Fashion designers, brands, and distributors will be in for a 3D printed surprise at this year’s SOURCING at Magic event. The conference for fashion resources across the supply chain, held from August 17-20, 2014 at the Las Vegas Convention Center, will, for the first time, feature 3D printing among its 50+ seminar sessions.
Though the massive fashion sourcing event will only include one seminar on the topic, that one talk, titled “How 3D Printing Is Redefining Design and Manufacturing”, is an opportunity to expose important members of the fashion world to the possibilities that 3D printing offers their design process. In this session, a panel of 3D printing shoe, clothing, and jewelry designers will discuss how prototyping is saving them time and money to ultimately increase their bottom line. The panelists include 3D conceptualist, Natacha Alpert of Miras3d; 3D printed shoe designer, Bryan Oknyanky, and Professor of Fashion Marketing at Woodbury University, Wendy Bendoni. Additionally, a 3D printed display of high-end goods created with the technology will be exhibited for three days during the event.
Having worked for the past 14 years in footwear with clients like Nine West, Kenneth Cole, Timberland, Reebok and Dr. Marten’s, Alpert helps companies and designers use 3D printing technology in their fashion design through her consulting firm, Miras3d. Oknyanky has developed a line of shoes that utilizes 3D printing to allow customers to create their own heels. His “Split Heels” are made by 3D printing the heel, platform, and soles in PLA and attaching a genuine leather band to the top. And Bendoni is a trend analyst and self-described forecaster for the fashion industry, working for such clients as Nordstrom, JCPenney, OP, BCBG, Levi’s, C & A, Target, Honda, Stila Cosmetics, Victoria Secrets and Guess. Attendees of the SOURCING panel – to take place August 18, 2014, 11:15 AM – will have an opportunity to hear where 3D printing fits in the future of fashion from the established forecaster has to say.
3D printing may have a minor role at the expo, but if my own trend forecasting is correct, the SOURCING event is a sign of things to come. Just as MakerBot acted as the only 3D printing exhibitor at the first CES conference five years ago and this year saw an entire zone of the event devoted to 3D printing, I anticipate subsequent fashion conferences, and conventions of all types, will begin to feature the technology more and more.
