Welcome to a new series where we delve into how people or businesses use technology in their everyday work lives. We'll start by doing a few simple questions to keep things consistent and see how things evolve over time. I was lucky enough to be blessed by Priya at Quillattire who gave me an insight into how she runs her sustainable androgynous fashion brand, I'll bow out now and let her introduce herself below:
Introduce yourself, who are you, what do you or your business do?
Hey 🙂 My name is Priya, I'm the proud owner of a sustainable unisex fashion brand called 'Quillattire'. My brand uses the best sustainable fabrics, such as bamboo or organic cotton, and trims made from coconut or vegetable proteins - using a mix of these fabrics and materials I create modern fashion. I use techniques such as up-cycling vintage clothes, hand painting and embroidery to create planet friendly, exciting ready to wear clothing.
Tell me how technology fits into your daily workflow?
I use my MacBook daily to keep tabs on all my customer orders. I also use my MacBook to store or access all of my research, from the pictures I use on my iPhone via Google Photos, to researching ideas online. All of my designing is done on Photoshop and Illustrator, where I use my Wacom pen from time to time to speed up the processes. So I suppose technology has a massive fit in my daily work life.
Tell me how different that would be without technology?
I mean it would be a hell of a lot more peaceful without the constant streams of information coming through; and the need to keep up with the speed of it all. It helps speed up the design process for me but I do miss sketching on a piece of paper with a pencil as that experience is so much different from sketching on Photoshop or Illustrator. Without technology research would not be as fast, information would be harder to find and access to the wider world would be more challenging. From time to time it would be nice to have the old ways back as it was more like a reward to find something really cool but now everything is so available, it's like an information overload. Technology has also allowed me to have an online store which was so important during the pandemic, so without it, I wouldn't have been able to sell my collection!
Where do you see your business growing with technology in the next 5 years?
I run my business via the internet and using my iPhone and laptop, also my printer without these I would not be able to run my online shop. I think the main way my business will grow with technology is the way people shop. The pandemic has shown brands how important technology is with connecting to their customers without physical retail spaces or fashion shows in person. I think augmented reality will play a big part, I've just got to look at how to work that into my brand's customer experience.
Any tips to share with the readers?
I suppose you've got to get on the bandwagon and just move forward with ideas, if I never took any risks I wouldn't be where I am today. As important as technology is in the way everyone works, breaks are very important from this type of life it's very easy to get information overload. Things can get overwhelming, so step away from time to time, reconnect with nature (best to do so wearing our new collection Digital Nomad). In regards to people's aspirations and dreams, I would say - follow your gut and what you believe in. Without change or risk, you can't elevate, so don't be afraid and believe in yourself.