Could this be the year fashion makes its mark at Cannes Lions?

There was a great article written by Rei Inamoto, chief creative officer of AKQA, for AdAge last year about why Cannes Lions, the international festival of creativity – otherwise known as advertising’s biggest global awards – trumps SXSW in terms of content.

“At events like SXSW, there is a lot of information. And information can become useful knowledge for marketers. However, what really moves people is inspiration. And that’s where Cannes keeps its edge for marketers. While SXSW may be about informing and finding that Next Big Thing, Cannes’ focus has been about pushing this industry of ours forward,” he says.

It reflects my own sentiments exactly. I’m well versed in both, but Cannes likewise wins for me* largely because of both the curation and the quality of its content. This is the place where true leaders come together to share not only best in class work, but overarching ideas and thoughts for the future of this space.

It’s a week where inspiration is utterly abound (alongside copious vats of rosé of course). Speakers over the last couple of years have spanned former US president Bill Clinton, Malcolm Gladwell, Robert Redford, Sir John Hegarty, Alain de Botton, Patti Smith, Aaron Sorkin and more.

Yet it’s SXSW that the fashion industry has managed to get a good grip on in terms of its relevance to them – all manner of luxury brands and major retailers have been in attendance these past couple of years, as I’ve previously covered, to source both content and opportunities for partnerships within the largely tech-focused world. Of course at SXSW there are now huge volumes of agency folk too, and at Cannes an increasing number of technology companies.

Two years ago I wrote this article about the significant lack of fashion presence throughout Cannes. It focused on the fact that fashion communications remained largely about print ads selling product over campaigns selling ideas, a viewpoint I still hold at large, but certainly one that is beginning to shift. In doing so, it’s sparking more relevance than ever for these brands to start making an appearance at Cannes, both on the delegates list and in those nominated for awards.

The great news is, 2013 looks like the year that might take shape.

Just announced is news that Burberry CCO Christopher Bailey will take to the stage on the Friday of the festival (it runs from June 16-22) to talk about “digital’s creative revolution” with Google’s head of marketing, Lorraine Twohill. From the write-up, as well as prior news from Google, that event will be the kick off for another impressive digital project from the brand.

Burberry is one of a number, alongside adidas and Volkswagen, involved in Google’s Art, Copy & Code initiative, a follow-up to its Project Re-Brief last year. This is “a series of projects and experiments to show how creativity and technology can work hand in hand”.

The write-up for the session at Cannes adds: “How do you engage your audience when ad views are voluntary? What happens when the physical and digital worlds intersect? How can data enable creativity? What if ads didn’t have to look or feel like ads? The only way to find the answers is through risk taking and experimentation.”

[Side note here as to Google's subtle but increasing infiltration into the fashion industry across all aspects of its business - way beyond just search].

Elsewhere at Cannes there are other fashion types in attendance too – Vivienne Westwood speaking with SapientNitro to “de-construct the narrative behind some of the most innovative stories of all-time”, and photographer Annie Leibovitz as part of a panel discussing the “genesis, evolution and continued success of the global ‘Disney Dream Portraits Series’.”

Watch this space…

And do also keep an eye out for the free daily live-streams being offered from the festival for the first time this year… there will undoubtedly be some good ones to choose from.

*Full disclaimer: I am employed by the same parent company as Cannes Lions. My opinion would stand regardless.

KCD’s Digital Fashion Shows open to the public

The Digital Fashion Shows initiative launched by PR agency KCD in 2012 as an invite-only online catwalk series for press and buyers, will be open to the public for the first time this season.

Kickstarting for autumn/winter 2013/14 during New York Fashion Week, the virtual runway shows aim to provide fans with the same “front row experience” as industry insiders. A slicker version than live-streamed affairs, however, they incorporate a pre-recorded catwalk presentation, high res images ready for download, detailed notes about the collection, and even beauty shots.

“The log-in response from non-invitees was tremendous and as it continued to grow with each digital show it became necessary to respond to our client’s request to open the platform’s doors wider for greater exposure,” said Rachna Shah, KCD’s digital managing director.

