A 10-fold path for intelligent apparel brands aspiring to go big

The world is talking about wearables and its market is all set to boom in the coming years. Amidst all this, the original 'wearables'-clothes that mankind adopted-have been left quite ignored. While fashion has evolved and is continuously changing, everyday clothing has not seen much change or innovation over the years in terms of function and wearer benefit.

While certain sub-categories of clothing like sportswear and performance wear have witnessed adoption of technology, it has so far not made its way into a consumers' regular clothing, remaining the preserve of a niche set of athletes, fitness and outdoors enthusiasts. But times are changing and technology is making its way into routine apparel-be it casualwear like T-shirts, formal shirts, bottomwear like jeans and chinos, or winterwear.

Brands are fusing technology with fashion to offer consumers a host of functional benefits like anti-viral, anti-stain, anti-odour clothing, jeans that are super-stretchy and winterwear that isn't bulky yet. And they are doing this without compromising on the fashion quotient, giving wearers the optimum mix of style and benefits to suit their lifestyle. It is a relatively new field, where the scope is immense and the potential limitless. If anyone entering this segment plays its cards right, there is no ceiling to how much it can scale up.

How can fashion tech brands do this? Here are the ten points to keep in mind:

1. Know your customers; solve their pain points: As with any product, it begins with the customers and the ideal users of your brand. Knowing them will help you identify the key customer pain points. In an industry like fashion that is primarily focused on style and looks, a brand that addresses pain points like high maintenance cost for premium fabrics and separate maintenance for separate materials will go a long way.

2. One tech doesn't fit all; find the right solution for a specific type: Fusing technology with fabric is perfect, but the technology should not be indiscriminately added to clothing just for the sake of novelty. Look at the kind of apparel and its end-use and choose the technology for it accordingly, to suit the purpose of a particular article of clothing. For instance, stain repellent technology is more suitable for regular wear and formals than socks. Activewear calls for moisture management above everything.

3. Make a little tech go a long way by balancing cost andefficiency: Tobuild on the previous point, pay attention to the value that a particular techwill add to a specific apparel type to maintain a balance between cost andefficiency. Given the same cost, a certain type of tech will add just marginalvalue to a particular end product while drastically increasing the utilityrange for another product. Concentrate on the latter. For instance, addingstain-repellent tech to inners does not do much for the product but addingodour-control will add much more value at the same cost. In contrast, for awhite shirt, stain-repellent tech will add more value than a quick-dry finish.

4. The easier the adaptability, the faster you can scaleup: Always beprepared to grow and scale up. This sounds obvious enough but if the technologyyou are using cannot support your growth, it can turn into a hurdle. Thisimplies when chemicals are chosen for each technology, those that are readilyavailable and easy to process should be selected, and the application processshould be simple enough as well to be done even by an unskilled person.

5. Balance form and functionality: It is tempting to add all thecool technology you have to every product you make. But remember, you cannotsell a space suit for everyday wear! In a similar vein, you cannot sell beachshorts that promise the benefits of winter wear. This is where it becomesextremely important to balance form and function. Style is important, but so istechnology. Both are equally important but some kinds of technology simply donot belong to certain products and vice versa.

6. Quality assurance is great, but it can be a pitfalltoo: Brands liveand die due to their quality. Once you have chosen the chemicals and thetechnology that gives you the quality edge, batch-wise quality assurancebecomes trickier the further you go as the quality parameters for textiles arerelatively simpler and forgiving than chemicals. You need to merge the two withcareful planning, insight and knowledge of both the fields. New testmethodologies and processes have also to be invented and implemented, especiallyif the product is unique and no prior testing criteria exist.

7. The right patron who believes in you can make all thedifference:Fashion technology and intelligent apparel is a relatively new field, and aswith anything new, there is a certain degree of risk that potential investorsassociate with this field. This is where reaching out to the right investorsand supporters becomes extremely important, as the importance of a patron whobelieves in you, your product and your potential cannot be underestimated.

8. Communicate clearly to your customers: Words like 'intelligent apparel'and 'smart clothing' will only sound like buzzwords when their meaning is notcommunicated to consumers, especially in a country like India where people areunfamiliar with tech-infused fabrics. To get early adopters, you need to nameyour tech, so that it is easily understood by a large population whilecommunicating its benefits clearly and unambiguously.

9. Continuous innovation and on-demand improvement: Anything that is good can alwaysbe made better. Look at what your customers are buying and what they love themost, be it a benefit or a particular technology and improve on your existingtechnology to deliver more value and benefits to buyers. Develop new technologydepending on current user demand, not because you can. There is no point inintroducing technology that does not have a demand. That is important to createa ready pool of potential customers.

10. The right vision isalways long-term and always changing:Be clear where you want to go and what you want be and let everything you doplay a role in supporting this vision. This means not being tied down to anyspecific segment or wedded to a particular method. Keep an ear to the ground,keep an eye on your future and be ready to pivot nimbly and take up bettermethods of production, manufacturing and processing, and exploring newchemicals. Look forward to continuous improvement and let every action be inservice to your goal and to making your brand grow.

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