Maybe you haven\u2019t heard people refer to digital fashion. But you might have seen a friend\u2019s face or your child\u2019s eyes light up at the thought of the latest avatar skins. Or maybe you\u2019ve read what the financial papers are saying as investors start to acquire virtual clothes as part of their portfolio. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
These all manifest what is defined as integrating fashion with 3D virtual technologies, where rendered garments get devised and produced virtually. The digital-fashion phenomenon emerged in the late 2010s via advances sparked by the digital-visualisation needs of the film and gaming industries. Among the most well-known items of digital fashion are The Fabricant\u2019s digital-only Iridescence dress, sold in 2019 for $9,500, and the digitally replicated Dionysus bag by Gucci, priced on the Roblox platform at more than its physical version. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Researchers see promise in digital clothing objects for redirecting some physical consumption to the digital world, relieving pressure on the environment from the fashion industry\u2019s massive waste generation, consumption of clean water, and greenhouse emissions. But a question emerges. How can clothes stripped of physical qualities and unable to fulfil the utilitarian function of real-world clothes meet the needs that current fashion consumption does? Especially since a technological environment with social-media and related channels has been linked to increased impulse purchases, and when such initiatives as non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are more likely to fail than succeed? <\/p>\n\n\n\n
These questions led to my research project examining consumer perceptions and use of digital fashion objects both with and without a physical analogue. Tracking reaction before, during, and after introducing these should help clarify what the physical garment actually does in virtual fashion consumption. I will translate findings from this natural quasi-experimental setting into practical recommendations for expanding design practitioners\u2019 product range to digital clothes and into insight for those cautious about their consumption choices. <\/p>\n\n\n