Is Fashion Falling Out Of Fashion?

This week Interbrand released their 17th annual survey of the world's 100 most prestigious brands. Unfortunately, one of the key points of the survey was the slowdown in demand for fashion and the increasing demand for technology brands such as Apple, Samsung, Google and Microsoft, which all sit within the top 10.

Fashion labels which proved to have the biggest struggle were Prada, which dropped from 69th place (in 2015) to 81st place, and Hugo Boss, which didn't even get a look in this year. Burberry dropped by 9%, as did Tiffany & Co, however high street brands such as Zara (+19%) and H&M (+2%) did go up in the world.

The San Antonio Express reported that "nearly a third of the list is composed of automotive and technology companies", which poses the question: Are fashion labels falling out of fashion? Or do they just need to up their game just a little bit further? 

With the likes of see-now-buy-now and more interactive shopping experiences, such as the Ted Baker window display in collaboration with Google, it's proven that the fashion industry is becoming more innovative by the season, however could it be something else that the consumer is now demanding?

Like wearable technology? 

We can already see glimpses of this flowing through the catwalks. For example, Hussein Chalayan partnered with Intel for the S/S17 season, dressing models with connected accessories which sent biofeedback to project their stress levels on the wall next to them. It's relevant and it really connects with today's society who are busier than they ever have been before. Whether it sells or not is a story for another time, however with the results from the Interbrand survey, it is clear that consumers are becoming bored and they are ready for technology.

So, what do you think? Are you ready for wearable technology or just preferring to spend your money elsewhere these days?

Georgia.xo