Imagine spending three days connecting with leading innovators in the fashion and apparel industry. That's what the 3D Tech Festival — the world's largest festival of 3D, apparel, and fashion — offers.
Cover Photo: Shudu for Ferragamo, The Diigitals
Here's a recap of the 3D Tech Festival 2020:
This entirely virtual event spanned four days, attracted 5,800 delegates from over 1,000 brands across 94 countries, and featured 60 speakers sharing their expertise in digital transformation within the fashion industry. Organised by Alvanon in collaboration with e-learning platform motif.org, the festival covered four main areas of digital transformation in fashion:
We've summarised the three most crucial aspects of digitization for textile and apparel manufacturers below:
Jason Wang, COO of Alvanon, emphasised the importance of creating authentic 3D garments for digital transformation. To achieve this, manufacturers should establish size and shape standards for their target customer population. Accurate virtual avatars based on these standards can significantly reduce physical sample production, saving time and resources.
"We have an opportunity today with the technology and tools available to us, to build a new future for the apparel industry. One where the digital and physical are closely connected and work together."- Jason Wang, COO, Alvanon
Cameron-James Wilson, CEO/Creative Director of The Diigitals, envisions a future with digital runways as the standard for showcasing fabrics and patterns. Working with freelance 3D product developers can make this a reality. Virtual models like Shudu, created by The Diigitals, demonstrate the potential of digital runways and social media features like Instagram's "shop the look" to streamline sales and presentation.
“I’m all about making things accessible, sharing workflows, and just being open and honest because I want to see this industry achieving its best. I want to see what people can really create with similar sorts of assets.” - Cameron-James Wilson, CEO / Creative Director, The Diigitals
Catherine Cole, CEO of MOTIF, highlighted the importance of continuous upskilling in the fashion industry. Their global skills survey revealed a growing emphasis on digital creation and the need for businesses to adapt to the latest technology and trends. Retraining employees to manage digital libraries, apply data science, support virtual sampling, and use 3D design and collaboration tools is essential for success in this rapidly evolving industry.
“As an industry we need change-agents throughout organisations – individuals, teams, executives who are able to reimagine roles and processes and work differently. This may be a disruptive process. To do that, we need people with a new blend of skills. This is the time to reimagine and reinvent roles – within companies and within careers.” - Catherine Cole, CEO, MOTIF
In Summary
The 3D Tech Festival provided valuable insights into the future of digitization in the fashion and apparel industry. If you're interested in learning more, consider signing up for the 2021 event. The demand for 3D transformation across the fashion industry's supply chain is undeniable, and should be met accordingly for the better future.
