Keele Research Repository

The concept of fashion has been coupled with technology, where technology has become the protagonist of today’s business scenario even though this change has been resisted many times. The transparency between an organization and a customer works as a catalyst and the customer has taken a more mainstream role than the traditional passive observant. Though we have been witnessing many changes in technology to meet post COVID-19 challenges, Blockchain technology is yet to make its mark and is considered revolutionary. With blockchain technology, companies can reconnect with customers and customers can track the journey of a product from its raw materials to the finished goods. Presenting 360 0 views of a product journey from raw material to finished goods assures the aspects of trust compliance and ethics. This research study discusses how the availability of a tremendous amount of data collected by fashion firms has been changing the service industry. The primary focus of the study is on services and big data collected from the following sectors, namely fashion, apparel, textile, circular economy, and online platforms (for instance, online advertising, online dating, and subscription service). The study presents anecdotal evidence brought together from multiple discussions, studies, and collaborations with data analysts working in a startup, online platforms, and marketing firms. The authors main goals are (i) to illustrate an overview of how big data is transforming the service industry, especially the fashion and design sector post COVID-19, (ii). to present various mechanisms adopted in the service industry that influence the latent information concealed in big data, and (iii) to highlight some of the drawbacks and risks incurred. The study aims to investigate a model that fits through EXT-TAM and uses additional attributes of Blockchain Technology with a special reference to fashion apparel. The findings of this study depict a model, where perceived ease of use (PEOU), perceived usefulness (PU), and attitude are the major constructs and present a win-win scenario for both the customer and the organization.