How Fashion and Beauty Should Time CES – WWD

Like fashion week, CES, the tech’s consumer electronics showcase in Las Vegas, enjoys highlighting the latest products and trends that will wow people in the weeks and months ahead.

Even so, the show has never been a regular stop on the fashion and beauty circuit, except for perhaps the most tech-focused brands and platforms. L’Oréal, Procter & Gamble, Fossil, Perfect Corp. Take a closer look at other companies that want to tell innovation stories, identify interesting new partnerships, or showcase their latest developments, products and projects.

L’Oréal Group’s fascination with hardware and beauty acumen led the company to unveil two new makeup application devices at the show, the Hapta and Brow Magic. Guive Balooch, global vice president of L’Oréal’s technology incubator, told WWD that they nurture a broader goal of using technology to make sure that “our fingers and hands no longer stand in the way of achieving the results we desire”.

Unlike previous years, Procter & Gamble did not introduce new products or hold an exhibition this time. But it made its presence known by sending Kelly Anderson, director of data science and artificial intelligence research and development, to talk about the company’s approach to data science and to partner with startups to keep the flow of new ideas and innovations.

“AI and data – high-quality, owned data – is part of our digital transformation strategy to disrupt the way we innovate and bring products to market faster, better and cheaper,” Anderson told WWD. “It helps us understand very deeply about consumer behavior, what they want to achieve, and helps us design the best possible products for them to achieve that.

“Obviously, we are strategically externally partnering with both academics to understand the basic sciences, [and] especially with start-ups as technology moves from academia to startups and big businesses very, very quickly in the world of artificial intelligence.

Perfect Corp., the artificial intelligence and augmented reality platform for beauty and an increasing number of accessories, was also a regular at CES. Just before the show, the company announced a virtual trial solution for eyewear, with its “streamlined automated modeling process simplifying 3D sku creation by providing an easy-to-adopt self-service platform for brands to digitize their product lines.” a fraction of the time” according to the company.

In essence, the 3D virtual glasses creation process he designed was created to replace complex, multidimensional scanning processes with automated 3D renderings, “using only three flat product images to create a unique live camera preview.”

Adam Gant, marketing director of Perfect Corp., was also seen at a CES panel on solving the retail industry’s biggest challenges. The talk focused on six specific technology trends the company has identified, including sustainability, the return of physical retail, AI-based skin technology, the rise of AI and AR for fashion accessories, personalization intelligence, and virtual commerce via Web 3.0 and other immersive experiences. .

Naturally, the larger expo culminates in some of these points, especially the latter, as dozens of exhibitors are at the forefront of mixed reality, NFT and blockchain, the metaverse, Web 3.0 and related trends.

WWD has caught up with a tech company that aims to bridge the gap between wearable tech fashion and a virtual experience similar to augmented reality, but in a more practical way. Vuzix has announced a new Ultralite reference device that visually delivers smartphone notifications, but without the bulk and frustratingly short battery life.

As Vuzix president, CEO and founder Paul Travers explained to WWD, the company’s approach to waveguide technology enables a thinner form factor without sacrificing resolution and quality. “Everything is subtle and sexy [and] fashion pioneer,” he said. “Displays can be extremely small in the corners hidden inside the frames. And the lenses are 0.6 millimeters thin. So you have this form factor that you can put on glasses.”

The premise looks particularly interesting, as Apple is reportedly on the verge of releasing its own smart glasses or mixed reality headset. So it’s no surprise that big tech and fashion-related brands are showing interest in Ultralite. Travers did not name specific companies, but hinted at the feasibility of bringing the Ultralite reference design under the banner of a globally recognized consumer brand as early as this fall.

Wearable technology and fashion have become so irresistible that even celebrities like Paula Abdul are taking action. The dancer/singer saw fit to bring the IdolEyes Fashion Sound Glasses to CES, and many wrist instruments were also spotted, including Fossil’s latest sixth-generation, wellness-focused hybrid watch.

It seems that fashion-oriented technology has advanced from the face and hands to the feet. Indeed, luxury shoe designer Enrico Cuini orthopedic surgeon Dr. He worked with Taryn Rose to create a line of high-end men’s and women’s shoes that promise the ultimate in fit and comfort, thanks to the development of ALIA, or Active Lift in Alignment. support technology.

The system uses computer vision and intelligence for personalized, bespoke fit. The shoes were “making even the tallest, sexiest stilettos incredibly comfortable by distributing pressure over a larger foot surface area to dynamically allow for pressure relief, stability, and energy return.”

For attendees who made it to CES this year—some 112,000 at last count, just over half the regular crowd—were rewarded with gonzo glasses in a range of eye-catching technologies. . Most obvious to the casual audience was the futuristic, bendable screens on televisions and automotive innovation for driverless cars, electric vehicles, infotainment systems and more. If that didn’t draw attention, transportation options certainly did. After all, how often is a Tesla fired with a free driver in the colorfully illuminated underground tunnels under the Las Vegas Convention Center?

But there was more underneath the show’s surface, and it’s clear that innovation for fashion and beauty will continue to light the way this year and beyond.