Are Virtual Shows The Future Of Fashion In India?

If we look closely at the online Indian fashion industry, about 75% of the total fashion sales are of apparels and footwear yet this holds only 8% to 10% of luxury fashion sales thus many designers believe that luxury and high fashion cannot benefit through online mediums as buyers prefer to see, feel and then purchase or place orders.

Although the pandemic of COVID 19 and the fear in the minds of the consumers have forcefully changed the situation, maybe leading to a change in the operation and buying pattern of the Indian fashion industry too.

Overview of the Indian Fashion Industry

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Fashion Industry[/caption]

Organized in the 20th century the Indian fashion industry evolved from traditional and machine wear to designer wear due to the veteran fashion designers who put their art and creativity in weaving and constructing garments. Designers like Ritu Beri, Bina Ramani, Ritu Kumar and Rina Dhaka brought out the indigenous fashion, Indian weavers and artisans through their collections. Mostly into fusion wear, they experimented with silhouettes and Indian fabrics along with arts such as block prints, various forms of embroideries, gotta Patti work and mirror work.

• The 80s

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Tarun Tahiliani[/caption]

The early ’80s saw a rise of the fashion world in India, credited to Indian fashion designers like Satya Paul, Rohit Khosla, Tarun Tahiliani and ABSK, the 80s were a booming time for fashion. With the establishment of the National Institute of Fashion and Technology in 1986 by the Ministry of Textiles, fashion also became a legit subject of study encouraging many to take this as a career path.

• The 90s

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Manish Arora[/caption]

The 90s brought with it globalization and liberalization, effecting the Indian fashion Industry by introducing them to Prêt wear. Influenced by the west many designers started to launch collections that integrated the Indian fashion and culture but in western silhouettes such as T-shirts by Manish Arora and Kurti or tunics by Monisha Jaising.

A revolutionary moment was the establishment of the Fashion Design Council of India, which started to organize fashion shows and fashion weeks (India Fashion Week) to promote the fashion designers and manufacturers of India.

• Early 2000

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Sonam Kapoor[/caption]

This was the era of Sonam Kapoor, Kareena Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra of the Bollywood industry. The early 2000s saw a massive influence of Bollywood in fashion being continued by actresses like Karishma Kapoor and Urmila Matondkar. The actresses and actors attires decided what the next fashion would be. The rise of already a decade old costume designer of Bollywood, Manish Malhotra’s dressing these divas in chiffons, nets and satins started to rule the hearts of not only the Film industry but also the common people who would go and watch the movies. The 2000s also marked the Indian fashion designer Manish Arora become the first Indian designer to participate in the Paris Fashion Week.

• 2010 Onwards

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Lakme Brand Ambassador Kareena Kapoor Khan at Lakme Absolute Grand Finale SR’20[/caption]

Lakme Fashion Week (parted from FDCI in the early 2000s), introduced a GEN Next Program that allowed budding designers to showcase their talent and collection at the Lakme Fashion Week platform. The 2010 and onwards is marked as the era of experimental fashion where it was not just regarded as clothing but as a form of expression and conceptualization also spreading awareness about sustainable fashion.

As many started embarking into the fashion journey, fashion weeks such as India Runway Week (2013), India Bridal Fashion Week (2010), India Kids Fashion Show (2012) etc were formed to widen the opportunities and options for fashion designers to exhibit and showcase, thereby giving wings to the Indian fashion industry and its new entrants.

Apart from Instagram which the Indian fashion designers considered as a digital medium to promote their brand and skills, another far-sighted effort was initiated by Pernia Qureshi when she launched the Perniapopup.com for fashion designers to reach global buyers. A well-curated and executed effort she brought the Indian fashion industry online by not only generating sales but also branding them at a global platform.

2020 And The Sudden Change In The Indian Fashion World

Accompanied by the global slowdown, demonetization, tax reforms and unrest in the country, COVID 19 aka Corona Virus changed the dynamics of the Indian fashion industry.

• Price Points & Online Sales

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Online Sales[/caption]

The lockdown period being extended along with strict measures to close down the markets and malls, the Indian fashion designers such as Jenjum and Samant Chauhan confirmed that brick and mortar sales have dipped down 90%.

The permanent fear that this widespread pandemic situation has infiltrated in the minds of the people is sure to encourage online sales for a long time to come.

As many fashion designers believe that luxury fashion due to its price point is not a favourable product to be sold online, the fashion industry might see an emerging line with lower price points.

“Right now the hit is 100%. Even when the lockdown gets lifted we expect a huge liquidity crunch in the market and are expecting a 50% to 70% drop in sales in the immediate future”
“Our main strategy will be to minimize wastage and concentrate a bit more on affordable designs in the near future.”- Dolly J, Indian Fashion Designer to I Knock Fashion

• Local Procurement

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handloom and handmade textile[/caption]

Many Indian Fashion designers use handloom and handmade textile was woven in India to create their collection but with advancement and globalization materials and fashion, parts are also procured from China, Korea, Japan and other countries. The pandemic led to a halt in the movement of goods, leaving no option but to procure material locally, thereby opening a larger area of sales in future for the local manufacturers and vendors.

“Most of our raw materials such as handloom textiles are produced in India while we also import a few key fabrics from countries such as China, Korea and Japan — which are currently unavailable.
While the situation seems to remain difficult, we are working on finding alternatives locally and even up-cycling from our inventory”- Rahul Mishra, Indian Fashion Designer to I Knock Fashion

• Medium of Branding

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Print Media[/caption]

As print media has shrunk in size due to difficulty in operating during the lockdown, fashion designers and fashion brands are opting for digital mediums to advertise. Instagram, Online Media and Facebook are the new branding mediums in the fashion town!.

Keeping a track on numbers and visitors is comparatively easier through digital media.

Many talks are also being organized on Instagram and Youtube to keep the momentum of fashion going. A group session was organized on the 7th of April with celebrity designer Gaurav Gupta and celebrity Stylist Anaita Shroff Adjania by Quarancharity. Thus members of the fashion industry are now looking towards digital mediums to brand and to keep in news.

• Virtual Fashion Shows and Exhibitions

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Virtual Fashion Shows and Exhibitions[/caption]

11th March 2020, the date for FDCI’s bi-annual fashion show LMIFW A/W 2020 was postponed due to the scare of Corona Virus. Many other fashion events and exhibitions that were organized and lined up in March, April and May 2020 were cancelled due to restrictions on gatherings by the government authorities of India.

Such restrains and suspicions on physical gatherings led to the encouragement of virtual exhibitions and shows.

What Are Virtual Fashion Shows And Events?

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Virtual Fashion Shows[/caption]

While Instagram, Facebook and other such social media platforms make everything accessible for everyone from everywhere, virtual fashion shows and events have made connecting from different areas to buyers without being physically present at one place a reality for fashion brands and fashion designers.

Although not a new concept, in 2014 Top Shop staged the World’s first virtual Catwalk where four lucky winners with Virtual headphones and headsets experienced models catwalking live and also experienced celebrities sitting next to them virtually.

In 2017, Lakme Fashion Week introduced virtual seats in India to provide a front-row experience of the show to those who could not attend the show personally.

Read More Here: https://www.iknockfashion.com/are-virtual-shows-the-future-of-fashion-in-india/