close your eyes now and dream of lands
we’ll build our future upon those sands
open your ears now and let me whisper
let me tell you how we’ll get there
- Andrew Resital

For the past couple years, there has been discussion about the relationship between fashion and technology. Much of this conversation is based on the assumption that these industries are polar opposites: superficial caricatures of self-obsessed creatives versus programmers coding in dark rooms, unplugged from emotions.

As someone who has worked in both technology and fashion for decades (from Ralph Lauren to Nextel to Orion), this extreme perspective has always troubled me. While the industries are outwardly dissimilar, they’ve been working to achieve the same goals: to further refine communication in ways we had previously never imagined.

Fashion creates a medium for self expression and communicating who we are with the world. Meanwhile, technology has long focused on making connections between people around the world faster and easier. However, they’ve each approached communication from different angles. Some of the most interesting companies in recent history have found a way to reconcile these different approaches with great success. Today, though, offers an unprecedented opportunity to combine the best of both worlds to bring something truly inspiring to market.

One of my design heroes, Edwin Land, was one of the first people to bring these two worlds together when he launched Polaroid in 1948. Its product was clearly a tech innovation: instant photos in an era that relied on lengthy film processing. However, it also brought a new element to the image-driven world of fashion. An idol to both Andy Warhol and Steve Jobs, Land injected technology into the world of avant-garde art and style — and in turn, he built a communication technology product that became a fashion symbol.

While we can point to examples like Polaroid to show that tech and style have intersected in the past, the growth of consumer technology has accelerated this union — and the beauty of true symbiosis have begun to outwardly emerge. Examples are across the map — from designer Rebecca Minkoff rethinking consumer retail to activewear brands investigating “smart clothing.” Fashion and technology are fundamentally melding to create exciting and novel experiences that give consumers better ways to communicate with the world.

This is only the beginning.

As the lines between fashion and technology continue to blur, I believe we will see each industry learn from the other’s successes and failures to avoid making similar mistakes and amplify positive impact. Apple is one company quickly adopting the fashion industry’s approach to luxury goods. Ringly, a startup, has incorporated fashion into its tech-infused statement rings. FitBit and Tory Burch have joined forces to produce workout trackers with fashionable covers to add to your ensemble. Although still a work in progress, we’re seeing less resistance to the notion that fashion and tech are inherently different.

Fashion and tech, as disparate as they may seem, have a lot in common. No one company has brought the two together in a meaningful way to date, but it is exciting to imagine that the great American brand of tomorrow will integrate both industries in equal parts. That is why Orion exists. This is why compelling, beautifully designed products that enable powerful communication will change the world. Just open your ears now and let me whisper. Next, I’ll tell you how we get there.