FABRIC PHYGITAL FASHION TECH CAMPUS GRAND OPENING

FABRIC is MOVING THE NEEDLE

Grand Opening of the new Phygital Fashion Campus

SATURDAY, April 22, 2023
5PM-9PM
FABRIC 132 E. 6th St., Tempe, AZ 85281
Arrive at the original FABRIC facility at 5pm promptly and follow the designer/model trail to the new phygital fashion campus on foot

HIGHLIGHTS

Group Photo by Steve Konopka
Photos of Participants by Capture N Shoot

FABRIC'S NEW PHYGITAL FASHION CAMPUS - WEAR THE INDUSTRY COMES TO...

PLAY | INNOVATE | TEST | COLLABORATE | LEARN | TEACH | MAKE | MEET | GROW | SELL | IMPROVE

FABRIC's Grand Opening event was a VIP sneak peek of the nation's first Phygital Fashion Innovation Center which opened in the Spring of 2023. To celebrate the move, industry leaders, partners, supporters, and visionaries attended the Moving the Needle event to get a sneak peek of the facility and meet 40 apparel entrepreneurs and brands who call FABRIC home.

The facility, ideally suited for digital design and high-tech manufacturing, is a newly renovated, ultra-modern, window-clad facility that is the perfect showcase for innovative micro-factory technology consisting of a physical design and manufacturing floor as well as a digital design floor to create one of the nation’s first physical-to-digital fashion incubators and micro-factory that supports brands of any size. This pioneering endeavor aims to provide everything an apparel entrepreneur or brand needs to make and sell their products physically and digitally using the latest software and equipment.

Invitations were printed on dead stock fabric using the sustainable Kornit Presto printer and sent to VIPs worldwide. Attendees arrived at FABRIC's old facility, grabbed a limited-edition Moving the Needle, zero-waste bag (also printed on the Kornit), and followed a pathway of 40 designers/brands into the new Phygital Fashion Innovation Center. Along the path, attendees collected gifts from the participating brands as they learned about each one. As attendees entered the new facility, they explored the first-floor physical micro-factory and then made their way up to the second-floor digital design center and event space for cocktails provided by Four Peaks, hors d'oeuvres provided by Heidi's Catering, and music provided by Soundwave Productions/DJ Krickit.

Tempe Mayor Corey Woods, Economic Development Director Donna Kennedy. Lectra/Gerber VP of Marketing Ketty Pillet, Kornit, and Dapzury Valenzuela from UAT shared inspiring words of support and encouragement about FABRIC. Apparel entrepreneurs David Parrish of O.T.T.R., Alison Callaway of Skirt the Issues, and LaMark Cole shared the impact that FABRIC has made on their brands.