Major Project Research Portfolio: AWEAR

AWEAR Research Portfolio

200993178 Wen-Hsin Feng DESN3360 Fashion Marketing Major Project

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Contents

0.0 Executive Summery 4 1.0 Market Analysis 6 1.1 Macro Trends 8 1.2 Micro Trends 10 2.0 Target Market 12 2.1 Consumer Profile: The Conscious Affluent

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2.2 Customer Profile: The Conscious Fashion Brand

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3.0 Competitors 16 3.1 Key Competitors 18 3.2 Market Position 19 4.0 Business Overview

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5.0 Marketing Strategy

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5.1 Marketing Overview

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5.2 Marketing Mix: Consumer

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5.3 Marketing Mix: Customer

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5.4 Pricing Overview

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5.5 Marketing Mix: Price

5.6 Marketing Strategy: Timeline

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6.0 Risks & Future Considerations

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7.0 List of Images 42 8.0 References 43

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Executive Summary.

AWEAR

AWEAR is a business solution aimed to guide conscious consumers to live their aspirational values with easy, simple, seamless, but comprehensive navigation through the sustainable fashion buying process.

Research into the external environment and internal market reveals a desire and need for rational solutions to complex problems which are emotionally appealing and meaningful.

Especially for pressing complex global issues such as sustainability, which is witnessing ever growing attention and global concern.

However, people expect these solutions to be transparent and authentic, and most of all technological and digital.

In the fashion industry, there is a sure sign of trends which adopt technological and data solutions to better enhance the consumer experience. Looking at industry competitors whom adopt such strategies to address sustainability issue, there is a clear market gap for a solution that is simpler, easier, but nonthe-less beautiful and seamless. Therefore AWEAR aims to fill this gap, primarily through a sustainable fashion buying app, but also through its landing site and social media platforms.

It will provide services which increases adoption of sustainable fashion buying through creating incentives, highlighting

values and gains, and removing or reducing barriers. AWEAR will achieve this mainly through reviewing and rating brands on their sustainability performances, and allowing customers to read up on, search, browse, shop, or scan, brand profiles, its curated content, and featured products.

Research into the market reveals the most important target group to be conscious affluent millennials. In order for AWEAR to appeal to these users, marketing strategies suggested are heavily dependent on sharable digital content, many designed with emotionally rewarding incentives to retain users after initial launch of app. Most strategies are also below the line, which is due to considerations for millennial preferences but also financial limitations.

Competitor analysis reveals most relevant competitors to be free of charge for users, therefore in order to penetrate the market, AWEAR adopts the pricing strategy - freemium - making it free to download with in-app purchases which AWEAR takes commissions from. To somewhat balance out the costs, AWEAR targets customers - conscious fashion brands - with products such as featured articles and recommendations, and eventually plans to offer user insight packages and keyword ranking biding. However, financial forecasts reveal that AWEAR will not break

even until the end of the third year after launch, therefore prior to that, the business will rely heavily on grants such as does its fellow NGO competitors.

Potential risks for this project are derived from competitor analysis and micro trend SWOT analysis. They include the emergence of cheaper and easier substitutions; potential dangers of personal data mishandling; and technology not fully mature to meet expectations.

However, that is not to say that the project is unachievable, as it fulfils a clearly identified market gap with strategies based on in-depth research of its target. Also, ever emerging and improving technology shines light on the great potential available for this project, such as future consideration to re-investment on Blockchain technology, which seems to hold great potential for creating brand USP, but also expanding AWEAR’s target market to include second-hand retail.

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Market Analysis.

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Image 3 Macro Trends

The success of recent campaigns such as Brexit and Trump showcases a trend towards adopting intuitional judgments when facing complex issues (Birkinshaw, 2017). There is a clear sign of frustration and feeling of overwhelm regarding the difficulty to navigate and sift through the complex, vast, and constantly changing information and data in this digital day and age (Ford, 2017) (Harari, 2016, p. 67). People often find themselves resorting to emotional judgments based on beliefs rather than rational justifications based on factual evidence (Birkinshaw, 2017).

