It’s something when Gwen Stefani, Will i Am, U2 and a host of fashion designers spurn New York Fashion week to head West for the unveiling of Apple’s latest creation, the Apple Watch.
Apple appears to have launched their newest line in true fashion style. Whilst others have already been selling smart watches for some time, the style of Apple’s launch is something which many other wearable technology creators have yet to do. Similarly the recent recruitment by Apple of senior executives from Yves Saint Laurent, Burberry, and Tag Heuer.
It is also the case that Apple appears to have worked harder than most to incorporate fashion and technology elements in a meaningful way. Whilst the Apple Watch features include easy contactless payment, monitoring of health and fitness levels and the ability to sync with various other Apple products, the varying sizes, backdrops, wrist bands and finishes are appealing to more than your average “tech-head”.
More importantly it will see the fashion world open up to new possibilities. Just as the introductions of the iPhone, iPad and iPod saw the creation of a whole new leather goods category dedicated to carrying and protecting tech items, it is likely that similar industries will soon emerge for the Apple Watch.
Equally it can only be a matter of time before collaborations with high-end designers such as that between Google and Ray Ban, Opening Ceremony and Intel, Tory Burch and Fitbit become common place. The branding and licencing possibilities seem endless.
Watch this space – Apple may have just blurred the line between fashion and technology.
