Amanda Parkes is one of the smarter people standing at the intersection of technology and fashion. An MIT-trained designer, she’s the chief of technology and research at Manufacture NY, a fashion think tank in Brooklyn, NY. Parkes gave an excellent and enlightening interview to the site Business of Fashion, in which she talks about how wearable tech is less about the gadget and more about fashion.
But maybe not “fashion” the way you understand it. Parkes — and most likely everyone else in the garment world — understands “fashion” in the larger sense of the word: the way people wear things. It addresses the relationship between the body and what we put on it, whether that’s a piece of fabric or a doodad:
The first thing is: don’t get caught up in the hype of gadgeteering. The gadgets that you see in the market today represent only a tiny sliver of what is possible. You will not be left behind if you don’t have your brand on a fitness tracking device. Put some time into thinking further ahead, researching what these new technologies could mean for your business inside of fashion.
On the long side, but good provocative reading.
