion items with enabled technology (sensors) that can perform tasks such as measure the rate at which the heart of the wearer beats, their blood pressure, the steps that they take during walks, the amount of weight that they lose and the rate at which they are losing weight (Fortunati, Katz & Riccini, 2003, 73). Fashion brands produce these items in response to the increased desire by people to manage their health, in the advent of diseases that affect people due to unhealthy habits in diet and other aspects of lifestyle. Nike’s FuelBand (Photo courtesy of Nike.com) Google has produced the Google Glass (modelled below). These developments have revolutionized the lifestyle and fashion industry, with people subscribing to apparels with wearable technology in large numbers. Companies in the fashion industry that produce wearable technology apparels have recorded considerable profits on this venture. This indicates that the fashion industry has finally adopted technology. Future trends in the incorporation of technology in fashion(Photo courtesy of The Guardian) Technology changes rapidly. What people subscribe to today may be obsolete in a few years to come. The same case applies to technology (FT, n.d., n.p.). However, the technology of the future holds considerable promise for the lifestyle and fashion industry, as shall be highlighted below: 3D Printing 3D printing has become a subject of wide-spread debate in fashion circles. Financial analysts have projected the 3D printing industry to be worth an approximated $3.1 billion by the year 2016. These projections will most likely double in the next four years to follow. In the future, printing on apparels will take place in 3D format. 3D prints will enable people interested in fashion to have their own prints on an instant basis through personal printers. 3D printers will enable designers of apparels to create scale models displaying the clothes that they have designed, therefore exploiting the limitless advertising opportunities that will be available (Ames, 2008, 103). Use of Metadata Consumers of fashion items and potential consumers engage in interactions online. Their information gets stored on various databases across the World Wide Web. When fashion designers and producers get access to these databases, it would not be difficult to study the preference patterns of potential consumers (Smart fashion, n.d., n.p.). The analysis of these databases will provide invaluable information to the producers and designers of fashion wear concerning the products that bear the highest success possibility, judging by the trends of the day (Benedetto, 2012, 101). The fashion industry will transform into a custom-oriented industry, where most consumers of fashion items will have their fashion items made according to their requirements. Improvements in wearable technology Wearable technology has taken the fashion world by storm. However, in the future, the manufacture of fashion items that have wearable technology on them will go a step higher with more sophisticated technology (Fortunati, Katz & Riccini, 2003, 73). Analysts envision the manufacture of clothing items that change their nature with changes in the weather, or with the change in the environment of the wearer. This technological development will mark the end of fabric use as a static resource in the manufacture of clothing. Fashion items will become more interactive in future (Mackinnon, 2013, 1026). An Optic dress by Richard Nicoll (Courtesy of Fashion GPS) Louis Vuitton entry inclusion of performance and wearable technology in its production Louis Vuitton is one of the world’s leading fashion apparel producers (NPD Group, 2014, n.p.). This research focuses on Louis Vuitton because of the principles that the organization has regarding production and marketing (Nagasawa, 2008, 3). Secondly, the organization has made substantial in-roads in the Asian apparel market aside from commanding a substantial share of the apparel market in China. China is number two market for luxury goods in the world with regard to sales figures. However, the country faces the challenge of a significant portion of its population ageing. With this challenge, more residents and citizens of China are concerned with their health (Scharoun, 2009, 87). The company has not remained behind in the production of clothing with performance and wearable technology. The company has a wearable MP3 player in one of its shirts (Gajitz, n.d., n.p.). This shirt allows the user to listen to music anywhere they go, with the MP3 player knitted in the seams of the shirt. However, the luxury fashion line only produced thirty copies of this technologically advanced apparel, therefore it did not include it in its main plans for production. The organization needs to involve itself more with producing clothing and accessories with performance and wearable technology (AP Online, 2014, 12). The main reason is that such involvement will give the company a competitive edge in the apparel market. With Nike, Ralph Lauren and others constantly innovating their products in the same line, Louis Vuitton will ned to produce equally, or even better, appealing products for its global customers. Louis Vuitton already has a globally acclaimed marketing strategy. The organization bases its marketing strategy on ‘the 4 Ps’, which are Product, Place, Price and Promotion (Nagasawa, 2008, 2). With regard to Product, the company seeks to produce products of high quality constantly. The quality control that the organization works at involves ‘conformance to requirement’ and ‘fitness for use’. The organization already produces goods of high quality, which is why it has become a favourite of many fashion enthusiasts (Scharoun, 2009, 54). The company can address the needs of its consumers in China and other markets alike by including technology such as sensors to its products. Louis Vuitton produces luxury necklaces, bracelets and watches as part of its large production portfolio. The company can appeal to a wider market by producing necklaces, bracelets and watches that have sensors to aid the consumer as they keep track of their health (May, 2013, 7). The organization’s principle on quality should hold when such devices are being produced, so that the consumers can have value for the money they spend on such products. The principle of price is sensitive to the organization. Louis Vuitton prices its products based on the degree to which the consumer would enjoy using such a product (Nagasawa, 2008, 3). By venturing into products with performance and wearable technology, the organization should adopt the notion that such products have health benefits, and as such would be needed with people who usually cannot afford luxury products. To maximize sales, the company should adopt a pricing policy that both reflect on the quality that it produces as well as the service that the technologically advanced accessories promise to offer. The company should appeal to a larger segment of the society with new technologically advanced accessories (Hoffmann & Maniere, 2012, 43). With regard to the Place, Louis Vuitton has carved a niche in the fashion industry as a brand that can sell in any market. The company’s products sell all over the world in special high-end stores that it owns (Nagasawa, 2008, 8). However, the company records most sales in the world’s more established economies such as Asia, especially China. With more people in China becoming increasingly concerned with their health, it is imperative that the company establishes a more solid presence in this economy by producing items with performance and wearable technology (NPD Group, 2014, n.p.). The small number of Louis Vuitton stores should stock these valuable pieces, to indicate that the item is as special as other products that the company produces. Louis Vuitton has most of its advertisements featuring well-known personalities (Nagasawa, 2008, 13). With the production of performance and wearable technology enabled accessories. Louis Vuitton, after producing products with performance and wearable technology, should use celebrities, especially in sports, to advertise the products. This will give potential consumers a feeling of connection with those celebrities, and they will desire to have the same level of fitness as those athletes. With this proposed strategy, Louis Vuitton stands to increase its market share in the global apparel industry by diversifying its production and appealing to a wider segment of the global society (AP Online, 2014, 12). Conclusion Different fashion houses, especially world-renowned luxury brands, are increasingly adopting performance and wearable technology in their production. Already, numerous fashion shows are organized around the world for performance and wearable technology-oriented fashion houses where they display their ability to combine technology with high fashion (SNS, 2013, 12). Fashion houses are involving technology companies in the development of smart clothing with unique and creative features that impress the user (May, 2013, 7). In future, the market for performance and wearable technology will become stronger. Considering the fact that every clothing company that has included performance and wearable technology in its production has become profitable, more companies will enter the market to have a share of the profits. For instance, by widening its portfolio into the development of performance and wearable technology in its accessories, Nike recorded an 11% growth in revenue in 2012, up from a -1% growth in the previous year. This shows that these technological improvements will change the fashion industry not just because of the creativity, but also because of the health benefits that the products offer (Hoffmann & Maniere, 2012, 38). References Ames, A. (2008). Fashion Design for a Projected Future. 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