This reveals one of many barriers towards the adoption of rational behaviours such as sustainable decisions, both on national and individual levels. And also suggests that the world is in need of more tools and systems which can assist them in the digestion of information. On the flip side, it also shows how emotional appeals and instant rewards are much more effective, and should be tied into the solutions towards current global issues to achieve better results.

However this does not mean that people have all but given up on sustainable (and other sensible and rational) practices. There is clear evidence of public unease towards current unsustainable/unethical practices and policies, both on global and individual levels (Bishop and Friend, 2018) (Ford, 2017). Recent reports

and research results into plastic pollution has also fuelled great debate amongst the public on the usage and disposal of one-use consumer goods (Davenport, 2018) (Yeginsu, 2018) . This shows a public need for lifestyle options which lessen their sense of guilt and discomfort, and preferably allows them to feel like they are contributing to better the world and communities (Bishop and Friend, 2018).

lays out the inevitable blueprint of a future which is heavily and tightly integrated with AI/AR technology and the Internet of Things (PwC, 2017) (Cisco, 2017). This suggests that all industries should be seriously considering taking their business and market solutions fully into the digital age, communicating and offering to consumers via digital platforms and smart technology (Frey & Osborne, 2013).

Recently exposed opaque government and corporate practices, and misuse of data and personal information (such as the alleged murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi and the scandal regarding Facebook and Cambridge Analytica), has generated much debate and awareness on such issues (Chulov, 2018) (Granville, 2018). This has resulted in stricter regulations and has also fuelled deeper distrust of big organisations amongst the general public (PwC, 2018) (BBC, 2018). This suggests a public desire and expectation for transparency, authenticity, and honesty. It also shows potential for small local businesses, as they become the preferable substitute (GS1 UK, 2017). Global trend of nationalism and de-globalisation also offers a great timing for small local businesses to grow in this domestic-growth friendly policy environment (WGSN, 2017).

As the central running theme of this century, great leaps in technological development

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Micro Trends

Research into the micro environment reveals how current macro trends can be and have been translated into the fashion industry.

Specifically of how the current fashion industry integrates and utilises data and technology to resolve sustainability issues:

Image 10 Fast-Conscious-Fashion

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Image 7 Blockchain Technology Recent advancements in technology allows supply chain details to be logged onto the blockchain of each individual product, which offers consumer’s access to the product’s journey through scanning the QR code or near-field communication (NFC) tag on the garment (Stott, 2017).

High-end sustainable brands such as Provenance have been seen to adopt this technology (Stott, 2017).

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Data ID Stores

Demand-led Design

Brands like Nike are using data gathered from its NikePlus members living in local communities to inform their localisation strategy, adjusting their product mix in the area according to these shopping profiles (Maxwell & Houghton, 2018).

Technology is now able to prototype fashion designs digitally, streamline waste throughout the development process, and prevent overproduction (Stott, 2018).

Alibaba also recently opened a Hong Kong Fashion AI concept store in collaboration with Guess which accessed customer data through Taobao ID codes or facial scans (Maxwell & Houghton, 2018). A RFID system then records customer interaction with garment, and offers them further product information or styling suggestions through smart mirrors (Maxwell & Houghton, 2018).

Programmes on the market include CLO, which allows design of garments digitally without the need to physically pattern or sew (Stott, 2018). According to CLO, sample lead times are up to 30 times shorter and adoption rates are 40% higher through adopting this technology (CLO, no date).

Brands utilising this technology includes Minimalist, Atacac (Stott, 2018), and Unmade (Unmade, no date).

Although customers often have intentions to shop more sustainably for fashion, limited availability, product choices, unappealing design, and high prices often prevents them from carrying it out into action (Bishop, 2018). Instead of expecting consumers to compromise, brands need to “meet people where they are” (Bishop, 2018).

Brands who are currently doing so include Ethical Time - due to be released in Spain, it is an app which connects conscious consumers with 500 sustainable brands in Spain. It allows users to filter brands through factors and also provides additional fee-unlocked-feature of special offers and invitations to events (Bishop, 2018).