Accordingly, the now open nature of the platform will also enable users to share each show via email and social media for the first time this season, as well as invite friends to watch.

Designers Peter Som and Pierre Balmain have already announced participation, hosting their runways on the site on Wednesday, February 13 at 9am EST, and Friday, February 8 at 9am EST, respectively.

Som said: “The eye goes through an added process designing for the digital runway. You see the looks more dimensionally and more cinematically which is an inspiring new challenge.” He explained that the format will provide “an opportunity to try out a new platform that can reach a lot of people. The show will tap right into the digital and online presence of my brand and it will allow me to try something new creatively.” It is being shot at Made at Milk in New York and wil feature eight models.

Pierre Balmain meanwhile is using DFS for the second season, previously with a show recorded in Beijing, this time in Paris. Menswear brand Alexander Plokhov will also show on the site on Saturday, February 9 at 10am EST. Further announcements will follow for Paris.

British Fashion Council announces series of digital initiatives for #LondonCollections: Men

The autumn/winter 2013/14 catwalk season kickstarts on Monday with London Collections: Men, the second season of a dedicated menswear event in the British capital. We’ve already heard about Topman’s planned interactive 360° live-stream experience, now, and as expected, comes news of a flurry of digital activity from the British Fashion Council once again…

The aim, it says, is to “unite fashion and digital innovation, encouraging engagement with the menswear showcase through social media, live streaming and digital presentations”.

One particularly participatory initiative is its crowdsourcing of street style content again using the #ManAboutTown hashtag. Fans on Twitter and Pinterest can contribute to an ongoing online archive of menswear looks housed on a dedicated pinboard as well as in a Facebook album. The result is designed to present the best of British Men’s Style.

Also on the BFC Pinterest page will be diary-like contributions from menswear designer Lou Dalton and journalist Charlie Porter. Dalton is showcasing inspirations and preparations ahead of her show already, followed by backstage shots and catwalk looks as they hit the runway on Monday. Porter meanwhile, will be creating an online moodboard of his favourite collection looks, street style shots and inspiring moments.

For those in attendance at The Hospital Club in London, the home of LC:M, there are also digital windows to experience. Referred to as a life-sized catwalk installation, they will feature daily video highlights from all the shows when users scan the display with their mobile phones thanks to another partnership with augmented reality app, Aurasma.

In addition to all that, the BFC will also be showcasing behind-the-scenes images over Instagram, live-streaming all the shows from The Hospital Club via www.londoncollections.co.uk/live. and screening a variety of digital presentations and fashion films. Finally, it will also be continuing its Twitter conversations throughout the event – live Q&As will be held on the @BFC account with Tinie Tempah, Toby Wiseman, editor of Men’s Health, and model Oliver Cheshire, using the #AskLCM hashtag.

Topman live-stream to offer fans 360° augmented experience

Topman Design spring/summer 2013

Topman is set to launch an interactive 360° live-stream experience for its London Collections: Men autumn/winter 2012/13 show on January 7.

The UK menswear brand will enable fans to scroll left or right, up and down to view the catwalk from any angle in a bid to make it feel ever more like they’re actually present. They can also interact with select industry insiders and celebrities in the front row, whose tweets will appear above their real location in an augmented addition to the live-stream.

As with the company’s Topshop Unique show in September, fans will also be able to “shoot the show” to instantly share images with their friends across social channels. The hashtag being pushed is #Topman360.

“Having streamed the Topman Design show for several seasons now and commenting separately via our social channels we really wanted to try and achieve a multi-faceted live stream experience which amalgamated all in one and make the experience as personal and unique for each viewer,” said Jason Griffiths, marketing director at Topman.

The initiative launches with a Facebook App from today that invites consumers to win a pair of front row tickets to the show as well as other prizes. It will also showcase the live-stream on January 7 alongside Topman.com and the brand’s digital magazine, Topman Generation.

London Fashion Week: your digital preview

This article first appeared on Mashable…

Once again, London Fashion Week is aiming to prove it has just as much muscle in the digital department as its counterpart in New York.

