Web 3 is about building platforms in a decentralized environment, so data & other pieces of information can be shared in a transparent & secure way. The blockchain & especially the bitcoin blockchain, are operating in a new environment. Web 3 gives the ability, like Sandbox or Decentraland, to create environments where you can take your information with you in a secure way.

One of the most significant differences of Web 3 is that the underlying incentive mechanism for participants can be much more aligned than in its previous versions. The created economy in Web 3 can be shared by all participants, making it more sustainable. And it's important to take the owned item with you.

You can prove whether something is unique through the blockchain in the digital world. One of the upcoming challenges is that people historically didn't place a high degree of value on digital items.

E.g. Dress X: Is a digital clothing company that only makes digital garments. The company is more sustainable and inclusive as it can offer an article of clothing to any human. The industry of digital clothing opens up new opportunities for creators.

Web 3 extends ourselves into digital, and it's something global. But all our current regulations are local, so that's still an open question. On the other hand, it can also be seen as a chance to introduce innovation. Everything in the metaverse is investible from an investment standpoint. For example, there will be new avenues of financial services, like real estate, metacommerce, trading, & loans.

The fashion industry is a $2.5 trillion industry & this number could double within the next few years due to the amount of accessible digital fashion. Especially, a metacloset could expand one's physical closet without polluting the environment. Wearable fashion will be the largest category in the NFT space.

Fashion is an aesthetic identity. Fashion in the real world is about personal identity & that will translate into the digital world too, so, naturally, people gravitate towards that. A challenge for brands that seek to enter Web 3 will be to accept that they can control certain aspects but not everything. But a real opportunity for brands is that the metaverse's early adopters are pretty different from the usual demographic for luxury brands. They are more global, tech-savvy & experimental. 

Circularity is essential for any industry & in fashion, it has a huge impact. And it's not so much important where we start to implement it, but more that we start doing it. We have to look at the next generations to see what's possible. There has also been an undeniable consumer shift towards sustainability, circularity & consumption. Consumers now demand that brands & media outlets take responsibility & commit to sustainability. But that's something that can't happen overnight.

Upcycled products & companies that operate in the circular economy space are in the spotlight. Another point is that Millenials & Gen Z are starting to discover brands through brand partnership in metaverse 1.0 platforms, like Roblox. The digitization & dematerialization of physical objects, like animation, is also an opportunity. Other possible business models will be using digital clothes instead of physical garments for photoshoots, on-demand manufacturing, & digital tailors.

People will start valuing digital things increasingly as our lives become more digital. Participating communities will make the metaverse sustainable. It will also be interesting to see how the metaverse can generate economic value without the constraints from the real world. 

NFTs have layers, the first was solving the problem of ownership. Now NFTs are generating income for people. Metaverse will be a combination of different universes. NFTs will be transferrable to the different digital realms within the metaverse.

Avatars will provide a freedom that doesn’t exist in the social constrictions of real life.

Circularity needs a digital twin- makes traceability much easier. Daniela Ott from Aura Blockchain predicts 2/3 of the luxury revenue will come from physical luxury. 10-20% of luxury revenue will be circular with blockchain technology, and the rest from purely virtual products (NFTs, or otherwise).

Gaming in fashion has gone past the stereotypical association of a “boys bedroom”, to a virtual engaging experience.

NFTs are evolving- Steven Vasilev from RTFKT tells about his 3D models (avatars) that can move between different spaces, and whose digital garments you can actually redeem physically. People can own a portion of the licenses and link them to google and zoom to appear as their avatar in these spaces. 

Why have digital twins of physical garments instead of just 3D virtual models of the clothes? The pandemic’s limitations- such as not being able to go to a store and see the fabric moving and feeling it, or samples stuck at a warehouse, pushed virtual innovation to create digital twins that can be moulded and actually used- not just looked at.

Digital twin advantages: provenance, traceability, transfer of ownership, record of maintenance, e-warranty. 

In metaverse you express yourself through your look and clothes. A way of interact, a trophy cabinet, an extension of your passions- which can be traded and sold.

Digital fashion is more sustainable- some brands prioritise their brand image rather than their actions. In the future we will sell more digital items than we do physical, says Steven Vasilev, and make it made-to-order, like it's already starting to happen.

RTFKT: you can get an NFT and redeem multiple items from the same NFT, keeping the value on the NFT. 

There’s a huge cultural disconnect now when luxury houses are jumping into the gaming sphere, without knowing quite how to do it in an authentic way. A lot of the real interesting innovation is happening with small creators on discord.

