Lycra and Nishat Redefine Functional Fashion In New Concept Collection

From Louis Vuitton and Timberland’s collaboration and Sacai’s ongoing partnership with Carhartt WIP to the “yassification” of tennis apparel thanks to Zendaya’s court-ready red carpet looks for the “Challengers” press tour, the most exciting fashion today often draws inspiration from various apparel categories.

At the mass level, traditional denim brands are stepping into hybrid active/lifestyle apparel as well. Levi’s introduced the Levi’s Tech program earlier this year with 511 Slim Tech men’s pant, a style designed for on-the-go lifestyles. AG aims to capture the active audience with its new men’s activewear collection of polos, joggers and bomber jackets.

The Lycra Company and Nishat Dyeing and Finishing, a Lahore, Pakistan-based textile manufacturer of high-quality workwear, denim and technical fabrics, have developed a capsule collection of men’s, women’s and unisex garments that address this shift in consumer demands.

Called “Blurring the Boundaries” the 60-piece collection spans vests, outerwear, dresses, tops, pants, shorts and more. Hardcore workwear elements like reflective tape and panels of hi-vis safety orange serve both style and functional purposes. Versatile garments also feature functional pockets and durable zippers and snaps.

The collection launched at Functional Fabric Fair in Portland, Ore. last week and it will be presented at Kingpins Amsterdam April 24-25.

“This collection revolves around [the idea] that you can style it in whatever way you want,” said Pakeeza Zaidi, Nishat Mills Ltd.’s head of design and product development, adding that she designed it to transition between diverse environments effortlessly.

The garments are made with non-denim woven fabrics enhanced with Lycra technologies. Lycra and Lycra Adaptiv fibers provide freedom of movement and improved comfort. Lycra T-400, Lycra T-400 Ecomade and Lycra Dual Comfort give fabrics durability, a cotton-like touch and mechanical stretch. Coolmax and Thermolite technologies add thermal comfort like moisture management and breathability.

The collection is the result of the Lycra and Nishat teams discussing for over a year how to communicate the way consumers are experimenting with performance brands, bringing outdoor and workwear apparel into their everyday wardrobes and how brands and retailers are responding to the shift.

A confluence of drivers is behind the shift, from the rise of gorpcore styling on the runway to consumers adopting healthier outdoor lifestyles. Citing Business of Fashion and McKinsey’s State of Fashion 2024 report, Ebru Ozaydin, The Lycra Company’s strategic marketing director for denim and ready-to-wear, said more outdoor brands are anticipated to launch lifestyle collections while lifestyle brands are adding technical elements to their collections, “further blurring the lines between functionality and style.”  

Post-pandemic consumers are also seeking utility, durability and performance in their fashion, which Ozaydin said makes technical outdoor apparel a good match for their budgets. “[Consumers] are not seeing this kind of apparel only for outdoors or only for gyms or hiking…it is becoming part of their lifestyle and how they’re updating their wardrobes in a different way,” she said.

“We need to realize that after covid, the fashion landscape and consumer demands have totally changed,” Zaidi said.

Though many of the technologies and manufacturers that are finding new opportunities in the burgeoning performance lifestyle apparel category existed before 2020, Zaidi said they were delivering “run of the mill” products that consumers were asking for at that time. “The products we’re making today, we couldn’t think of having those kinds of things five years ago,” she said.

Nor were designers likely to use artificial intelligence to develop their collections.

Zaidi inputted sketches and descriptive words into an AI platform to make mood boards for the collection. The process informed Blurring the Boundaries’ avatar-inspired fits, bold colors, smooth textures and even the location for the lookbook—Times Square. She described the collection as a link between the metaverse and real life.

The Lycra Company and Nishat, which works with Gap Inc., Levi’s, Madewell, One Jeanswear Group, Eddie Bauer and more, share a passion for solving problems. When developing innovations, Ozaydin said Lycra always starts with the pain points at the consumer level.

Meanwhile, research and development are at Nishat’s core, said Jennyka Wasserman, Nishat Mills Ltd. marketing and development.

“We love to develop new things,” she said. “That’s the most important aspect for us. We want to solve the problem before the customer comes to us and asks us to do it so we’re ahead of the game.”