We all know that collaboration is key to move any industry forward, but it seems especially true for fashion and technology. These two seemingly opposite worlds need to come together to continue to deliver products and experiences that are both functional and meaningful. For those of us who’ve been following the FashionTech space long enough, we’ve seen the beauty these types of collaborations can yield: witness IBM X Marchesa, Zac Posen X Madison Maxy, and even Google X Levis as examples.
But designers and technologists aren’t the only collaborators that need to work side by side for the industry to grow; in order to provoke true change and development, we also need to connect entrepreneurs with investors. How else can businesses move on to the next level?
This is why we’re excited today to share the news that Fashion Technology Accelerator (otherwise know as FTA) announced a partnership with Hatcher+, a data-driven venture capital company based in Singapore and Miami. For those who haven’t heard, FTA is a global infrastructure for fashion technology entrepreneurs. For five years, FTA has been fostering innovation in the fashion technology space by providing funding to post-revenue startups to help them thrive; Hatcher+ is a next-generation venture investment platform that recently unveiled an early stage investment fund. Hatcher+ uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to identify opportunities for partnership with leading accelerators and investor groups.
The partnership suggests more insights and data-driven investments in the fashion tech space, as well as an expansion for the already growing FTA, which now has a presence in Milan, Seoul, and Silicon Valley. The FTA is currently accepting applications for its 2018 cohort. The deadline for application is February 28th, with the selection date taking place March 14th. For more information and to learn about applying, follow the link.
