BERLIN — Can cognitive sciences help turn “someday” clothes into “wear-me” clothes?
At Procter & Gamble’s Future Fabric Summit here Nov. 13 P&G set its sights on adding value to garments by addressing the cognitive-emotional connection in the clean and care process. Our someday-clothes — the ones that we barely wear — could turn into wear-me clothes by improving their touch and scent, P&G researchers and invited speakers suggested.
What makes us love our clothes? Why do we wear some pieces frequently and neglect others? For recent studies, speakers noted, indicate that most women wear 20 percent of their clothes 80 percent of the time.
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According to cognitive psychologist Lawrence Rosenblum from the University of California, Riverside, the way we feel about a garment is a myriad of sensory perceptions. How we feel about our clothes depends not only on the visual dimension, but on the touch, the scent, the surroundings.
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John Turner, director of P&G’s Fabric Care Research & Development team in Europe, took it one step further. Ninety-five percent of our daily decisions, including those regarding what we choose to wear from our wardrobes, are unconscious, according to him. The senses of smell, touch, and sight have been found to influence our preference and choices even if we are not aware of the process, opening up a whole host of possibilities for cleaning and care products that enhance those sensory qualities.
Robert van Pappelendam, vice president of P&G Fabric Care Europe, and Turner announced the Fabric Care Lines’ “3-step FibreSCIENCE approach” to clean, protect and enhance fabrics with new detergent and scent technologies that permeate fibers on a micro-level. It is a process P&C frequently compared in both goals and results to the multistep skin and haircare methods we use for ourselves.
“The cognitive science program can be boiled down to how we think about caring about clothes beyond the cleaning aspects. There are three elements: the look, the feel and the smell. We have technologies to address to all of these areas. When people wash their clothes, all of the factors will come into play. I think fabric care and science should go together and we’re starting that journey,” Turner told WWD.
Along with the new technologies, collaboration programs with textile manufacturers and designers to extend education on the longevity of fabrics will be intesified, including the Giles Deacon’s latest machine-washable collection for P&G Fabric Care presented during the Summit.
The next P&G Future Fabrics event will be held in New York on Jan. 14.