In May 2019 the first digital-only dress was sold by digital fashion house The Fabricant for $9,500 dollars.

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The press went wild: from quizzical - “Would you spend $10,000 on a Virtual Dress?”, to outraged -“It’s Not Even Wearable!”. The majority of outlets dubbed Digital Fashion a futurist fad, laden with tongue-in-cheek comparisons to the notorious parable The Emperor’s New Clothes.

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2020’s sweatpant-sanctioned confinement, led to a rapid acceleration in the Digital Fashion space. From colleague’s zoom backgrounds, to AR made-over selfies, we all agreed to embrace what we saw through screens as a form of reality; particularly when it came to aesthetics.

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Just as in the original parable, there are now a whole host of Digital Tailors, responding to the need to look good in the ether. They promise clothes “woven from the purest silk and finest gold thread invisible to all but those of your rank and stature” (aka anyone with an Instagram account). What’s more, with an outcrop of Virtual Fashion marketplaces, some are even delivering!

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It is estimated that Digital Fashion will have a TAM of $10 billion by 2030. 2021 will be the year that this shift from conception to adoption begins. The $9,500 virtual dress worn by the Emperor (in this case the wife of Quantstamp CEO Richard Ma) can now be bought, and rendered, for only $35, and brands are taking note. Versace, Louis Vuitton, Balenciaga, Gucci and Burberry have all made forays into Digital Fashion, through both the design and distribution of Digital Fashion Goods. Most recently, Alexander McQueen’s own Sarabande Foundation released Auroboros - a line of Digital-Only Haute Couture.

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This Outfit Does Not Exist, is a platform powering the shift towards Digital Fashion through education, exploration and exhibition. 

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Each month explores a theme: from digital design & distribution, to marketing in the Metaverse, with deep-dive features on their advents and possibilities. These explorations are accompanied by partnerships with pioneering institutions across fashion, sustainability and tech to drive this shift. You can also find the most brilliant feats of digital design showcased through my Instagram.

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The future of fashion is Digital.

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Dani Loftus - Founder, This Outfit Does Not Exist 

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