Innovation kicks off at Topshop. Newly installed chief marketing officer Justin Cooke, formerly vice president of public relations at Burberry, has developed an interactive, shoppable livestream experience for its Unique show on Sunday afternoon.

On Topshop.com, viewers will be able to browse product shots and color options for certain apparel and accessories as they come down the catwalk. Viewers can then place orders for delivery in six to eight weeks. Beauty products worn on the catwalk will likewise be available for purchase with delivery in 48 hours. And each look will be instantly shareable with Facebook friends thanks to a “shoot the show” feature developed in conjunction with Facebook engineers.

Jonathan Saunders is similarly offering fans the chance to pre-order his collection, this time on social platform Motilo, which allows users to shop together through live video and chat.

Ten of the looks from Saunders’s Spring/Summer 2013 line will be made available immediately following the livestream, which is being hosted in a specially-created hub on the Motilo site.

Visual diaries

The British Fashion Council (BFC) will be hosting livestreams of 47 shows at londonfashionweek.com/live this season, including those showing apart from the main catwalk venues, such as Christopher Kane, Mulberry and Paul Smith. The BFC’s in-house team will also be narrating the LFW story with behind-the-scenes snapshots on Instagram via the “BritishFashionCouncil” account.

Meanwhile, designer Anya Hindmarch, taking inspiration from Oscar de la Renta‘s bridal and spring shows, is working with the BFC to bring fans all the live action of her show via Pinterest.

Her experience throughout London Fashion Week, as well as of her show itself on Tuesday, will be pinned to the BFC’s board, providing a real-time visual diary for fans to engage with. Inspiration shots, backstage prep, even seating plans and invitations — not to mention the collection as it hits — will all be included. The Osman show on Monday will also be live-pinned.

The recently relaunched Net-a-Porter Tumblr promises to give a comprehensive overview of Fashion Week from both the front row, the street and, increasingly, backstage. The e-commerce site’s Fashion Fix blog meanwhile is equally as strong, hosting all manner of daily video insights and editorial content about trends.

Blogger, illustrator and photographer Garance Doré is also creating a series of videos for Net-a-Porter from each city, introduced in New York with an inside look at her prep for the week, and continuing through London with a second release on Tuesday.

Expert commentary

For those looking for some more expert analysis and professional insight on the collections, the place to head is SHOWstudio. Here, an exciting dose of live commentary and conversation is taking place alongside the livestreams on a number of key shows.

Hosted by SHOWstudio’s Lou Stoppard and writer Camilla Morton, you’ll find panel discussions with fashion experts including journalists, stylists, buyers and image-makers. “It’s about communicating fashion in a raw, unedited and honest way… and bringing the excitement of the front row to a broader audience,” the team explains.

SHOWstudio founder and director, Nick Knight, adds, “There is so much potential to cover the fashion shows in an entertaining way that can involve and excite a huge range of people. Sport events, for example, are always explained to their public by a panel of ‘experts,’ whereas fashion is just presented as if its only audience is the industry. Fashion coverage is also so inoffensive; everyone is too scared to rock the boat. Any art form benefits from a strong and robust critical forum — including fashion.”

Whistles CEO Jane Sheperdson, writer Colin McDowell, filmmaker Ruth Hogben, artist Daphne Guinness and more will all be featured. The initiative is occurring throughout fashion month (so New York, Milan and Paris too) from the company’s headquarters in London. LFW will see three shows covered: Burberry, Christopher Kane and Fashion East.

The BFC is looking to Twitter as always too, continuing its #AskLFW conversations from @LondonFashionWk with guest tweeters this season, including New York socialite Olivia Palermo, designers Matthew Williamson and Roksanda Ilincic, and Grazia magazine’s style director (and soon-to-be fashion director at Harvey Nichols), Paula Reed.

Geo-tracked transport

And finally, Vodafone is set to help LFW VIPs get about the city more easily throughout the week, thanks to an innovative bespoke app.

Each of the Mercedes-Benz cars VIPs travel in will include a Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 tablet pre-loaded with “fleet management technology” so they can track their progress in the city. In other words, they’ll be able to view their location and speed — similar to how you would on an airplane — in relation to the press and photographer buses, helping them judge how long they have until the next show begins.