The future is more sustainable, blockchain will be proof of stake rather than proof of work. 

We will increasingly see luxury companies partnering up with virtual influencers/creators such as Ruby, who can help them better integrate into this new sphere.

Effectiveness of mixed reality experiences- the number of returns is significantly lower for people who first try the product virtually vs those who have the product be shipped to their house directly (based on furniture retailer research).

They're looking for inclusivity, diversity & sustainability. They also want to see a more conscious & eco-friendly production. And we can see that they're adding pressure to the brands, which is needed for the industry to change. Many emerging brands are focusing on these aspects & even bigger brands are now taking action.

Products begin with raw materials & certain stages, like the dying process, are invisible to brands & consumers. Therefore, brands & suppliers need to work together to understand these processes & create circularity. Consumers, & also governments want truth to materials & truth to process that reconnects our relationship to products that we're purchasing. Reconnecting with the consumer in that way can lead to more loyalty, honesty, & transparency, like Chloé, & that creates value & luxury.

The Covid-19 crisis slowed down the figures & pace to gender equality for women. The years to close the gender gap are actually increasing after Covid. At Chloé, we don't necessarily have this problem since we're a fashion house created by a woman for women. But we wanted to push this topic globally, and we're putting women forward in everything we do, especially through sourcing in our supply chain. 

We have designs for disassembly, recycling, & repairing, but they have their limits in terms of aesthetics. We learned to go beyond these limits by working with people from fashion. When we confront our partners, we talk about contemporary, performance, & luxury to get an idea of how the market thinks. The most challenging task is to replace luxury materials since luxury brands are expected to deliver the same quality continuously. 

There has been a real push for the digital fashion industry & it has been actually going on for years. CLO itself has been part of this industry for over ten years. With the new technology, designers can visualize & develop new collections & styles & make decisions based on a 3D garment. So there's no need for countless physical prototypes. The technology is far enough to simulate& create garments & accessories in 3D, especially at the early design stages.

In our journey to becoming a purpose-driven organization, it's essential to be transparent, accountable, & to collaborate. A good way to show this was to have an external certification. And the B-Corp certification was, for us, the most complete. We hope to inspire others since the B-Corp certification is not very popular among luxury fashion brands. For us, it was a good tool to frame our transformation, accelerate our effort, & involve our stakeholders, supply partners, & consumers. We now have an external sustainability advisor, and the company status includes our mission. The main goal is to change our products & we want to add a meaningful impact on people & the planet. 

ACBC: One of the biggest challenges is shifting a brand's attention from only thinking about a material's origin to embracing the whole life cycle. It's essential to think about the ingredient's circularity and circularity as a whole.

CLO: It's the mindset of people, as they're set in their ways & comfortable with not changing. Change is not just about one part, but it requires everyone to make it happen. 

Chloé: It's the cultural change of mindset and traceability. 

Front Liner: It's being accountable for the production line. As a new brand, it has been easy to imprint my voice on a collection, but we have to understand the footprint of the clothing. There's a lot of pressure. 

FibreTrace: It's changing hearts & minds. We have to understand where materials come from, the processes behind them & how we can influence them. It requires turning ambition into action. It's difficult to do when brands in this industry benefit from this giant production engine that they didn't have to engage with over the last 30 years. Brands & their suppliers now have to dig deep into their value chains. It's an ample opportunity and a challenge because it requires education & the willingness to change. 

We need to start with educating the brands first rather than consumers. Merchandising & sales don't know how the products are made, so there's a deep level of education missing. It's the brand's responsibility to fill that gap. Otherwise, brand's will lose consumers to greenwashing & lack of trust.

There's a lack of concrete rules in terms of impact measurement & communication. Everybody should talk the same language, but we're currently missing a uniformized methodology.

As we know, fashion has a big impact on these SDGs. The participating companies use these goals as a framework/guideline for their work. But it needs to be said that these goals have to be tangible for companies & brands to implement.

They’re publishing a report at the end of the year. Comfort said that they do it through their launched innovations & by influencing their customers life’s with the products. 

It is important for the disabled community to be able to dress how anyone else can, but just adapted to their physical needs. Not just comfort-oriented clothing.

How does democratisation relate to inclusivity and design?

Prioritising representation vs. characterisation

Making sure the metaverse is for everyone, not elitist like the fashion world irl. No front row, but a shared experience for everyone.

