Artificial Intelligence can be a game-changer for your fashion start-up. AI can help improve design ideas, streamline operations, enhance customer experiences, and get you from concept to product launch faster than you could ever imagine. Here’s how AI can assist your fashion start-up.

It’s time to explore a new partner, Artificial Intelligence (AI). It has the potential to help a fashion start-up be more productive, get to the market faster, communicate more effectively, and serve customers better. AI is not some fad that will pass like last winter’s styles. If you use it properly, AI can be an invaluable creative collaborator and priceless business partner. 

In this blog, we will examine the impact AI is having on the fashion industry and new fashion start-ups. We’ll explore how you can apply AI to improve, streamline, and advance your brand from the drawing board to the customer’s home a lot faster. You can even use it to target, communicate with your audience, and improve brand loyalty. 

Fashion’s future using AI:

According to projections from McKinsey & Company, in the next three to five years, AI could add $150 to $275 billion to the apparel, fashion, and luxury sectors’ operating profits. AI systems can help improve initial design and concepts, accelerate manufacturing processes, manage inventory, and improve marketing strategies and customer journeys. If you are starting up a new fashion brand, or contemplating creating a new line, AI may offer you many time and cost saving applications. These can help get your new brand to the market faster and with a lot less investment.

There are AI applications that can affect the entire fashion ecosystem. Fashion entrepreneurs can use the technology to help create better-selling designs, reduce marketing costs, ultra-target customer communications, and accelerate and streamline every day business processes. Let’s review some of the areas AI is helping fashion entrepreneurs pioneer new brands and introduce more efficient systems.

Concept Development:

AI can assist fashion start-ups in product development by analyzing customer data and market trends. With AI-powered tools, fashion start-ups can create personalized fashion products that cater to individual preferences. 

For instance, AI can analyze customer feedback on existing products and suggest changes that could improve the customer experience. It can also analyze market trends to identify popular styles, fabrics, and colors, which can improve the design process.

One example of AI in product development is the company Stitch Fix, which uses AI to personalize fashion items for its customers. Stitch Fix collects data on each customer's style preferences, body type, and feedback on previous orders. It then uses this data to recommend clothing items that are tailored to each individual customer. This approach has proven to be successful, and has helped the company grow to over $1 billion in revenue.

Product development & manufacturing:

With the introduction of AI-powered tools and software, fashion startups can now streamline their pattern making, tech packs, and product sample processes. 

Pattern making involves creating a blueprint or template of a garment to be used in the production process. It can be a time-consuming process that requires a skilled pattern maker to manually create patterns using measurements and specifications.

AI-powered software can now streamline the pattern-making process. With AI, pattern makers can input measurements and specifications, and the software can create accurate and efficient patterns in a matter of seconds. This not only saves time but also ensures that the patterns are precise, which results in better-fitting garments.

Tech packs are another crucial aspect of the fashion design process. Tech packs are a set of detailed documents that outline the specifications and instructions for creating a garment. These documents typically include information such as fabric details, measurements, sewing instructions, and trims.

AI can help streamline this process. With AI-powered tech pack software, fashion startups can input information such as fabric details, measurements, and sewing instructions, and the software can automatically generate a detailed tech pack.

Creating product samples is another critical step in the fashion design process. It involves creating a prototype of the garment to be used in the production process. Traditionally, creating product samples is a time-consuming process that requires a skilled sample maker to manually create the garment.

Fortunately, AI-powered software can now streamline the sample-making process. With AI, fashion startups can input the design specifications and measurements, and the software can create a 3D rendering of the garment. This not only saves time but also enables fashion designers to visualize the garment in a more accurate and efficient way.

AI-powered sample-making software can also help fashion startups reduce the number of physical samples required. By creating accurate 3D renderings, you can eliminate the need for multiple physical samples. This reduces material waste and costs.

Inventory Management:

Predicting and managing inventory can have a huge impact on the bottom line, especially for a cash strapped fashion start-up. AI can help manage inventory more efficiently by predicting demand. It can analyze historical sales data and market trends, and forecast how many products a fashion start-up will need to produce in order to meet demand. This can prevent overproduction and reduce waste, as well as ensure that popular products are always in stock.

Optimize marketing, social media, and advertising:

AI can help fashion start-ups optimize their marketing, social media, and advertising campaigns by identifying the most effective marketing channels and content for their target audience. By analyzing customer data and market trends, AI can predict which customers are most likely to make a purchase.

This allows a fashion start-up to tailor advertising and social media to these individuals. Simple modifications to the marketing plan can often increase sales and reduce overall advertising costs. It can help make marketing communications more efficient, effective, and profitable.

For example, fashion brand Marc Jacobs uses AI to optimize its marketing campaigns. The company uses machine learning algorithms to analyze customer data and predict which customers are most likely to purchase its products. This approach has helped the company increase sales and reduce advertising costs.

Streamline and Improve communication and connections with customers:

AI can also improve the customer experience by providing fast, personalized responses, recommendations, and assistance. For example, Chatbots powered by AI can provide immediate customer service around the clock. 

You can automate them to answer questions and resolve issues in real-time.  This can reduce customer frustration, improve satisfaction, and build brand loyalty, as customers feel that their needs are being attended to promptly.

Another way AI can improve the customer experience is by providing personalized recommendations. For instance, AI can analyze customer data to suggest products that are likely to appeal to each individual customer. This can improve the likelihood of a purchase, increase upsells, and add to the total value of each sale. 

AI can help automate, augment, and accelerate your product development, manufacturing, marketing, and customer service processes. It is a powerful tool that can give innovative designers and fashion entrepreneurs the technological engine to do certain tasks dramatically faster and better. Applying AI can help free creative fashion entrepreneurs to spend more of their time doing things that only humans can do. 

While the potential use  for AI is coming to light quickly, the future of this technology in the apparel and luxury industries is still being stitched together. Applying these new tools today means you can open infinite possibilities for your fashion brand tomorrow.

There are many opportunities that may arise when you combine your creative skills with AI. You can even use AI to help you brainstorm a new idea, product, accessory, or entire fashion line. 

It can even help you explore the size of the potential target market so you can decide if it is large enough. Together, you and AI may identify a new and profitable niche.  

If you feel you have an idea that may have some promise, schedule a free strategy call and let's talk about it. You may have discovered a niche and a fashion product that could become a successful start-up and the fashion business of your dreams.

Stuck on product Production? At V.Mora we can help you through the entire production process from designing, to sourcing and so on through our Production Development services. If you are in need of the following Development and Production services: 

• Sourcing 

• Technical sketches   

• Pattern Making

• Prototype making 

• Sample Making

• Fittings 

• Digitizing and Grading

• Marker Making

• Manufacturing

Please contact us at: vmorainquiry@vmora.com

About the Author

Fashion expert, Allison Howmann, graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology where she majored in Fashion Design and Minored in International Trade and Marketing. She has spent over 6 years in the NYC Fashion Industry utilizing her Design and Marketing skills. Allison has worked with several successful brands to help create their winning fashion development, small business operations, and sales and marketing strategies. You can find her creating original content on the V.Mora blog and the V.Mora Instagram.