In today’s time when everyone is growing highly conscious of their fitness levels and efficient living, even our clothes are becoming adaptive of our concerns. Monetising on the growing needs of people to look good and feel good, fashion retailers have sprung up with a new category of clothing called the ‘activewear’ and ‘athleisure’ wear. According to a Morgan Stanley research report, the athletic apparel industry has seen a jump of nearly 42 percent accounting to US $270 billion in the past decade which explains the hike in demand for this category of clothing. But, as the demand grows, how smart are our clothes becoming to provide us with the experiential living that we crave for, let’s find out.
These are the three points that make machine learning activewear today’s big thing!
> Capitalising on the habit of fitness freaks, smart clothing have been adapting and evolving with newer innovations to satisfy the expanding customer base.
> The right combination of technology and big data is constantly, in a growing manner marking its space in human lives.
> Algorithms on the internet have spilt out major secrets on how we shop and customer behavior which is only helping retailers bank on consumer expectations and accordingly provides what we need.
Whether it is the Apple Watch that is not today, just limited to calories burnt but has replaced the sweat after the workouts with becoming smart. Yoga pants have become smarter to provide and ensure the right kind of flexibility with the help of haptic vibrations or agility shirts for runners. Nowadays, it is not just restricted to outerwear but also innerwear such as smart bras like OMbra which records distances run, heart rate, respirations with the help of biosignals which are embedded into a woman’s bra.
As boring activewear is now becoming smarter by the day, here’s trying to understand the different type of technologies that seem to have taken over clothing-
- Infrared technology: The fabric is developed using thermal reactive minerals that help convert body heat into infrared energy which enhances blood circulation, thus recovering a person’s energy levels.
- Silver technology: Apart from boosting energy, another technology which is seamlessly being tried to incorporate into activewear is the silver technology that helps to keep body odor at bay. Most people often turn off from working out further when bad odor takes over, but that can now be kept in check, thanks to this new innovation.
As newer innovations in technology and design take over the activewear market, making it smarter by the day, new brands keep emerging. While, Nike, Adidas and North Face remain on top of the rung, even premium brands like Zara and H&M have launched their active and sportswear collections to participate in this race. Utilizing the maximum potential of machine learning and technological devices especially the mobile phone, sportswear can not anymore be deemed boring. So, have you fallen prey to it yet?
