It is hard to believe that 2020 has a silver lining, but it does. Yes, we have been vulnerable and unsure, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. The fact that COVID-19 has forced the fashion industry to rethink how it does business has led to the acceleration and demand for digital. As we continue to shift through challenges towards the next normal, the good news is that in 2021 it is likely that technology will continue to play a critical role in bridging the gap between the old and the new.
2020 tested our resilience. Unrelenting, it has made an impact that will most likely be felt for decades to come. The silver lining has been the acceleration of innovation. Retooling the fashion industry, we have been able to adapt to the new normal and build a more robust outlook that is capable of taking us forward. With each sector showing visible scars, fashion’s saving grace was that it turned to advanced technologies to help them tackle the kind of challenges that we, as an industry, were not prepared for.
2020 has not only been the year of social awakening; we saw a rise in the adoption of various technologies. The superhero of the year, technology has played a critical role in helping the industry, once reluctant to adopt, transform and prosper. No one can deny that technology played an essential role in the fashion industry’s growth since the beginning of the pandemic.
Before the next chapter can begin, it is imperative to review the moments that defined 2020. It is was not all bad; there were fashion stories of resilience and it is these stories that are slowly changing the industry’s vision of what the future of fashion will look like especially when it comes to topics like sustainability and inclusivity. And that change, my friend, can only be a good, no, actually a great thing!
So hold on tight, because the fashion industry is not only destined but is already becoming more intelligent and more automatic, making now the perfect time for fashion businesses to dream big.
Founding editor-in-chief of FashNerd.com, Muchaneta is currently one of the leading influencers writing about the merger of fashion with technology and wearable technology. She has also given talks at Premiere Vision, Munich Fabric Start and Pure London, to name a few. Besides working as a fashion innovation consultant for various fashion companies like LVMH Atelier, Muchaneta has also contributed to Vogue Business, is a senior contributor at The Interline and an associate lecturer at London College of Fashion, UAL.