Part II of Supply Chain in Fashion The Rubik Model Today, retail is not only about the “what” (product) but about the “how” (experience). It’s a configuration model like the Rubik cube, a flexible model with many possibilities: standard collections, capsules, customization, renting, resale, subscription boxes, and so on. The customer is at the center … More Fashion Goes Tech: The Rubik Model and Patagonia
A few months ago, TFR commented about the merchandise lifecycle and how retailers, specially apparel ones, deal with stock managament. Following the value chain process, this article aims to describe one of the main areas within the business of fashion: Designing. Designing (part 1/2) The Design Department is probably the most creative area within the … More Fashion Goes Tech: Digitization in Retail (3)
This is the second part of my latest call with Richard Chamberlain, Head of Consumer Discretionary research at RBC Capital Markets Europe. The live session was exclusive to RBC clients, but these are the notes from the meeting. You can read the first part here RBC: How have supply chain bottlenecks changed the way fashion … More Fashion Retail Outlook: Expert Call with Alfonso Segura x RBC Capital Markets (part 2)
Vadim Rogovskiy is CEO and co-founder of 3DLOOK, the global leader in AI-first mobile body measuring and fit solutions. Vadim is an angel investor and partner at Geek Ventures, an advisor and mentor at 500 Startups, and a Forbes “30 Under 30” alumni. I discovered 3DLOOK when writing about the fashion technology ecosystem. Then, in … More A few words with Vadim Rogovskiy, 3DLOOK CEO
RBC hosted a very interesting and insightful call last week with Retail Expert Miya Knights, to discuss Amazon and the growth of omnichannel retailing. Miya is co-author of the books “Amazon: How the World’s Most Relentless Retailer will Continue to Revolutionize Commerce” and “Omnichannel Retail: How to Build Winning Stores in a Digital World.” RBC: … More “Amazon and the growth of omnichannel retailing” with RBC x Miya Knights
I met Jérôme 8 years ago, when PLM solutions were not a usual piece in the fashion retail tech ecosystem. I was then in Accenture Strategy and Operations, working in a project to implement integrated planning processes for a fashion retailer. Since then, technology has changed retail for ever. Jérôme Cabanès is 42 years old, … More A few words with Jérôme Cabanès, Director at Centric Software
The Merchandise Life Cycle In Fashion, products tend to have a short product lifecycle due to fast changes in trends and demand. Fast Fashion accelerated the traditional business model (e.g. usually 2 collection per year), creating a perceived obsolescence and making supply chains even more complex in a context of trade liberalization that started in … More Fashion Goes Tech: Digitization in Retail (2)
When I published Fashion Goes Tech, retail was suffering the worst crisis ever: covid-19. Empty streets, no traffic, stores closed. In other words, no footfall, no conversion, no inventory turnover, frozen cash flows, no business. In a business like fashion, it also means that you are increasing inventories and reducing the probabilities of selling it … More Fashion Goes Tech: Digitalization in retail (1)
TFR: What is GFAIVE? Maria Makarova: At its core, GFAIVE is a company focused on simplifying the life of fashion brands and retailers. We built an AI SaaS Platform that combines elements of assortment planning, demand forecasting, and new model sales performance predictions. With the help of our solution, companies can grow their revenue steadily, … More A few words with Maria Makarova, Co-Founder and Strategy Director of GFAIVE
The Fashion Retailer‘s collaborations and network is growing! Since the blog was founded in 2017, we met, talked or chatted with amazing people, mostly executives and founders of fashion technology companies like Nextail, Heuritech or Zliide. Those essential conversations broaden my perspective on how technologies are making businesses more effective and were key when writing … More The Fashion Retailer Tech Ecosystem is growing
I’m thrilled to announce the publication of my second book: Fashion Goes Tech: How Technology is empowering retail businesses 2020 was a difficult year for many of us. We all lived different situations and realities, During 2020, in the middle of the lockdown in Spain, I became a father for the second time, making it … More My New Book! FASHION GOES TECH
Last week, Brooke Roberts-Islam wrote “Zara Meets Netflix” (Forbes). In others words, a business model based on “speed-to-market (fast-fashion), customer centricity and excellent operations” meets the “platform economy”. The article mentions FINESSE, a startup that replaces designers and buyers with data, describing itself as “Zara meets Netflix”. The startup, that raised $4.5 million for AI … More Digital Fashion Platforms: Zara meets Netflix
Digital era, the long tail, streetwear, social media, pure players, business platforms, influencers, liquid design… these are some of the ingredients for cooking this article… Global volatility, from geopolitics to social instability, is the new normal. Companies in all industries need to adapt the way they manage their businesses in an ever changing landscape. Agility … More Influencer Brands