Non-binary avatars and digital garments that will mould to any body, wether male or female, or neither. This also has to do with who creates the software, therefore it is important to collaborate with inclusive creators when creating software that can really adapt to a wide group of people.

Creativity, kinship and self-expression are at the core of digital fashion in the metaverse. Not trying to replicate or mirror real life.

 

For digital fashion, trying to bring the customer into the shopping and brand experience through VR. Building a relationship with them through knowing them, by gathering data and analytics. Build a vocabulary together. Higher collaboration potential with customers.

Craftsmanship doesn’t need to be lost as we move into a more digital world. Moving in the direction of sustainability means also maintaining and safeguarding the crafts and special pieces created by those communities who are specialised in them. This leads into the concept of reducing consumption– having a special piece that you cherish in your closet. Traditional craftsmanship can be met with technology as well– i.e.: poncho with 3D printed elements.

From 50% to 85% percent is recycled at ISKO

Global recycled certificate- QR codes. Shopper can trace the journey from its origin.

Would like to leave cotton by beginning of 2022 to only recycled fabrics

Cotton and polyester is made into recycled fabrics by their own facility. Their provider is their parent company SANKO.

Repair goes first then recycle 

All divisions have sustainability as a KPI

Management outlook ISKO: better to do nothing than to do something wrong. Wait for research and test results before just doing something.

Garments should have longevity and when they are no longer wanted or needed, they need a circular model to avoid them going to waste

Found the Ellen MacArthur 3 pillars the best. First high performance shoe that’s fully recyclable. Focus on how to make durable products, that are easily repairable. 

Rental in sports good, hiking or running. 

Local shoe factory in France rather than in Asia where its too far from the consumer and shipping pollutes

Nearshoring is making a huge change on the footprint of fashion. First step on closing the loop.

Ultimate goal is to have a fully sustainable way of manufacturing with fully recyclable materials that have also been recycled and not virgin.

Performance is what is challenging in sustainability. Easier for apparel rather than performance wear.

80% direct to consumer and the rest retailer.

Community is key, educating each other with like web series updating the community about progress on sustainability.

Recommence in twenty eighteen, 4 stages; design and manufacture, use and reuse

Goal - extend the lifecycle of 50 millions fashion items

Design and manufacture- Ellen MacArthur foundation pillars and Circular Fashion startup, to reduce the impact, to ensure they can technically last longer and be recycled or returned to the earth as nutrients.

The 4500+ brands Zalando sells are being put through more meticulous standards

The in-house brands have a digital passport that tells the customer how to take care of the item, where it comes from etc

How can we support our customers in extending the life of their existing wardrobe? Pilot for this repair service is in Berlin right now. It was launched a few weeks ago- being well received by customers

How do you plan to accelerate the re-commerce model? Consists of pre-owned and peer to peer. Increase in assortment size and demand of range of items. Gen Z is very accustomed to trading economy.

Attitude behaviour gap- different attitudes in different ages- more attitude and less action is the problem– because it isn’t accessible enough and easy enough

Behaviour is shifting- 71% is shifting to higher quality garments and are interested in circular actions like refurbishment and repair or resell. This now adds value for the customer.

Zalando has 45 million customer base, which is shifting in this way, creating a blueprint for the industry.

Blends art, sustainability and fashion under one roof. Brick and mortar for retailers to do business. Expanding in Asia.

Conglomerate level- developer working with constructors, K11 does the malls

Marry art with commerce, culture and sustainability, certified green buildings, with green building materials and encouraging tenants to use sustainability

Waste management: upon the tenants achievement of a certain sustainability KPI they will be rewarded monetarily or otherwise. 

Green lease: less about penalising the tenants if they can’t get to that sustainability KPI, but more about educating and assisting the journey to a green commerce together. Targets- millennial retailers in china

This audience is craving exposure to the world digitally. Different academies, providing social events or workout classes to create a community 

Operational and creative being merged- legislation: policy signal for tenants to recycle certain materials from the start

HongKong they rely on waste pickers, which does not guarantee their livelihood. They created recycled umbrellas under K11 to help and raise awareness 

What happens to the clothes for the Re-Dress program? The clothes that are in better conditions go to store, others go to be broken down to yarns to be recycled, from the hospitality side they take also towels to be upcycled

It is important to track and attract the millennial customer. It is easier to track since they use digital a lot. It is important for on-boarding to have loyalty programs. Going completely paperless, as it is more friendly to younger generations. They have a platform for tenants to pay their fees, etc. where they can also collect points. They want to learn something new or stimulate their senses every time they visit the physical premises