Save Your Wardrobe is also tapping into consumer concern for issues of garment afterlife by helping customers focus on what they already own, instead of constant fast fashion buys (Bishop, 2018). They do this by digitalising user’s wardrobe to enable better visualisation of wardrobe to rediscover and inspire new outfits. Effectively extending and up-cycling one’s fashion products (Bishop, 2018).

Summary, Analysis & Evaluation

There are clear signs of micro trends in the fashion industry of integrating emerging technologies with the fashion buying and production process to resolve issues of sustainability. Advancements in data collection and processing, and immersive technology has been used to address issues of sustainability by reducing waste and improving consumption choices through customisation and hypertargeting of market.

There is also evidence of how Crypto technology is being utilised by fashion brands to address needs and desires for transparency, authenticity, and also data ownership.

Key strengths is it gives added value and USP to products and brands. Micro targeting consumers can also help raise marketing, merchandising, and production efficiencies and relevance.

Weaknesses of this type of strategy includes most obviously the high initial costs of adoption, including non-monetary costs such as time and risks.

lagging behind as the world inevitably heads towards a future of a deteriorating environment and ever greater and imminent threats and pressure to act.

There are however, threats, such as cheaper and easier alternatives. Misused personal data may result in serious customer backlash and boycott.

The opportunities provided is it helps businesses’ own economic sustainability by gaining industry leadership through early adoption and transformation, and avoiding

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Target Market.

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Consumer Profile: The Conscious Affluent Demographic They have an average income between ÂŁ 30,000 - ÂŁ 40,000 (Office of National Statistics, 2018). Aged 23-37 (BBC, 2017), they are either single, living with partner, or married with toddlers. They belong to the mid-high to high social economic class (BBC, 2017).

Psychographic The conscious affluent values meaningful brands which take up action in environmental and corporate responsibility promises (Millennial Marketing, no date) (BBC, 2017) . They desire to make positive impact to the greater world outside of personal gains (BBC, 2017). They also yearn for full transparency and authenticity (KPMG, 2017) (Daneshkhu, 2018). Current day social media and increasing connectivity allow instantaneous consumption of information and drives them on the constant lookout for the next big thing (Yotka, 2017). The current advancements of technology also feeds their expectations for all purchasing steps to be accessible from mobile devices and ideally on one single platform (ZenithOptimedia, 2013).

Including the search, experience, purchase, and collection (ZenithOptimedia, 2013).

They increasingly expect to take charge in identifying, and leveraging prices, sources, and channels of retail in order to optimise purchasing experience (ZenithOptimedia, 2013).

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Behavioural The conscious millennial has low brand loyalty and seeks carefully selected meaningful (socially responsible) purchases over quick volume buys. They are more price savvy than sensitive, and are willing to spend more if the value is justified through transparent information provided by brands (BBC, 2017).

But they will not tolerate deceiving prices and meaningless margins. They also expect long-lasting products, or products which can be re-purposed/recycled/up-cycled though established systems by the brands.

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Geographic They are international affluent millennials living in urban residents (Ford, 2017). of metropolitan cities.

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Customer Profile: The Conscious Fashion Brand Brand Demographic They are small and medium businesses with employee numbers between 9-249 (Ward & Rhodes, 2014) and an annual revenue of ÂŁ 130,000 - ÂŁ15,000,000 (Ward & Rhodes, 2014.

They are relatively new businesses of 3 to 10 years old, and mostly target females conscious affluent millennials.

Brand Psychographic

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They value and invest in meaning beyond product itself. Often involved in sustainable and ethical ways of business such as sustainable sourcing (organic cotton, recycled/upcycled materials, technologically innovative materials, vegan materials, fairtrade fibres), and ethical manufacturing procedures, conditions and environments Their mission statements often involve desires to make positive impact to the greater world outside of monetary gains. They are often somewhat to highly transparent and authentic. Many are involved with donating profits to NGOs working on certain ethical or sustainable issues. They invests heavily in material and manufacturing research and innovation. They are future oriented, with a can-do attitude, inclusive, and all about being flexible and breaking boundaries and convention. They are style conscious, but not trend obsessed.

