Fashion straight from the runway in Milan to the palm of your hands in to your living room or straight on to your mobile device, it was only a matter of time before the two met up in perfect harmony. A recent Forrester Forecast expects online retail sales to skyrocket in Europe to an expected 239.9 Euro industry, and clothes are at the forefront of this action. Whether you see fashion as something you throw on in the morning to get you through the day, or a personal lifestyle that says everything about you, you’re going to want to keep up with the latest trends in Fashion Technology.
There’s a lot of startups out there looking to crack into this industry, we’ve found the best international Fashion meets Tech worthy businesses so you can keep up with what’s hot, what’s not and even purchase the goods from around the world.
1 – ITLY
ITLY is an ecommerce site that will bring you all of the latest and greatest trends and high quality Italian products straight to your doorstep. Elegance and style is part of the Italian’s blood, all of the new styles and trends for the new year are coming straight from Italy. As many of you fashion gurus probably already know Italian products wear beautifully, you look chic and the products can literally last you a lifetime.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_vTgq-maiUQ
2 – Mallzee
Think of this app, Mallzee, as the Tinder for all of your personal shopping and fashion advice. Mallzee is partnered with over 100 different retailers from your average mall street clothes, to luxury designer fashion boutiques. The app allows you to get advice from the pros, and your friends before making your online purchase.
3 – Cloth Inc
22- year old Julian Tanoto from Jakarta, Indonesia began her startup Cloth Inc to be more than just an ecommerce site, but also its very own clothing line. Designing and physically making the clothes themselves, gives Cloth Inc a unique advantage. It allows them to use a fast fashion business model to test local demand for certain products and using the web before manufacturing.
4 – Vinted
Vinted originally began as an online second hand marketplace in Lithuania. For girls who have the eye and passion for fashion, but not quite the wallet to support this expensive habit, Vinted is a great solution. The online platform serves as a forum for girls to post designer clothes and accessories they no longer wear, and to swap, sell, and trade them with other fashionistas around the world.
5 – Chic by Choice
European fashion rental site, Chic by Choice, allows its users to rent designer dresses for 85% off of retail price. They believe that you shouldn’t spend face value for the breathtaking dress you’ll wear for one event and then will be left hanging in your closet for the rest of eternity. It’s as easy as ordering your dress online 48 hours in advance, choosing from a variety of only the best designer gowns fresh off the runway. The dress is then delivered to your door for the duration requested, and a return box is sent to pick it up on your set date no dry cleaning or anything else required.
Do you know any other international tech startups we should be on the look out for? What are some of your favorite tech and fashion combos?