YOU CAN KEEP THE ‘NEW NORMAL’. WE’LL TAKE THE NEW POSSIBLE.

Confine, isolate, distance, flatten. When the language we use every day encourages inhibition it’s tough to allow our minds to expand. 

Has our success at reducing social interactions also created a collective shrinking of  imagination - at exactly the moment when we need to conceptualise a smarter, more resilient and more enlightened future?

When we’re deeply immersed in difficulty it’s tempting to suppress innovation. “This is no time to try out new stuff, we just need to hang on to what we’ve got,” so says the old-school theory. Yet, whether we choose to see it or not, we’re at a pivotal moment of enormous potential. Why passively accept the cold leftovers of outdated ideas when we can open the door to entirely new possibilities? We dare you to be forward thinking. The decisions and actions we take right now have the power to significantly recalibrate our world for the better. And what could be more exciting than that.

As flag-bearers for ‘feeling the fear but doing it anyway’ we practise what we preach. Last month The Fabricant put itself on the line with a Beta test of LEELA - a 3D digital fashion platform that could revolutionise the experience of wearing clothes. We’ll be honest, it was scary. LEELA needs more development and we know it. And the launch was definitely not intended to coincide with the entire planet grinding to a halt. But, we took the plunge and put our flawed baby out there for scrutiny regardless. 

Innovation was never meant to be a comfortable ride.

The feedback we’ve received so far from engaged digital fashion first-timers is hugely motivating. We’ve had insight on what they feel LEELA could be, and where we can do more. They’ve encouraged us to push further than we assumed they were willing to go, and clarified where to draw the line. More than anything, they demonstrated a hunger for playful ways to access creative self-expression that doesn’t come at a cost to people or planet. It’s given us the confidence to pursue solutions that the pre-pandemic fashion industry said consumers weren’t ready for. 

The biggest lesson learned is never be afraid to try. Determined optimism will always enable positive change way sooner than passively conforming to the status quo.

The LEELA Beta test runs until midnight CET, May 3rd. Type digital.fashion into your mobile phone or web browser to begin your LEELA journey, and join us in rewriting fashion’s future.