Behavioural Relies mostly on targeted and low cost below the line marketing strategies such as PR and events marketing, content and social media marketing, search engine and paid search marketing. They expect cheap and effective niche marketing. They are price sensitive, as substitute communication channels are many and easy to acquire. They expect immediate results and will quickly abandon channels if results do not meet expectations, as budgets are tight and product and supply chain innovation are prioritised over marketing spend.

Geographic They are founded in developed countries in North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, East Asia, but are stocked and shipped worldwide.

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Competitors.

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Image 24 Key Competitors

NOTONTHEHIGHSTREET.com An online e-commerce website which hosts over 5000 UK businesses, focusing on small creative businesses which offer thoughtful gifts, original homeware, and unforgettable experiences (NOTONTHEHIGHSTREET.COM, no date).

Gather & See An ethical e-tailer which offers curated selections of sustainable fashion labels (Gather&See, no date).

How Good

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An app which catalogues of food products with analysis on 60 indicators to provide guide to sustainable food buying guide (Acciona, no date).

Good On You Australian based app which rates over 2100 fashion brands (Good on You, 2018) on their ethical and sustainability practices (Gradeen, 2017).

Easy to Use

AWEAR

Narrow & Shallow

Wide & Deep

Difficult to Use

Market Position

Between the key competitors, there is a clear indication of some common weaknesses such as difficulty to navigate, search engine and filter’s working in non-user friendly ways, keyword algorithms being quite primitive.

There is also a common sign of less-thanideal interface design, especially aesthetic and navigation wise. There is therefore great opportunity to gain competitive advantage through improving on these elements.

In summary, from the insights gained on competitors and all previous research on the external environment and consumer market, there is an identifiable gap for a simple, beautiful and easy-to-navigate app, which combines a sustainability fashion guide with e-commerce seamlessly in one omni-channel platform.

Also, most of the reviews and rating information of competitors’ are very text heavy and difficult for consumers to easily digest, compare, and make decisions. This reveals the opportunity for a more graphic based and image heavy app to facilitate ease of usage and navigation.

Additionally, most of current competitors either focus heavily on becoming the most comprehensive data base app/website, or stock the most amount of products and brands. Gather & See, tries to combine both a database and e-commerce, but fails to excel in either, making its standing and value ambiguous and less appealing. This suggests that the such apps/websites need to communicate a clear and easy to understand value, which can be perceived as unique in a way that departs from ‘being the most comprehensive database’ or ‘stocking the most amount of brands’.

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Business Overview.

AWEAR What is AWEAR? A business which provides products to help consumers live their aspirational values with easy, simple, seamless, but comprehensive navigation through the sustainable buying process.

Largely achieved through a sustainable fashion buying app, but also though its landing site and social media platforms.

AWEAR does so mainly through reviewing and rating brands on their sustainability performances, and allowing customers to read up on, search, browse, shop, or scan, brand profiles, its curated content, and featured products.

Business Objectives Becoming the leading , go-to, omni-channel platform for sustainable fashion buying.

Helping consumers live their aspirational values with easy, simple, seamless, but comprehensive navigation through the sustainable buying process.

Providing services which increases adoption of sustainable fashion buying through creating incentives, highlighting values and gains, and removing or reducing barriers towards adoption.

Mission Statement To create easy, meaningful, and intriguing sustainable fashion buying experiences.

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Marketing Strategy.

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Marketing Overview.

AWEAR Marketing Objectives Increase monthly active users by 6% p/m (Jaarbari, 2016) and ultimately surpassing 15,000 users by end of first year (Good On You, 2018).

Increase number of purchase orders made through app by capturing at least 1.5% of monthly users (Jaarbari, 2016).

Improve awareness of app through increasing content shares and social media followers and interaction (Wassenaar, 2018).; aiming to surpass an average of 5k following across platforms by the end of the first year (Ethical Time, 2018).

Marketing Strategies Create valuable rewards (emotional, physical, monetary) for active users (Walz, 2016).

Reward purchases with emotional and aspirational satisfactions which take form of shareable content.

Increase desire to share the app and its content by making sharing easy, and creating content which satisfies customer’s aspirational and emotional needs, appeal to customer aesthetics and value, and are fun and interesting (Wassenaar, 2018).

