Active Forecast S/S 22

Connected
Joining future tech with age-old insights
to create a more united, intelligent world

Loose-fit comfort, tech-connected details and

antimicrobial finishes will forge a new path for
versatile and protective activewear

Filling Pieces / Qiu Yang

 Connected
Joining future tech with age-old insights to
create a more united, intelligent world

Our three S/S 22 forecasts are grouped around the theme of
emotional response, which will be the most powerful driver
of consumers' needs and wants in the coming years
Connected explores how we relate to ourselves and others
in a world of extreme disruption. How do we develop
relationships in a non-physical way? How do we create a
sense of the material in virtual worlds? How do we manage
our health and wellbeing? And how do we connect with a
higher meaning beyond the here and now?
The result is a highly versatile trend of juxtapositions and
seemingly opposing ideas – digital tools to recreate
natural or even spiritual experiences; clothes and interiors
with
healing and filtering properties; ancient mysticism as a
way to see the future; open-source collaboration over
single-source competition. Technology and talismans,
spirituality and science – they all have a place here.
The common thread in these ideas is that design will be
less about the product or experience in itself, and more
about how it serves humanity, whether it’s a smart-tech
jacket, new materials offering enhanced comfort and
protection, or a virtual therapy app providing reassurance.
In 2022, we will be re-evaluating and reprioritising what
we connect with and how, and we will be doing this in
increasingly agile, hybrid and unconventional ways.
 Action Points
1 . Design for fluid lifestyles: designing for one
purpose will no longer meet the needs of
consumers, as their lifestyles are merging
between work and leisure, and between the digital
and physical. Meet their needs with multipurpose
product and intelligent fabric usage.
2 . Include health-boosting materials: post-Covid
consumers will be conscious of protecting
themselves from coronavirus and future viruses.
Develop into antibacterial and emergent anti-viral
textiles to give protective product an advantage.
3 . Heighten experience with connected product:
as the digital world becomes a bigger part of
everyday reality, create designs that align
physical movement with online experiences.
Incorporate smart fabrics and sensor-ready
pockets to connect your products to digital
experiences, along with breathability and
seamless movement.
4 . Rethink utilitarian function: as environmental
and viral aggressors increase, consumers will
require more from utility styles. Use healing
materials to filter pollution and viruses, and
incorporate extra levels of function for both the
urban and outdoor consumer.

Puma x Cent r al S aint Mar t ins

 Palette S/S 22

Connected
Colours that represent purity 127-59-13 124-84-04 062-55-25 058-83-18 093-60-15 088-88-09
and cleanliness define the
lighter tones of this palette,
and these are grounded by
comforting deeper shades.

Turquoise Tonic 
Seaweed Green

Pure Water
Iris Flower
Seaweed Green and Mango

Aloe Gel
Opal
Sorbet will work as accents
for digital themes, while Aloe
Gel, Opal and Pure Water
bring an ethereal quality to
the palette.
17-3919 TC X 13-4110 TC X 16-0237 TC X 12-0322 TC X 16-4719 TC X 12-5206 TC X

028-55-15 017-45-35 030-67-34 014-40-26 011-56-12 098-31-13

Burnished Sunset

Pink Amethyst
Mango Sorbet
Rabbit's Paw

Fiery Orange

Deep Ocean
16-1333 TC X 18-1445 TC X 15-1058 TC X 18-1536 TC X 16-1518 TC X 19-4526 TC X

* All colour names are speci c to WGSN. Find out more about Coloro.
 Spa Purity
The concept: This direction takes a quiet, scientific approach
to restoration, with a focus on enabling consumers to become
more in tune with themselves. Minimal material usage, as
seen in the Yeezy slides below, and anti-bacterial fabrics will
appeal to cleanliness-focused consumers.
Colour: Create a sense of clean comfort with cool greys, which
have a simplicity that feels calming and still. Use warmer
accents to stop products from looking too sterile.
Silhouette & styling: Clean minimalist lines will enhance this
ad id as by S t ella direction's pure aesthetic. Add technical elements with
N UX Act ive McCar t ney
perforated panels, contrast tapes, and overlaid accents.
Relevant for: restoration, stretch, meditation

