Charis Chrisna
TechInAfrica – During the past months (or years), the technology scene in Africa has been growing exponentially to welcome the impending Fourth Industrial Revolution. Such technologies mostly implement better network connectivity, better means in managing financial, education, or insurance needs, as well as better food and retail sustainability. Yet the idea of a FashionTech—a fervent breed between tastes of fashion and the complexity of technology—seems to be a modest scarcity (even until now). But what most people overlook is the fact that such idea would serve as a framework to introduce African-influenced clothing to the global fashion markets.
Whilst increasing the overall competitiveness of the fashion scene in African countries, the manifestation of FashionTech could bring a distinctive, more diverse technology developments in numerous sectors. In a survey conducted by the African Development Bank Group, sub-Saharan Africa contributes only a staggering one percent towards the general clothing and fashion exports.
Despite this, investors and stakeholders alike are starting to explore the FashionTech industry of various regions. Earlier in April, business consultancy NonZero hosted the FashionTech Africa Hackathon in collaboration with Zaouini’s studio Fliptin—lasting as long as 24 hours, the end results were presented in April 18th during the FashionTech Africa Conference in Johannesburg.
In addition, the hackathon posed as a final challenge for designers in Standard Bank’s 12-week long fashion accelerator; enhancing the quality and productivity of African fashion retail industries in order to compete within the markets they operate in. The acceleration program itself aspires to equip fashion entrepreneurs with technical skills such as logistics, development, accounting, and marketing.
Held across Port Elizabeth, Durban, Cape Town, and also Johannesburg of South Africa, the accelerator promotes its most recent cohort with a total of twelve fashion entrepreneurs successfully assisted.
Just like fashion, technology is always at a changing pace. In such, technology also offers entrepreneurs and developers to better suit the clients’ demands, tastes, and shopping preferences.
Source: ventureburn.com