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Marketing Mix: Consumer.

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Product

Core Product

Augmented Product

Sustainable fashion buying app

Easily accessible, navigable, comparable, and shoppable sustainable fashion on one single platform.

Actual Product An index of fashion brands with reviewed information and ratings on their sustainable practices.

Users can navigate through keyword searches (issues/concerns/brands/category/style/etc), or browsing by categories or concerns (e.g. organic/recycled/vegan/etc.).

Users can also shop curated contents and featured products through editorials on app/ website blog and social media.

There is also a discovery function which introduces to users new or leading brands and products which fit their needs and concerns.

Review functions and selling of data packages back to brands also creates twoway communication between customers and brands, increasing user’s buying power and co-creating a better sustainable fashion buying experience which fit customer needs and concerns.

Most importantly, AWEAR saves consumer’s time and effort, and lowers barriers of difficulty associated with sustainable fashion buying. It also reduces and relieves guilt and worry of customers on the negative impacts of their fashion purchases.

Designed in shareable content and charitable incentives to use the app helps fulfil user’s self-actualisation and esteem needs to know and be known to do good.

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Place

Distribution channel will be through Google Play (Android) and App Store (iOS).

CTA links taking users to these app stores will be displayed in easy to notice areas on the centre front of landing page, social media platform bios, all social media and blog posts, end of press articles, and as a sharable link through the app.

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Promotional Mix

Considering the strain on finance for research and development costs for the app, and millennials distrust for traditional froms of advertisement (Friedman, 2018), the promotional mix will focus heavily on digital content marketing. Millennial’s use of socialmedia is also ever growing, making digital marketing much more relevant to the targeted market.

The contents for advertising and digital marketing will include the following:

Image 32 Advertising & Digital A. Sharable promo video, micro blogs on progress of the of the app launch and development, its features and benefits; themed editorials featuring brands and products; and general articles on sustainable fashion and lifestyle.

These content will be featured on AWEAR’s social media platforms: Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and the blog on the landing page.

B. Sharable rewarding content though the app and brand’s social media: •

Customised thank you notes upon purchases through app, outlining user’s ‘Good Impacts’ (e.g. By purchasing this pair of VEJA’s, you have helped facilitate Fairtrade of cotten in Brazil, etc.).

•

User’s quarterly/annual personal ‘Good Impact’ profiles (an annually summary of the above).

•

Charity donation certificates made on behalf of high engagement users, customised to their sustainable and ethical concerns.

•

User review of brands and products.

This is to raise engagement rates and incentivise continued use of the app through helping users fulfil their esteem and selfactualisation needs; rewarding their usage with physical benefits to the real world; and elevating the usage experience and building loyalty through personalised interactions.

C. Search engine and keyword optimisations on app store keyword section, description, app title, visuals and branding.

Image 33 Public Relations Feature on articles in sustainable lifestyle press (e.g. The Good Trade), fashion press (e.g.

Refinery29), and other more general press whom target millennials (digital and print).

A. Feature on lists such as “Staff Picks” and ‘Editor’s Choice’ on App Store and Google Play.

This is essential, as 48% of people say they discover new apps by browsing app stores, and 34% through app store recommendations (Google, 2016).

B. Social media posts which recommend the app and/or are seen using the app on the social media platforms of micro-influencers in the niche of sustainable fashion and lifestyle (e.g. Natalie Kay of Sustainably Chic). This strategy, as opposed to celebrity influencers, is shown to potentially bring about higher ROI with lower marketing spend due to deeper relationship and trust with fans, and higher engagement rates (Wissman, 2018).

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Direct Marketing A. Shoppable editorial content on landing page and apps’s blog page and shared on its social media accounts. This offer users a more curated e-commerce experience, which ultimately adds value (Google, 2016).

B. Targeted/personalised recommendations of brands and products which fit customer preferences and values on bottom of product description pages and on the discovery page of app. This elevates the usage experience and builds loyalty, creating value by showing that the users are valued and considered for as individuals.