As Rosanna Falconer, digital marketing executive at the BFC, explains, “It lets them know how quickly they need to be there, and whether they have time to stop off for that all-important cup of coffee.”

The app also includes a calendar of the show schedule, a list of PR contacts, a Twitter feed displaying relevant hashtags and a stream of post-show videos from YouTube. The initiative helps ensure those all-important attendees remain as on the ball so as to keep providing content for the rest of us.

Despite being a city largely comprised of young, independent designers — with therefore decidedly low budgets — London’s support network sees it once again upping its game for Spring/Summer 2013, cementing itself as a true contender in the digital space. Of course, we will have to see what Burberry has planned for us on Monday.

Lyst turns to Google Plus for backstage Hangouts with key influencers during NYFW

Social shopping site Lyst is set to host live Google Plus Hangouts backstage during New York Fashion Week this season.

The initiative will see pre-show video interviews taking place with influential editors, bloggers and the designers themselves at the venue, while seven other people invited by the platform connect in remotely and ask their own questions.

Fans will be able to watch the Hangouts as they happen live on YouTube, as well as send in questions in advance to be asked by the host.

The first one will take place tomorrow, Friday, September 7, with the Rebecca Minkoff show at 3pm. Hosted by Teen Vogue’s Eva Chen, the coverage will see interviews with Rebecca, as well as with the hair and make-up artists behind-the-scenes.

On Saturday, September 8, the Tibi show will include an interview with blogger Leandra Medine of The Man Repeller.

“Google+ is becoming a great place for people who are passionate about fashion to meet, share style tips and promote new brands. We’ve been impressed and excited by the ways Lyst is using Google+ to connect with fashion enthusiasts and build a global fan base by the hundreds of thousands,” said a Google representative.

After each of the shows, Lyst will send out the video along with a collection on the site of the favorite looks from the influencers interviewed.

Meanwhile, Lyst has also invited Nina Garcia and Olivia Palermo to broadcast their favourite looks live from the runway. This “Live Lysting” program will see them both share their top items with their followers on the platform.

As individuals add them to their own lists, they guarantee an alert will reach them as soon as that item comes into stock in any store worldwide. This runway tracking tool was launched by Lyst a year ago.

“Lyst is all about letting people craft their own fashion experience by following their favorite brands and influencers – in Nina and Oliva, we’ve got two of the industries most exciting curators for our users to follow,” said Chris Morton, CEO of Lyst.

Smashbox and Look partner on “blipp-to-buy” virtual shopping wall

Smashbox Cosmetics is set to host a virtual shopping wall at a high street catwalk show hosted by the UK’s Look magazine on October 6.

Enabled through a partnership with image recognition and augmented reality platform Blippar, the initiative will allow consumers to purchase products from the make-up brand directly through their mobile phones while at The Look Show event.

They will also be able to do so through the magazine thereafter, where pages showcasing the key make-up looks and products from the show will likewise be enhanced with shoppable augmented reality.

Stephen Shaw, opportunities director for Blippar, said: “From our initial creative briefings with Look it was clear they understood the tangible levels of engagement and interaction that Blippar could deliver for Smashbox Cosmetics. But just as important was that they realised the power of creating a stunning event and entertaining brand content that would compel their celebrity guests and readers to blipp-to-buy direct from the Smashbox Cosmetics virtual shopping wall and the post-show Look magazine special.”

Virtual shopping walls are a relatively new trend – inspired in the main by the Tesco Homplus subway initiative in South Korea last summer. Two further noteable examples include the Net-a-Porter Window Shop powered by Aurasma for Fashion’s Night Out in 2011, and the Glamour US beauty shopping wall in New York in February.

The Smashbox partnership with Look magazine comes as the LA-based cosmetics company aims to expands its UK presence. There will also be print and online display ads, social media, and homepage takeovers.

Swarovski to generate content via Facebook and Twitter for store windows

Swarovski is inviting consumers to send in suggestions of how London inspires them to help build creative for its Regent Street store windows.