A few words with Rene Fang, iStaging CEO Rene Fang (RF) is the Chief Executive Officer of iStaging Corp. Previously, she held senior leadership positions at Financial and Capital Market companies across Asia and Taiwan building transformational companies and leading new initiatives. The last 2 years, she is leading iStaging to success at first as … More A few words with Rene Fang, CEO of iStaging
Two years ago, TFR included Heuritech as one of the AI startups that were taking the world of fashion by storm. The Paris-based company has been recognized by Vogue, BoF, Forbes, WWD, Elle and partners with Google Cloud, Microsoft AI Factory, NYFTL or La Maison des Startups (LVMH), just to mention a few. Fashion keeps … More A few words with Tony Pinville and Célia Poncelin, Heuritech´s founder and CMO
A few words with Shivang Desai and Chandralika Hazarika, founders of Bigthinx Shivang Desai (SD) is Bigthinx CEO/CTO. Indian. 34 years old. Studied MBA (Finance & Strategy) at Case Western Reserve University, Ohio, USA. Shivang has previously founded three startups: one of the first drone manufacturers in India, a marketing and branding company for medical … More A few words with Shivang Desai and Chandralika Hazarika, founders of Bigthinx
Lauryn Vaughn was born in small town British Columbia and eventually moved to Calgary with her mom, who was a single at the time and also pursuing her Master’s Degree in Education. After high school, Lauryn enrolled in a Bachelor of Commerce at the University of Calgary and interned for Canadian fashion designer, Paul Hardy. … More A few words with The Upside Founder and CEO
William Bernal is the CEO and founder of VIPO Group, a new company that is changing the way people shop in-store and online. He was born in Colombia and moved to France almost two years ago, where he finished his master studies in image and signal processing. William is an electronic engineer with a great … More A few words with VIPO Group CEO and Founder
Nowadays, we are living the “Retail Apocalypse volume 2” (phenomenon that started around 2010 in USA) and this won’t be the last time experts anticipate the end of retail. Stores will survive as described on Coronavirus and Fashion (v1 and v2). “Stores” will emerge again and again, but will we keep using that word? What … More The Future of Stores (1/2)
A few months ago, I interviewed AJ Mak, founder of Chain of Demand, a predictive analytics company that empowers the retail industry to maximize sales and minimize inventory waste with AI-driven sales predictions. Chain of Demand just launched COVID19 Retail Response Tracker that is meant to help businesses better prepare for the upcoming quarters. Retail … More COVID-19 Tracker for the Retail Industry
This article is the continuation of Coronavirus and Fashion (1/2), an overview of the short term strategy to overcome the Covid-19 crisis, the biggest challenge to face. Once the bleeding has stopped, companies will need to adapt their businesses for uncertain times. It will require anticipation, flexibility and agility. It’s time to breathe fresh air … More Coronavirus and Fashion (2/2)
As mentioned in Fashion Retail Safari, New Retail is about new processes, new analytical capabilities, innovation, technology, new store formats, …, that respond to digital generation trends such as experience, sustainability and authenticity. We live in very volatile times – weather extremes, political distruptions (e.g. Brexit) and public health threats (e.g. COVID-19) – and today, … More Tackling Fashion Industry’s Waste Problem
TFR latest post was a sociological perspective on Coronavirus, a virus that has the potential to destabilize the pillars of Modern Life. This is a global threat, the worst challenge since WWII, that will cause the first ever global recession (every country is impacted). Blocking the economy might cause rebellion too. Note that guns and … More Coronavirus and Fashion (1/2)
Platforms or conglomerates business models excel at optimizing resources and reduce financial risks (everything impact on financials such as over-stocking, slower lead-times…). It’s the story of “a basket of eggs or eggs in baskets”. Understanding what is the value proposition and leveraging your key resources and partners is crucial to grow in a sustainable way. … More Fashion Technology Platforms
Last May, the startup 3DLOOK won the third edition of LVMH Innovation awards. The benefits of artificial intelligence and augmented reality were discussed in previous posts, but technology is constantly improving and there is still a very important restriction when buying online: finding the right size. The goal is driving up conversions and reduce ecommerce … More Body Scanning in Fashion
Proud to announce my first publication: FASHION RETAIL SAFARI, a personally curated selection on industry trends, insights and conversations with key opinion leaders that have been posted during 2019 on The Fashion Retail Blog. Fashion Retail Safari focuses on the following trending topics: General Thoughts about the Fashion Industry Customer Experience and Segmentation Fashion and … More Fashion Retail Safari on Amazon
Last 25th of October, I was guest speaker at Innovatours at the Movistar Center in Barcelona. The event revolved around Future Cities & Mobility, Food Innovation & Artisinal Food, Media & Creativity and Fashion. During Fashion Retail Safari, I introduced the main changes the fashion industry is facing, then went thru current trends and what … More Fashion Retail Safari @innovatours