Sales Promotion There will be no sales promotions on the user facing end, as the app will be free to download and use. This is due to main competitors also being free to download (see competitor analysis), therefore being free for the user is potentially a significant condition to penetrate the market.

It also aligns with the objectives of the business to eliminate and reduce barriers of adopting sustainable fashion.

Report released by Google (2016) also found that the primary motivational factor towards app installation is price (85%).

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Marketing Mix: Customer.

The marketing mix aimed at users will to some extent persuade brands to collaborate through convincing perceived value and quality of the brand and its user facing products.

The following will detail the marketing mix directly aimed at the customer (fashion brands).

Product Core Product User data and below the line marketing on app.

Actual Product User behaviour insight packages.

Feature on curated shoppable editorials and recommendation stories.

Keyword search ranking and discovery page ranking.

Augmented Product Improving transparency and trust in customers Reaching potential customers and expanding market reach Precise understanding of how own brand benchmarks to leading brands in similar categories, and ways to improve Create, improve, or maintain brand awareness

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Drive interest and understanding of brands, and potentially turn interest into purchases Expanding and growing the sustainable fashion market though improving ease of adoption

Place Distribution channel will be through submitting form of interest via the landing page and further finalised through email, telephone communications, and in-person meetings with the advertising team.

Promotions Advertising & Digital Media kit with brief descriptions of touch points of brand (blog, social media, app, etc.), market outreach (subscribers, users, readership and circulation), user profile, and purchasable packages (editorial feature, discovery feature, keyword ranking, market/ customer insight) (Vogue, 2018). This will be featured in a briefed format on landing website with a contact form to request the full version, submit further queries, or express interests in partnering.

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Direct Marketing Pitching collaborations and partnership ideas to target customer brands through direct email contact enclosing the media kit.

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Pricing Overview.

AWEAR Financial Strategic Objectives: To reduce loss and deficit and breaking even With consideration of the marketing and business objectives and the mission statement, the app will be a free service to consumers, therefore this project will essentially be a not-for-profit one.

All revenue gained will go back into investing on the development of the brand and its services.

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Marketing Mix: Price.

Image 39 Pricing Strategy

User facing: competition-based pricing, and freemium Nearly all competitors are free to download, and it fits within the mission statement and business objectives of the brand to reduce barriers towards sustainable fashion buying.

Free to download but features in-app purchases which the app takes commission from.

Customer facing: competition-based, market penetration pricing As there are a lot of competitors of fashion press selling sponsored articles to brands, it will be difficult for a newly launched medium to penetrate the market. The pricing strategy will therefore be competition based, calculated mainly on the amount of users on the app. As the amount of user increase, the prices will increase for brands as well.

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Costs & Revenue Forecast

The following is the estimation of the costs and revenues of the first three years.

Estimations are mostly based on the downsizing of established app developer’s financial figures.

However, as sources are wide and varied, with non of them the same business size as a start up (and some not in the sustainability area), it should be acknowledged that figures are most probably skewed and are but a rough estimation.

First Year Costs

*Spotify’s revenue in 2016 was £2,613,358 (Spotify, 2016). Average app developer revenue is £6000 (Louis, 2013). So costs for author’s app can roughly be estimated as 0.00023% of Spotify’s (£6000/£2,613,358,000*100).

Spotify wages and salaries were £205,782,000, therefore author’s own wages and salaries cost could be estimated to be around £47300 (£205,782,000*0.00023%)

Second Year Costs

Third Year Costs

Three Year Monthly User Growth

18,984

49,168

175,000

Three Year Revenue Growth Sources of revenue included in calculations: •

Sponsored Content

•

E-commerce Commisions

Sources of revenue not included in calculations due to lack of data and complexity: •

Search Ranking Biding

•

Behaviour Insight Packages

According to the estimations, AWEAR will only achieve revenues of up to £7356 in its first year of launch. This means that it would need to source the rest of the initial startup costs of £65,926 from grants and crowdfunding (Good On You, 2018) in order to breakeven for the first year.

Calculation reveal that AWEAR should be able to break even starting from the end of year three, which will gradually open channels for further investment and growth.

£7,356

£20,397

£59,325

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Marketing Strategy: Timeline.