Part of the brand’s “Iconic London” campaign ahead of the 2012 Olympics, it is encouraging users to participate via Facebook and Twitter using the #IconicLondon hashtag.

Illustrative design duo Good Wives and Warriors will then be transforming the windows with a live art event taking place over two days from the evening of July 16, and again on July 31.

“The store will be magically transformed, from a crystal forest, into a surreal and kaleidoscopic world full of colourful, dreamlike illustrations inspired by London,” reads the write-up.

Fans will be able to discover if their suggestion has become a part of the artwork by watching it come to life online. Their names will also be painted into the illustrations.

The resulting designs will also act as an exclusive preview of Swarovski’s autumn/winter 20112/13 collection, Kingdom of Jewels. Other stores across London will feature a unique creative also designed by Good Wives and Warriors.

Swarovski previously launched a campaign inviting fans to interact with an augmented reality Facebook app.

David Gandy to join Twitter Q&A line-up during menswear collections

Model David Gandy has just been announced as a key industry insider partaking in the British Fashion Council’s live Twitter Q&A this weekend.

A follow up to yesterday’s post about the digital innovations shaping London Collections: Men, he joins fellow members of the BFC’s Fashion 2012 Menswear Committee, designer Richard James and Esquire editor Alex Bilmes.

The public is being encouraged to send in questions ahead of time using #ASKLCM, touching on subjects as varied as fashion, life and love, as well as even beer, football and curry! Each session will last 30 minutes.

Here’s the full schedule:

Friday June 15, 11am
Richard James, designer

Saturday June 16, 11am
Alex Bilmes, editor, Esquire

Sunday June 17, 12pm
David Gandy, model

London menswear shows to benefit from multiple digital initiatives

London’s first dedicated menswear fashion week is focusing on engaging with consumers via digital, thanks to multiple innovations backed by the British Fashion Council.

London Collections: Men, which kickstarts Friday and runs through Sunday, will incorporate everything from live-streaming to pinning, as well as a film programme and augmented reality-enabled windows.

Here are some of the highlights:

Pinterest
Leading industry figures such as Jeremy Langmead, editor-in-chief of e-commerce site, Mr Porter, will share their moments from the week’s events by pinning onto the British Fashion Council’s newly launched Pinterest page. The public is also invited to participate by using the hashtag #ManAboutTown. The request is for menswear street style photos, whether taken at the event or anywhere else around the world. The resulting images will be collated on a dedicated pinboard and in a Facebook album in a bid to “provide a crowd-sourced visual collection of the best of British men’s style”.

Twitter
On Twitter, @BFC is not only pushing conversation around the #londoncollections hashtag, but hosting a series of Q&A sessions with members of its Fashion 2012 Menswear Committee, including Alex Bilmes, editor of UK Esquire magazine, and designer Richard James. The live interviews can be followed via #AskLCM.

Interactive image gallery
In celebration of The Prince of Wales officially launching the event at St James’s Palace tomorrow, the BFC has published an online image gallery dedicated to his style. Within it, users can explore outfits ranging from highland tartans to Savile Row suits, discovering the origin of each and learning more about the brand that made it. His preferred London labels are also plotted on a map alongside a picture of the related garments.

Aurasma
Following in the footsteps of Net-a-Porter’s Fashion’s Night Out and Karl initiatives, Mr Porter has teamed up with augmented reality technology company Aurasma, to bring the windows of The Hospital Club (the main hub for the event) to life. By scanning the life-sized catwalk illustrations with the Mr Porter Style Help app, users will be able to see the latest show footage.

Film and live-streaming
There is also a screening room within The Hospital Club that will run the BFC’s Fashion/On Film programme, sponsored by high street retailer River Island. Included will be an evening hosted by Test Presents with DJ and fashion luminary Jeffrey Hinton, who will show excerpts from his 80s film archive; as well as panel member Kathryn Ferguson discussing fashion film with female menswear designers, Carri Munden (Cassette Playa), Katie Eary and Martine Rose. Every show held at The Hospital Club as well as those at the Topman Venue will also be live streamed, both online and on mobile.