The National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) has launched the ‘VisioNxt Fashion Forecasting Initiative, a bilingual web portal and the India-specific fashion trend book Paridhi 24x25.
- The initiative is meant to prioritise indigenous design and manufacturing in India.
- VisioNxt was launched in 2018 with the hope of empowering Indian fashion and retail industries by tracking future directions through systematic research of changing consumption behaviour and evolving mindsets by using big data, AI enabled tools and emotional intelligence.
THE PROJECT: Supported by a network of 800+ trendspotters across the country, industry experts, academicians and credible methodology, VisioNxt gives time-accurate, geo-specific trend mapping solutions.
- It will periodically bring out trend reports, consumer insights, and strategies for future consumers.
- Paridhi marks the launch of the first inclusive fashion trend forecast by VisioNxt, along with a web portal to disseminate India-specific fashion trends.
- To support weavers, manufacturers, retailers, domestic businesses, homegrown designers, and fashion brands, this report is available in Hindi and English through the VisioNxt portal.
- VisioNxt has achieved this through the development of a unique prediction model known as ‘DeepVision’, designed to decode patterns and interpret fashion trends in India.
THE HIGHLIGHTS: This model identifies product specifics, such as whether an item is a kurta or kurti, red or yellow, plain or striped, short or long, among other attributes, using convolutional neural network architecture at the Insights Lab of VisioNxt.
- These insights are then converted into comprehensive reports with design and colour directions.
- A pioneering AI deep learning model developed in-house, identifies over 60 Indianwear and 40 westernwear categories through computation with mandated accuracy, facilitating machine learning applications—a first in India.
- The initiative also involved creating a comprehensive dataset of more than 70,000 primary apparel images, along with 280,000+ secondary image data, to identify patterns in key apparel attributes, including style, colour, and regional accents.
THE ADVANTAGES: India's entry into the forecasting space offers multiple advantages: it reduces dependence on global forecasting agencies, provides unique insights into Indian fashion consumers, integrates the country’s strength in information technology with textiles, and combines artificial and human intelligence.
- VisioNxt positions India globally among countries that predict fashion trends, increasing the visibility of Indian fashion vocabulary and identity while reducing dependence on international trend agencies.
SEEDING IT: Funded by the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India under the R&D Scheme, VisoNxt took seed at NIFT as research-led initiative.
- VisioNxt—a Trend Insights and Forecasting Initiative—was conceived and established at NIFT Delhi (Creative Lab) and NIFT Chennai (Insights Lab), with the support of the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India, in 2018.
- The initiative, now centralised in Chennai, focuses on delivering trend insights and forecasting for the Indian fashion and retail market. It also offers various trend related consultancy services, academic courses, workshops ,etc.
