Speed is everything in fashion today and now Browzwear, the 3D virtual product sampling firm, is putting tools in the hands of designers to help them execute on collections faster than ever.
Browzwear, headquartered in Singapore, said designers now can implement multiple color tweaks simultaneously with just a single click when rendering virtual samples—a feature it claims is unmatched in other competitive offerings. This new update, called colorways workspace, went live in April in two of Browzwear’s core modules. Designers, pattern makers and technical specialists use VStitcher to create virtual garments in a variety of sizes, and with graphic treatments, colors, fabrics and trims while Lotta makes use of carryover styles, or blocks, so that designers can iterate rapidly on previously created silhouettes.
Apparel companies including Nike, Walmart, PVH and VF Corp. are among the brands leveraging Browzwear to accelerate ideas through design to development and eliminate oversampling, a major concern as the consumer spotlight shifts to sustainability and environmental consciousness. Companies like Fabscrap have sprung up to address the growing problem of textile waste, part of which stems from fashion’s overreliance on multiple, and often unnecessary, rounds of physical sampling.
Bernd Sauer, director of development apparel at Puma, said, “For apparel and footwear companies, digital design technology that produces accurate, shareable 3D renderings is key to getting products to market more quickly and sustainably.”
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Sauer added that the fashion tech firm has been an instrumental partner in offering “all the support we need to keep innovating without having to create and ship physical product samples back and forth among teams and facilities.”
Browzwear noted additional VStitcher and Lotta updates geared toward enhancing the end-to-end process of virtual design and facilitating collaboration. The company said the modules now support a broader array of materials such as glitter, metallic and velvet so that users can render and edit “super-realistic virtual garments” in real time. The group/lock/hide feature is aimed at cross-disciplinary teams working in tandem on a single garment; it allow users to make changes to their “group” of elements—like trims and graphic treatments, for example—while locking other elements or hiding them from view to keep those components unchanged and reduce confusion and errors.
Teams creating in Browzwear can access local library files as well as the Browzwear library of assets, thanks to new support for the U3M file format where users can store visual and custom physical data together. VStitcher and Lotta now autosave changes, Browzwear said, allow users to measure 3D samples, and “style” virtual garments to smooth out creases, showcasing products in the best possible light.
Browzwear co-founder Avihay Feld said the tech firm, “a pioneer in 3D technology,” has been on the forefront of fashion and retail’s digitization. “Our platform addresses all of the significant design, fitting and merchandising issues apparel companies face during the design and sampling processes,” Feld added. “Our VStitcher and Lotta April 2019 edition offer new features that save time and effort while giving designers even more creative power.”