(from MASHABLE Business 9.19.11)
How London Fashion Week Is Going Digital
London Fashion Week, which kicked off Friday, is showcasing an increased commitment to all things digital this season. Designers and retailers are giving consumers around the world better access to shows and events than ever before through live, online showcases and digitally enhanced retail experiences.
Real-Time Access
Following partnerships with New York Fashion Week for the past couple of years, Twitter is focusing on London Fashion Week for the first time this season as part of a wider drive for the UK market. (Twitter opened an office in the capital earlier this year.)
The British Fashion Council (BFC) is working closely with the service to promote conversation around LFW using the hashtag #LFW, and by mentioning the official @LondonFashionWk account. The account tweets live updates from backstage and front of house, and hosts a series of Q&A sessions with guests such as BFC chief executive Caroline Rush and Newgen designer Louise Gray.
“The real-time nature of Twitter makes it a great way for people to find up-to-the minute information about events they care about … [including] London Fashion Week,” says Rachel Bremer, Twitter’s European communications director. “We’re really excited about how the British Fashion Council and brands like Burberry will be using the platform to help people all over the world feel like they’re sitting on the front row.”
Clara Mercer, marketing manager for the BFC, says that the digital push this season is designed to expand LFW’s geographical reach. “London has always been at the forefront of innovation in the industry, and we’re aiming to continue that by using technology in a way to promote our designers further to global markets,” she says.
Meanwhile, Burberry – always one of the highlights of the London Fashion Week schedule when it comes to digital – is set to introduce consumers to further innovations through its social media platforms.
Beginning Monday at 4 p.m. BST (11 a.m. ET), the brand will be posting Twitpics of every look from its Spring/Summer 2012 collection on Twitter, moments before the models hit the runway. Mobile-friendly livestreams are being hosted on Facebook, burberry.com and China’s Twitter and YouTube equivalents.Burberry’s Instagram account is being taken over by photographer Mike Kus, the most-followed Instagram user in the UK, for the duration of the show. The show’s album will later be made available on iTunes through its on-demand service.
Taking Digital Into the Offline Space & Vice Versa
The British Fashion Council has revived its digital schedule of livestreamed shows and fashion films this season. This time content is curated under different themes, such as ready-to-wear and accessories, to make it easier for consumers to follow the areas they’re interested in.
The same videos airing online play for a second time on an LED billboard at the entrance to LFW’s Somerset House headquarters, as well as a new space within the tents known as “the cinema.” In addition to rolling films and daily designer highlights, the cinema is also hosting live Q&A sessions with some of the film’s creators, including Jaime Perlman, art director of Vogue.
Bonus video content is also embedded throughout event spaces, which can be pulled up with augmented reality app Aurasma. The LFW logo and aspects of The LFW Daily newspaper, including its covers, come to life when scanned, for instance.
Topshop is also playing video of the nine shows its hosting at a purpose-built screening room in its Oxford Circus store. These can also be accessed online through topshop.com. In addition, the retailer is hosting public, in-store workshops with figures such as Yvan Rodic of style blog Facehunter and Alexander Fury ofShowstudio to shed light on the world of fashion and film in the digital age.
On the luxury side, Burberry is continuing its Runway to Reality events in 46 stores globally this season. Those invited will once again be able to watch the show live, and then pre-order certain items from the collection via in-store iPads, for delivery within just eight weeks.
Meanwhile, U.S. brand Kate Spade is pushing the launch of its new Sloane Street store in London with a guerrilla marketing campaign. The brand delivered flowers to influential London-based bloggers, encouraging them to wear the flowers to enhance their fashion week wardrobes and to tweet using the #popofcolor hashtag.
The Museum of London is also aiming to bridge the gap between the online and offline space this season. The museum released its collection of early twentieth-century fashion photography from the studios of Bassano Limited and put it online for public access. More than 3,000 glass negative plates documenting clothing, fashion and accessories, and taken between 1912 and 1945 are included.
Hilary Davidson, curator of fashion and decorative arts at the museum, says that the Bassano collection was chosen because of the “rich range of content” it proves. “The wonderful images reveal a lost world before professional models, Photoshop and strong brand control.”
Online Initiatives
Further online initiatives in time for the fashion week season include the unveiling of a new online magazinefrom luxury department store Harrods; a blog called Everything but the Dress from accessories brand Kurt Geiger; and the launch of Topshop’s Tumblr in a bid to provide a “new and very visual way” to inspire consumers.
Lastly, nine of the UK’s most influential bloggers — including Kristin Knox of The Clothes Whisperer and Laetitia Wajnapel of Mademoiselle Robot — are collaborating on one super-blog called Style Tribe, under the Glamour.com umbrella. The mag is also launching a competition to find a 10th contributor who will join the lineup for next season’s shows.
Kate Spade is a great brand to watch...they're so innovative with respect to digital, they has a FANTASTIC blog and whoever did the copy on her Yellow Cab ads is my idol.
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