Begin Marketing Campaign A.

C.

E.

Launch social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram) and landing page.

Beginning to create promo content detailing progress of the of the app launch and development, its features and benefits; and general articles on sustainable fashion and lifestyle. This is to continue regular even after launch of app.

Feature on articles in sustainable lifestyle, fashion (e.g. Refinery29), and other millennial targeting press.

Search engine and keyword optimisations on app store keyword section, description, app title, visuals and branding.

D. Micro-influencers’ social media post of review and recommendation.

B.

August 2019

July 2019

June 2019

Accepting requests for early access to beta testing, and pitching media kit and partnership proposals through directly emailing press and industry contacts.

January 2019

Begin App Development

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F.

G.

H.

I.

Feature on lists such as “Staff Picks” and “Editor’s Choice” on App Store and Google Play.

Sharable rewarding content though the app and AWEAR’s social media:

Shoppable editorial content on landing page and apps’s blog page and shared on its social media accounts.

Targeted/personalised recommendations of brands and products which fit customer preferences and values on bottom of product description pages and on the discovery page of app.

•

User’s quarterly/annual personal ‘Good Impact’ profiles.

•

Charity donation certificates.

•

User review of brands and products.

After Launch

Customised thank you notes.

September Launvh

Big size apps take up to 8-9 months to develop and complete testing (Jain, 2016).

•

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Risks & Future Considerations.

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AWEAR

In terms of risks, as previously mentioned in the micro trend section, cheaper and easier alternatives to add perceived value to brands could make the complicated technologies involved in this project irrelevant and undesirable. Also the scope and depth of personal data collected could also cause detest and mistrust, and if misused, may result in serious customer backlash and boycott.

Many of these technologies are also at initial stages of adoption, therefore results may fall short of business and customer expectation.

This could lead to unexpected costs and time waste during development, but also consumer dissatisfaction. Lastly, fast fashion brands adopting conscious practices, or sustainable brands/services pedalling more consumption, may be perceived as sending off contradicting messages and result in confusion and ambiguity in brand identity in the eyes of consumers. Thus as a platform, if AWEAR features the wrong kind of brands, or produces dubious content, both its reputation, and that of the brands sponsoring the app will be at risk.

Future considerations include channels of investment for profits gained after breaking even in the 3rd year. This would most probably take the form of technological investment into updating and improving the app. Also, potentially once the app gains a greater following, AWEAR will be able to expand into more profitable channels of revenue such as selling user insight packages to brands and search engine keyword biding (initially, it is unlikely to be profitable due to limited numbers of brands bidding). And as a very ambitious future consideration, perhaps once AWEAR gains leading industry position and enough profit for a greater investment, the idea of utilising Blockchain technology across the app for a unified and traceable way to rate brands may possibly be open for consideration. And even more challengingly, if Blockchain technology does become enrolled across the app, AWEAR could potentially use this tool to add value to garments in its usage journey, creating a USP that will help it venture into the second-hand clothing retail market.

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[Online]. [Accessed 25 November]. Available from: https://www.ft.com/content/ba6255d6-4186-11e8-803a295c97e6fd0b Image 7: Provenance. 2017. Provenance’s app. [Online]. [Accessed 20 October]. Available from: https://www.eco-business.com/ news/this-company-wants-to-make-the-fashion-industrysustainable-using-blockchain/ Image 8: Wire Business. 2018. GUESS?, Inc. Collaborates with Alibaba to Bring Artificial Intelligence to Fashion. [Online]. [Accessed 20 October]. Available from: https://www.businesswire. com/news/home/20180709005279/en/GUESS-CollaboratesAlibaba-Bring-Artificial-Intelligence-Fashion

instagram.com/p/BmG-RPAjj1R/ Image 19: My Scandinavian Home. 2018. A delightful Dutch home defines by slow living . [Online]. [Accessed 30 October].

Available from: https://www.myscandinavianhome. com/2018/09/a-delightful-dutch-home-defined-by-slow. html

Image 40: Arielle. 2018. Honest Origins: Made with Love in NYC. [Online]. [Accessed 25 November]. Available from: https:// shop-arielle.com

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