Zalando relies on technology to aid fashionistas | IDG Connect

Photo: Martin Veitch

Martin Veitch, Editorial Director at IDG Connect summarizes, "Eric Bowman of German online apparel giant is betting on artificial intelligence to take fashion further."

Photo: IDG Connect

Eric Bowman is VP of engineering at online clothes and shoes retailer Zalando, which describes itself as Europe’s biggest fashion platform serving about 19 million active customers across 15 countries. Unlike most companies in the sector, Berlin-headquartered 
Zalando is outspoken about its use of technology and how critical this is to its operations which are based on custom-built logistics centres and pure-play e-commerce. The company even has a “bespoke development and cultural methodology” called Radical Agility (YouTube video) that it says helped to attract many of its tech department’s 1,350 staff. Zalando’s original backers included Germany’s Rocket Internet group, well known for refining existing formulas for internet success.

Eight-year-old Zalando has recently worked with Google on Project Muze, using machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) to design apparel. It also developed Bread&Butter by Zalando – a trade show turned virtual “trend show”. I swapped emails with Bowman to discuss the confluence of fashion and technology at Zalando which had almost €3 billion in annual revenue for 2015.
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Source: IDG Connect