Zalando unveils a little more of its Bread & Butter

By

Bruno Joly

Published
Jun 28, 2016

On the eve of the Berlin trade fairs, Zalando presented an overview of its Bread & Butter project by Zalando, the professional trade show having been bought by the e-commerce site at the end of 2015.

As we have previously reported, the event is marketing itself as being aimed at the general public, by bringing together fashion, music and new technologies. However, the long list of brands usually seen at the show has been reduced to just 25, though most of them are heavyweights of the street and denim scene. Scheduled to appear from 2 to 4 September in Berlin are: Adidas, Converse, Eastpak, Herschel Supply and Co, Hugo, Lee, Levi’s, Nike, Topman, Vans, Won Hundred and, of course, Zalando.

Tommy Hilfiger is scheduled to present his collaboration with Gigi Hadid there and Marni will unveil its creations for Zalando. Visitors will also have the opportunity to discover the future of fashion with zlabels, collections produced with smart machines.

But, Zalando's aim is to connect players in the fashion industry and to allow consumers to interact with the brands and also share trends. Instagram and Facebook are both partners. The apparel to be shown on the catwalk will be immediately available for sale. Productions via augmented reality, customisation and even exclusive pieces will be at the heart of the concept. Meanwhile, the musical programme will be provided by Boiler Room, the name of a London-based project launched in March 2010 that organises DJ sets for smaller audiences and broadcasts them on the Internet. Simply put, the event offers brands a targetted audience... digital influencers of fashion.

The show will be organised around 5 themes: "Get physical", "Fill your Feed", "Mix it Up", "Make it Yours" and "Gear Up".

"Our concept challenges the status quo. It reinvents the traditional trade show to give life to a new concept, a unique event that invites brands and consumers to exchange freely with each other. We want people to feel inspired by the new trends and be able to be the first to test the latest products. With Bread & Butter by Zalando, customers are no longer excluded from the world of fashion but are instead invited to take part in it," asserted David Schneider, a member of the board of directors.