WGSN's Lisa White talks consumer and business trends in 2026, the year of reorientation

Following the WGSN presentation "Innovation for the Future - 2026 and Beyond", FashionUnited delved into the various themes explored in an interview with Lisa White, director of strategic forecasting and creative direction.

To start, what percentage of fashion is covered in WGSN studies?

We started with fashion 25 years ago. It plays a major role in our studies. However, macro consumer trends apply to all sectors.

In your opinion, 2026 will be the year of reorientation. Isn't this not always a recurring promise of change?

After the first quarter century, old ideas are being questioned. More and more people are recognising the need for urgent change in how we treat our societies, organise our industries and work with our environment. Regarding fashion brands, reorientation questions how they behave: what are their goals and what strategies are they implementing to achieve them?

You address the growing interest in traditional medicine, but, akin to fashion which has regrouped, do they not also risk being pressured by major powers?

More and more people, particularly in the US, can no longer afford allopathic medicine. They are turning to other ways of healing and are, in fact, creating a new market. The same goes for fashion.

What about cultural appropriation?

Brands lack the keys to do better. In the US, Roots Studio works with indigenous people to create designs that are then bought by brands like Uniqlo. This way, it protects their economic interests. Ideally, this is the direction to take.

What do you mean by ‘bioregionals-materials’?

It's about favouring materials that are native to the region where the production site is located. The attitude towards the climate crisis has shifted from urgent to urgent, and consumers are now demanding accountability. To build trust, brands will need to adopt and reward ethical efforts without resorting to greenwashing.

What about purchasing power in the context of this ‘bio industrial evolution’?

It's a win/win. At first, it's expensive, then much less so. For example, today, you can make chocolate from molecules rather than cocoa. In fashion, more and more items will be adapted to consumers' purchasing power. When you pay attention to not wasting, to shortening the production chain, it often costs less. This doesn't mean that the items aren't sustainable.

On that note, you mention the ‘repair and resale’ factor. How do you perceive this?

Consumers in 2026 will want to buy items that they can repair or have repaired. Brands will position themselves in this niche. This was the case, for example, with Patagonia.

Your anticipation of the future introduces the idea of ‘life stage design’ (that no one wants to always do the same thing in their professional life anymore). Won't diversification kill specialisation?

Diversification doesn't mean doing everything, but doing what's smart. For example, we've made a lot of clothes in cotton and, ultimately, we understand that there are better solutions environmentally. So we're going to replace it with linen. It's staying on track, but opening up to other ways of behaving and substituting what no longer has a place.

What about multi-brand, specialised or concept stores, threatened by the proliferation of brands?

Some have lost their way and need to forge a clearer identity to differentiate themselves. In Paris, I see more and more young people setting up shop, like neighbourhood seamstresses.

You mention the rejection of aesthetic stereotypes, yet social media, particularly with filters, is full of them?

Not everyone will reject them, but more and more people will say "this doesn't suit me". Seeing the diversity displayed in advertising and the media, the consumer will feel more comfortable with who they are, rather than copying what looks like perfection. Kendall Jenner will always be in fashion, but some people will say "I don't need to look like her to be beautiful. I have more confidence in myself because I see other models". As a result, more and more modelling agencies are offering people with disabilities. We are becoming more and more acceptable in terms of our outward identity.

You talk about an upward multiculturalism, yet in France and around the world, the threat of radicals in power is very real?

When people are afraid, they are more conservative, but multiculturalism exists, whether we like it or not.

You capitalise on ‘AI for good’, but does this technology serve the interests of ultra fast fashion?

In this period of rapid change and development, technology optimists and pessimists will find common ground on the need for a more balanced and intentional approach to technology and the end of viral misinformation. We recommend that our clients make good use of artificial intelligence (AI). It must be done wisely. Our role is to guide them in this direction.

Regarding the ‘Humanise Tech’ trend, have you considered the people who will be replaced by high technology (including AI)?

History shows that there have always been jobs that have disappeared. A very pretty young girl can give up being a model to, for example, take care of animals. Jobs will evolve, but not everyone will have the same ease.

What will happen to those who let go of the rope?

We must hope that a new education system will allow them to move on to something else. For example, in England, "blue collar workers" (meaning people who work in manual labour positions) can evolve into a "grey colour workforce", which corresponds to more technical jobs, where you don't need to be there physically.

Imagining new worlds and developing new words will be essential tools to help us understand a changing planet and find better solutions for the future. In 2026, imagination will be considered an essential skill in life and in the business world.

This article originally appeared on FashionUnited.FR. Translation via AI and edit by Rachel Douglass.