The 2018 Glossy Awards will include 11 new categories, including Best Pop-Up/New Concept Store, Best Use of Voice by a Brand and Breakthrough Product Collaboration. These new categories reflect the most significant, recent developments in how technology has disrupted fashion, luxury, retail and beauty, from where products are sold to how they are marketed.
Now in their second year, the Glossy Awards honor the brands, media companies and technology firms that are transforming the fashion and luxury industries at a time of seismic change. The categories span the fashion and luxury industries, startups, partnerships with influencers, beauty and platforms.
In the Fashion & Luxury categories, the award for Best Pop-Up/New-Concept Store will go to the brand displaying the best non-traditional physical retail concept, offering shoppers a memorable and valuable experience. While traditional fashion, luxury and beauty brands have always leveraged the power of the physical store, eyes will be on retail’s newcomers, particularly direct-to-consumer brands. As Glossy senior reporter Hilary Milnes noted in January: “Direct-to-consumer brands born online — including Everlane, Allbirds, Outdoor Voices, Glossier, Modern Citizen, AYR, Away, Casper, Rent the Runway, Eloquii, M.Gemi, Fabletics, Baublebar, Birchbox and Bonobos — have all moved into physical retail.”
Voice-activated technologies are a new addition to this year’s Platform Effect categories, which recognize how brands are using technology to reach customers. Best Use of Voice by a Brand will honor the fashion brand that has most effectively used a skill, action or styling service to engage its audience and drive revenue. Beauty and fashion brands have started to dip their toes into the possibilities of voice technology: Menswear brand Perry Ellis and UK-based makeup brand Wunder2 both launched Amazon Alexa skills in the last six months, which focus on styling.
In the Partnerships category, product collaborations present a new opportunity for brands and their partners to receive recognition for their work. The award for Breakthrough Product Collaboration will celebrate a groundbreaking collaborative collection between a fashion brand and an outside partner. 2017 was a big year for Amazon’s fashion ambitions, and brands like Nike and Calvin Klein kicked off partnerships with the e-commerce behemoth.
Check out the 11 new categories — plus much more — today. The early deadline to enter is Friday, February 16; the last-chance deadline is March 30. Winners will be announced at the Glossy Awards gala in June 2018 in New York City.
