![]() While there are a few studies that offer a comprehensive overview of the technology’s implications for the fashion industry, they are still limited in scope (Bertola & Teunissen, 2018 Braglia et al., 2020). Prior research has primarily focused on a single technology, whether it be robotics and intelligent manufacturing (Acaccia et al., 2003 Michelini & Razzoli, 2013), 3D printing (Perry, 2018 Sun & Zhao, 2017 Vanderploeg et al., 2017), virtual and augmented reality (Kim & Forsythe, 2008 Park et al., 2018 Shim & Lee, 2011), or artificial intelligence (Guo et al., 2011 Liang et al., 2019). Yet, a comprehensive review of what, why, and how the 4IR technologies are being applied in the fashion industry is limited. Given that the ultimate goal of technology development is solving industry challenges to better serve human needs (Schwab, 2016), it is logical to first identify unique challenges in the fashion industry and then to discuss how technologies are being applied to address them. Then, what are the aims of the 4th Industrial Revolution in the context of the fashion industry, which includes a wide range of product categories, from apparel and footwear, jewelry, to bags and accessories? With the 4IR technologies, what is the fashion industry seeking to achieve? Rather, it was about enhancing the quality of human life through enhanced productivity, which was made possible by inventions and innovative technologies. The focus of every industrial revolution in history was never the development of technologies itself. As with the previous industrial revolutions, numerous technologies have enabled the 4th Industrial Revolution: robotics, intelligent manufacturing, augmented and virtual reality, and artificial intelligence, to name a few. ![]() In each industrial revolution, inventions and new technologies contributed to the enhancement of industries and human lives through mechanization during the 1st Industrial Revolution, mass production and electricity during the 2nd, and IT systems and automation during the 3rd. The 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR henceforth) is fundamentally reshaping the way we live and work. This study concludes with insights into how 4IR is shaping the fashion industry and raises thought-provoking questions for the industry and academia. Drawn from ample global cases, the findings can offer strategic directions for fashion firms preparing for unforeseeable changes that are further being accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic. By comparing successful cases that do not utilize the 4IR technologies with those that do, this study highlights that innovative business models that address the unmet needs of the consumers are more important than technology adoption per se. ![]() Based on a literature review and analyses of global industry cases, this study examines what, why, and how the 4IR technologies address these three prime goals. This study views unmatched demand and oversupply as the major problems in the fashion industry and posits that 4IR technologies are being deployed to solve these problems by addressing three prime goals-hyper-personalization, environmental sustainability, and productivity. Each industrial revolution has evolved to solve major problems in society. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply.AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |