Fashion flirts with state-of-the-art

: Opposites attract. The adage gets reaffirmation from yet another source as technology and fashion flirt with each other to form an alliance designed to attract customers. Gone are the days when even for a state-of-the-art gadget, the only way to add the aesthetic was to buy a designer label case.

However designer Ashish Soni’s tie up with global mobile phone manufacturing leader Nokia may have been the first of its kind in India, but given the global trends, it should not be a flash in the pan. The cell phone is perhaps the most visible of the e-world where design is playing an increasingly important part in how a particular product is seen. But from FMCGs to apparel, there is a tendency for the romance to blossom.

“Our target is to reinforce our design tie ups so that we can reach out to our target audiences,” says Devinder Kishore, Nokia’s marketing director, India. Soni, who is designing a line inspired by the phones, is equally sure the tie up is a logical one and holds potential. “Our partnership will give me an opportunity to create a collection that represents the fusion of fashion and technology,” is how he sees the association.

Global leaders like Nokia, Samsung and Motorola has already tied up with internationally renowned designers to make a greater impact.

While launching Samsung’s SGH-E800C in Malaysia last year, top fashion designers Bill Keith, Orson Liyu, Khoon Hooi and Jonathan Chang, were each invited to design a piece of clothing that they felt resembled the phone. R Zutshi, deputy MD, Samsung India, says “Companies are tying up with designers because they are realising that along with product technology and features , product design too has a significant bearing on the consumers purchase decision. Thus, companies like ours are researching the preferences of different consumer segments and incorporating these into our product design.”

Nokia’s association with Zac Posen has seen him design of one of its product lines, aptly named the Fashion Collection. Posen, who counts among his clients Hollywood glitterati like Natalie Portman, Gwyneth Paltrow, Claire Danes Liv Tyler besides the twin daughters of US president George Bush, has designed the Nokia 7200 phone enhanced with design elements from the his Blixen Collection. Nokia always brings great designs to its phones, and it is an honour to add fashion to an already elegant phone, says Posen.

Motorola...