Fibre2Fashion November Issue'17 | Page 7

Consulting Editor Richa Bansal Sr. Assistant Editor Rajesh Kumar Shah Reporters Hiral Oza Ruby Roy Sr. News Researcher Rohit Mergu Editorial Coordinator Prachi Acharya ––––––––– Contributing Editor Subir Ghosh Assistant Editors Savita Verma Dipesh Satpathy ––––––––– Creative Raj Sharma | Montu Chauhan ––––––––– Enquiry Editorial: [email protected] Advertising: [email protected] Subscription: [email protected] Printed and Published by Jose Daniel on behalf of Fibre2Fashion Pvt. Ltd. B - 3, Abhishree Corporate Park, Iskcon - Ambli Road, Bopal, Ahmedabad - 380 058, India. Editor: Jose Daniel. Copyright Fibre2Fashion Pvt. Ltd. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without the written permission of the publisher. All disputes are subject to the jurisdiction of competent courts and forums in Ahmedabad only. Head Office Fibre2Fashion Pvt. Ltd. B-3 Abhishree Corporate Park, Iskcon-Ambli Road, Bopal, Ahmedabad 380058. India. Ph: +91-79-71888555 Mumbai Office Fibre2Fashion Pvt. Ltd. B-Wing, 1st Floor, 8, Vilco Centre, Subhash Road, Vileparle (East), Mumbai-400057 Ph: +91-22-61782700 Editor’s Letter Survival of the Fastest Few would dispute that technology—information technology, if you may—is moving at such a frenzied pace, developments are not easy to keep track of. What compounds matters is that developments are taking place all the time at various levels, in innumerable directions, and through varied means. What these taken together can mean for a particular industry is true only at a point in time. What was considered futuristic even at the turn of the millennium is old hat now, relegated to the footnotes of history. To insist that those who are quick in industry to adapt to emerging technologies are more likely to survive, is a given. There is no need even to insist on such a contention; it is a fait accompli. What is, however, interesting to note is the list of monoliths or one-time giants who have rendered themselves obsolete. Take the example of Kodak. The company, founded in April 1880 by George Eastman, ruled the film world for more than a century. But it was slow to adapt to digital, leave alone foresee how the world would change. It was still slower to understand how phones would change the way people would take photographs. It was removed from Standard & Poor’s S&P 500 index in December 2010, and fell behind. In January 2012, Kodak filed for bankruptcy protection, and the following month announced that it would stop making digital cameras. It was only in May this year that the company released its first smartphone, Ektra. It now merits only a Wikipedia entry. Yet, it is not just a question of adapting oneself to technology; it is also one of technology itself and tech companies by extension taking over different industries, one by one. The first to become tech for all practical purposes was telecommunications, but more for the very nature of its operations and existence. Today, tech giants control telecommunications, and telecom giants are as good as tech companies. However, the first industry to be taken over by tech was the media and entertainment industry, particularly the news media sector. Media executives and also journalists were lethargic in responding, and the result is that news organisations are just another group of stakeholders screaming for attention in the Babel called social media. Worse, no one cares. So, can what happened to the media and entertainment industry also happen to textiles and apparel? Already, there is increasing influence of technology on fashion, with most developments being flat-out collaborations. But, can tech companies take over, at least in the sense of driving the industry? There have been enough studies in the recent past which indicate that among all sectors, fashion has been among the slowest to go the tech way. What is certain is that textiles- apparel companies that make digitalisation the way of doing things are likely to forge ahead; others will go the Kodak way. RICHA BANSAL New Delhi Office Fibre2Fashion Pvt. Ltd. A-12, 71/7, Gr. Floor, Rama Road Industrial Area, Moti Nagar, New Delhi 110015 Ph: +91-11-30684015