A “Tech” exec to replace a “design” exec as Nike CEO… From Design to Technology When I started this blog the aim was to explain how the creative side – Fashion – merges with the scientific side – Retail – of the business of Fashion or Apparel. The Fashion Retailer Blog. A merge of Fashion … More Fashion pivots to Technology
Ramir De Porrata-Doria is based in Barcelona. In 1992 he majored in Telecommunications Engineering from the Technical University of Catalonia (UPC). In 2000, he majored in Economics and Business Sciences, at the University of Barcelona. In 1997 he finished his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering. He specialized in radiofrequency technologies, remote sensing, and radar. Ramir is today … More A few words with Keonn co-founder and CEO
AJ Mak is 34 years old, raised in Hong Kong and Toronto, studied at Carnegie Mellon University in the US. Worked at one of the largest advertising companies – JWT – before spending 10 years in the apparel industry covering brand management, supply chain management, product development, and sales. Hobbies include basketball, snowboarding, photography and … More A few words with Chain of Demand founder
Reviewing a list of hot topics and trends from 2015 onwards, fashion technology and sustainability are amongst the most popular ones. As commented in The Fashtech Ecosystem: Blockchain, Artificial Intelligence, 3D Printing Augmented and Virtual Reality and Internet of Things are some of the technologies that are changing the way customers shop, interact with the product and brands. Sustainable and Meaningful Fashion Brands … More What if sustainability starts in your closet?
Millennials are driving companies to sustainable practices even if their business model is based on volume, low margins. New generations demand for sustainable products and a visible and transparent value chain: from “sheep to shop”, something that blockchain is already enabling. Another interesting trend to mention is nownership, or the end of ownership as repair and rental … More Circular Economy in Fashion
Joaquin Villalba is the CEO and co-founder of Nextail, a smart platform for retail merchandising. A retail industry veteran, Joaquin has almost two decades of experience in innovation, retail and operations. Prior to Nextail, Joaquin was Head of European Logistics for Zara-Inditex, the world’s largest fashion retailer. In that capacity, he oversaw more than a … More A few words with Nextail Founder and CEO
If you think about what retailers are “reinventing” the fashion retail business and also leading the omnichannel era, you will probably mention Zara, Nike, H&M… and a few niche players like Everlane, Bonobos, Goop or Rent the Runway. Some might mention Amazon, but Amazon Fashion has room for improvement yet… Those companies are going beyond … More Fashion Connect: Bonprix Omnichannel concept
The future of Fashion Retail – New concept stores: finding inspiration in the Grocery industry In my previous job as strategy and operations consultant, I have been involved in many projects concerning grocery retailers in South America and Europe. It was great to see how this industry, with such low margins and high traffic, is optimizing … More The future of fashion store formats
Iván Abad Iglesias lives in Barcelona with his family, he is 40 years old and has more than 15 years of experience in retail. He has practically developed his entire career at Mango, where he became part of the Executive Committee, and a few months ago he began his career as an entrepreneur by launching … More A few words with a Retail expert and founder of Wemuse
What if the question “what is your size” doesn´t make sense any more? If people can scan their bodies, their size would be unique. Economies of scale don´t apply in this business model but customer trends (personalization, sustainability…) are taking a different path than the McDonaldization of fashion (or “one size fits all”). Technology is … More Zozosuit, 3D Sizing and AI to improve customization in Fashion
Global volatility is the new normal and companies in all industries have to adapt and track external factors such as weather or social media. Climate change is not only impacting retail sales (revenues) but also other phases across the value chain like wool or cotton production (costs). Managing supply chain assets like fabrics and textiles … More Apparel Sourcing Trends
United colors of Benetton renews its store concept with a new flasghip store in Padua, Italy. With a completely revamped hi-tech and informal concept that goes beyond the traditional concept of a store to become an urban and contemporary showroom. During a design thinking workshop for a leading fashion retailer, we came up with the idea of including a … More Benetton revamps its store format and customer experience
H&M announced in March 2018, during its quarterly results, a huge problem: $4.3 Billion in unsold clothes. There are many causes of unsold inventory like a wrong collection/product, bad forecasting, wrong allocations, decrease in traffic, wrong prices… But, the trend has changed and the Swedish fashion retailer announced a 9% sales increase (VAT included), 32% … More H&M embraces Fashtech