The fashion industry is being shaped by seismic shifts: artificial intelligence, new definitions of luxury and urgent calls for sustainability. At the Vogue Business Fashion Futures event in New York on 25 September, executives and innovators gathered to explore how creativity, commerce and culture are colliding with new technologies — and what it takes to build a fashion system that works better for everyone.
Through candid fireside chats and panel debates, speakers shared how they’re future-proofing businesses, investing in technologies and reimagining the consumer experience. First, Coach president of North America Leigh Manheim reflected on how a nearly 100-year-old brand has managed to remain relevant by initiating a comeback. “We knew that we needed to do something different in our business. We weren’t experiencing the growth that we wanted, so we really spent time learning about the customers,” she said.
Then, Fashionphile founder and president Sarah Davis and 3C Ventures’s chief growth officer Barbara Piermont discussed AI’s rise in the mainstream, which has made it one of the biggest transformation stories of the year. Piermont believes that the future of shopping will be mostly changed by virtual try-ons and agentic AI, the latter of which can find and purchase products on the users’ behalf. Davis foresees the rise of digital twins, which allow us to see how pieces look on ourselves, rather than a model. But, she said, AI is not there yet when it comes to authentication for resale. “I know we’re going to get there. It’s just that it’s going to take iteration, it’s going to take better control of data,” Davis said.
Google Cloud director of ISV partnerships Seth Siciliano and head of Shopify VIP Jessica Kohl spoke about the tools brands need today to make the most of this AI-fuelled fashion future — as well as the actions they should take to stay ahead. The first question: is AI an opportunity or a threat for luxury?
“It’s absolutely an opportunity. AI is a tool kit that will empower you, your teams and your brands to leverage the craftsmanship and the precision of luxury, with the scale and the systematisation of AI powering that,” Kohl said. “I think there is a little bit of threat when we talk about ethical usage of AI and the wave that’s coming. Governance is a big challenge. I think you also have, especially with luxury, the challenges of fraud and making sure that you have the tooling and protection to protect you and your customers. But you have to be approaching it as if it’s an opportunity because it absolutely is — if it’s leveraged and built into your systems the right way.”
Siciliano agreed that it’s a tool businesses will need to learn how to harness. “Every opportunity is a threat,” he said. “It’s really not a technology shift. It’s more a strategic imperative that businesses, to run and be more efficient, need to understand how to adopt these technologies.”
Vogue Business’s sustainability editor Bella Webb hosted a panel about the future of sustainable shopping, which explored how fashion businesses can encourage more mindful consumption without compromising on community, discovery and innovation. Phia co-founder Sophia Kianni, Eva Joan Repair sustainability Alexa Gordon and designer Maria McManus discussed reframing what sustainable shopping looks like. “It’s really exciting that a customer can purchase a product and not even realise it’s more sustainable; there’s beauty in that,” said McManus.
Finally, L’Oréal chief responsibility officer Ezgi Barcenas rounded out the event by sharing how she secured over €345 million in funding for supply chain decarbonisation, social impact and innovation, at a time when most companies are deprioritising sustainability efforts.
“From our sourcing regions to our operations to our communities, we see the impact of climate change. But investing in nature takes time,” she said. “It requires patient capital, and it requires a long-term vision, a long-term commitment. There’s no silver bullet.”
