Concerns about coronavirus precipitated drastic changes for the fashion industry, including using digital technology to present collections — a frequent sustainability recommendation for minimizing travel-related emissions.
The respiratory disease coronavirus, also known as covid-19, broke out last December in Wuhan, China. Since then it has spread to other countries around the world. Europe recently saw a spike. Italy now has the highest number of infections outside of Asia, CNN reported. The country’s northern region experienced an uptick in cases.
That recent surge coincided with Milan Fashion Week. In response, Georgio Armani closed its Autumn-Winter 2020 show to the public and livestreamed it from an empty theater instead, according to CNN. “This is a preventative measure decided by Mr. Armani to support national efforts in safeguarding public health,” the fashion house posted on Twitter.
Although it was motivated by health concerns, that move was actually in line with what some fashion industry experts have been suggesting as a way to lower fashion week emissions. Last month Copenhagen Fashion Week organizers released a three-year sustainability action plan that included “exploring alternatives to disseminate shows to a wider audience using digital solutions to minimize travel.”
More recently, B2B fashion business platform Ordre.com and the Carbon Trust published a study that measured the carbon emissions of travel associated with the ready-to-wear wholesale buying process. Among their recommendations: Embrace virtual technologies to present collections as an alternative to physical attendance.
WWD recently posted a long list of ways that coronavirus is affecting the fashion industry. In order to survive such a huge financial hit, designers and buyers are getting creative with alternatives to physical attendance much faster than anticipated.
Shanghai Fashion Week, which had been postponed due to coronavirus, will be livestreamed via Alibaba’s Tmall website later this spring, WWD reported. The switch is expected to direct millions of traffic hits to designers, saving many of them from bankruptcy, the vice secretary of Shanghai Fashion Week told the outlet.
Paris Fashion Week began Monday. Anxiety about the virus permeated the event, Washington Post fashion critic Robin Givhan reported. Early Wednesday morning, the French Health Ministry confirmed three new cases of coronavirus in the country, according to the Post.
Coronavirus is wreaking havoc with numerous industries around the world, notably automotive manufacturing, pharmaceutical production, and consumer electronics manufacturing. It’s also affecting energy markets. Utility Dive pointed to potential disruptions for the solar and lithium-ion battery storage sectors.
“This is going to be a very big deal,” Daniel Finn-Foley, head of energy storage at Wood Mackenzie, told the outlet.
