An industry evaluation with fashion journalist and media expert Annabelle Azadé
One of the hardest aspects to nail down about fashion tech is its <i>coolness</i> — so we went straight to the expert. Annabelle Azadé, fashion journalist and founder of Wear the Future, a media platform for fashion technology and sustainability, told the Fashion Mannuscript what she sees happening in this emerging fashion frontier. Here, Azadé talks about the two branches of fashion tech — the utile and the aesthetic — and what is next for the industry.
How did Wear the Future get started?
So Wear the Future is a collective that regroups about 12 to 15 sustainable designers. I’ve been a fashion journalist for more than 10 years, and so when I started being a TV journalist and specializing in fashion tech, I said to myself, “Wow, there’s really something going on here.” I love fashion, so in the back of my mind, I really want[ed] to help designers. I believe fashion designers are kind of like artists. They have a train of thought, but most of the time they don’t really know how to handle the business. And the more I was approaching other designers, the more I realized that some people were trying to find solutions. That’s when I kind of shifted and said to myself, “I don’t only want to be a journalist and interview people, I want to be a consultant and actually help them.” You know, jump on the other side of the fence and actually be an actor of the change.
How did you get interested in fashion?
My parents are antique dealers, so I grew up in a art gallery. I think that’s very important in my life because I grew up in the middle of beautiful objects. So I always had an eye. I was educated to have an eye [for] beautiful things, so fashion kind of came naturally. I always had a lot of fun dressing up and going to a store, getting some new stuff. I was born and bred in Paris, so when I was a teenager I started going to the Paris Fashion Week, and I realized after being in the shows that I really loved it! I think that everybody is drawn into a kind of an art, and I would say that for me, my favorite discipline is fashion. As much as some people love movies or some other people love music — I love music, and I also really love fashion.
What is happening in the world of fashion tech right now?
I think it’s really at its beginning, I would say. I do have clients that are doing amazing 3D printing. It’s working really well, but to get to the next stage, we’re going to need the help of massive companies. They’re old and they want to rejuvenate their clients, so fashion tech is definitely a good way for them to go because they can sign partnerships with them. That’s why I got the opportunity to speak at many conferences in the world in only a year, because I started Wear the Future nine months ago.
It’s also a good moment because the market is not saturated yet, still there is a need for small fashion tech designers and specialty things with the big companies like partnerships. But I think it’s a really good timing. Any car brand, engineering or logistic company, they’re looking to look like they’re cool.
How important is social media to Wear the Future?
<i>Very important</i>. It’s crucial, I would say. NYFW reached out to me on Instagram, some of my clients reached out to me on Instagram, some people who wanted to work for me reached out to me on Instagram. Even media who interviewed me reached out to me on Instagram. So Instagram is the new reality. When you were telling me, like, what is it not to have a physical presence and everything? I would say that Instagram replaces that. You could be on a remote island; if you have great content, people are going to reach out to you on Instagram.
Why do you think people are so interested in fashion tech?
Everybody is fascinated by science fiction, and fashion tech is kind of like the fashion side of it. It’s inspired by Sci-Fi. How can we have spacesuits that we can actually wear on Earth on a daily basis? And that is not too expensive and that has a purpose? So I really like fashion tech as well because it’s at the crossroads of science and art.
To me, in fashion tech, there are two categories. There are technologies that are going to be sold to lots of brands like self-drying fabric or that. On the other hand, you have the beautiful garments that are handmade or 3D printed, or hand-assembled but 3D printed, that could be in a museum. So I think that fashion tech is going to change things, but I don’t think it’s going to be a category, <i>per se</i>. I think its going to integrate within the fashion industry.
This interview was edited for length and clarity.
