Is smart wear the future of fashion?

First our work, then bedrooms and kitchen, and now technology has crept into the shelves of our wardrobe with great stealth. Though it has been a slow win, designers and consumers are already seeing ‘smart wearables’ as the future of fashion. It is better late than never, they rightly say.

“You are getting a lot more functionality out of it. It appeals to different aspects of one’s life and it enhances it. If your watch can take a picture when you want like your phone does right now, your watch will become a part of a lifestyle with functionality,” said Narendra Kumar, Creative Director, Fashion, Amazon.in.

Both designers and consumers are slowly adapting them for its multi-benefits infused technology. Whether it is the Ironman watch or the Apple Watch that controls our smartphones or the new Nike shoes that record the number of calories burnt, they are becoming a personal favourite for tech savvy and fashion savvy alike.

“It is more easy-to-go, more comfortable and you can wear it anywhere and everywhere,” said Kiran Kheva, Fashion Director of Indian Federation for Fashion Development (IFFD).

“As a consumer, I can tell you that smart wear industry is changing a lot. People have been wearing smart wears for quite a while. It has a big boom and it is the young people (20-25 years-old) who are into it,” said Vignesh, consultant, Weber Shandwick.

But one must not ignore the fact that the reach has not been wide yet. Only the metro cities have embraced it so far.

“For the Indian market it is at its initial stages. There is a lot of curiosity. For the new users there are two things to look at; the aspect of wearing something new as a novelty and second is to look at the functional aspects,” said Narendra.

He also added that Indians have a great appetite for technology itself and this will take the market forward.

“The market is not good as we are still at the stage of smart phone adoption. But it has the potential to grow,” said Anshul Gupta, Research Director, Gartner India.

Kiran feels as fashion in itself comprises a very small sector in India, hence anything related to fashion will take time to establish a stable market here.

“It hasn’t been able to expand fully. The government as well as the consumers are at fault. There is very little investment in this sector. To start with, a change in mindset is what is needed. The investors need to take the fashion industry more seriously,” said Kiran.

Though Kiran said the cost is not a problem as people have forever invested in big brands like Gucci and Louis Vuitton for it is all about quality and marketing the brand, consumers feel that cost might be the biggest challenge smart wears face in the Indian market.

“When these innovative products are launched in the market, they are kind of expensive and only people with certain niche can afford them,” said Vignesh. He added that the best solution is to create a trend. With time the cost would reduce as it gets more consumers.

Apart from these, the next big challenge is to make them indigenously to reduce the cost and make it more affordable and suitable to Indian taste. But Indian fashion industry is facing a dearth of creativity.

“We don’t have technology. We are often trying to copy the international fashion market, the colours, the trends and the style. Also, right now not many designers are willing to take the risk,” said Kiran.

Talking about technology is never complete without talking about safety risks. It is as if it comes as a dowry with it. Whatever might it be, but one cannot do away with it totally for people have become more cautious after the recurring battery blasts incidents of mobile phones. And smart wears are nothing but power stored in a smart and fashionable wear.

“I have not got any bad experiences with smart wears yet but it can’t be denied that there is safety risk involved like if there are some technical issues because of water or sweat. That is something we should be very particular about. Something as negligible as dust can even create adverse effects. There should be enough safety measures followed while using it and while not using it also,” said Vignesh.

Image credits: sonymobile.com