O f f -Whit e

T he N ew Yo r k T imes Yeezy Mar ia S var bo va

 Ritual Movement
The concept: This direction is inspired by people connecting
through dance with a sense of togetherness, but still physically
distant. It takes influence from the Global South and a diverse
range of movement and ritual.
Silhouette & styling: Leotards and leggings are cast aside in
favour of a broader range of styles. Eschew stretch-based
dancewear and focus on looser-fit trousers to enable movement.
Textiles & materials: Ensure that materials work in harmony with
the environment. Biodegradability will be a key upgrade for core Ruf skin

styles, while bio-coatings and finishes will allow for an extra

level of sustainable performance.
Relevant for: dance, stretch, pilates

Ignant

Filling Pieces May Par lar Dan Med hur st

 Home Comforts

N ike Ignant

The concept: As the lines between home and work blur,

comfort will be in higher demand for our hybrid lives. Versatile
styles will need to work harder, as comfort is elevated from O f f H o ur s

loungewear to workwear.
Silhouette & styling: Adapt active styles to work for the
everyday, with slouchy track pants and timeless sweats. Think
about #abovethekeyboarddressing and focus on comfort from
the bottom up.
Textiles & materials: Cool cotton-rich fabrics will work for all-
day comfort. Add interest with raw essentials to embrace the
texture of recycled fibres.
Relevant for: slounge, restoration, all-day active
T ext ilehaus

N ike
 Light Shifts
The concept: Fusing elements of spirituality and science, this
story taps into the quest to reach a higher state of mind, and
alters perceptions of what space-age sheen and high-shine
movement can look like. Silver is an area to watch. Recent
research highlights its antibacterial benefits, making it
especially relevant for a more cleanliness-focused market. 
Textiles & materials: Liquid metallics and tinted translucency
create a clean finish, and antimicrobial finishes amplify this
story's focus on cleanliness.
Q iu Yang
Silhouette & styling: Push the futuristic look of these materials
with asymmetric details, oversized zips and contrast seams.
Relevant for: training, fitness, running, recovery

And r ea Jiapei Li

E ver y H uman Daniel Ar sham Michi

 Protective Healing

Vo llebak
Reebo k War eho use Gy m

The concept: In a post-Covid landscape, demand for anti-viral

protection will grow. We will also be looking for ways to nurture
and heal, both from the effects of the pandemic and from
environmental aggressors.
Textiles & materials: Precious metals will be harnessed for their
healing properties, like the copper used in Vollebak’s anti-viral
jacket. Inflated tactility will provide us with cocooning safety
and comfort. Embracing the crushed texture that many of these
materials create will offer a sense of tactile intimacy.
Innovation: Offer modular adaptability for the needs of the new
commuter. Nike’s inflatable jacket offers adjustable insulated
levels, while Andrea Jiapei Li’s voluminous silhouettes lend
themselves to adjustable fits. And r ea Jiapei Li

Relevant for: commute, all-day active, outdoor

@go r ewear N ike
 Connected Workouts

Yo gano t ch

ad id as x Jacq uar d By Go o gle

The concept: The digitally connected workout will

allow users to enhance their performance away from
And r ea Jiapei Li
their personal trainers. Social fitnessing, borne out of
social-distancing, has pushed the demand for a more
personalised home-workout experience.
Innovation: Movement-tracking devices, assists and
interactive textiles will all be key in creating detailed
monitoring and real-time feedback and adjustments.
Details: To create a more seamless experience, you will
need to consider how these devices and workout
trackers will function with clothing. Pockets, belts, and
in-built sensors will all be key.
Relevant for: fitness, training, yoga, athletics

Int er est ing E ngineer ing T empo @go r ewear

 Future Utility

686

ad id as O r iginals x H YKE

Ignant
The concept: Utility styles will be designed for extreme
elements, ready to adapt from trekking in the desert
to the urban commute. Climate adaptability,
protection and modular storage will be key to meet
the needs of wearers.
Print & graphics: Bring through subtle texture with
prints reminiscent of cracked earth and rugged
terrain.
Details: Design practicality into styles. 686’s
Hydrastash jacket has an inbuilt water bladder for
days spent outdoors in the summer heat.
Relevant for: hiking, outdoors, commute, all-day active
S icky Magazine Beaut if ul Peo ple @ignant
 Video World

BCXS Y

Ruf skin

O n Running
The concept: This story takes an analogue approach
to digital, merging the real with the virtual. The line
between both becomes more blurred, as physical
worlds are recreated in digital spaces, and digital
textures are recreated using hand-crafted
techniques.
Colour: Use digital brights to tap into this
otherworldly and elemental aesthetic.
Textiles & materials: Create a tactile digital effect
with crushed textures and tinted translucency.
Overlay textures and colours for holographic effects.
Relevant for: fitness, cycling, all-day active
Phar r ell x ad id as O ut d o o r Vo ices O n Running
 Game Play

@t hisisf ir st base S ega

The concept: Tech companies are tapping into the fitness arena
by making exercising more sociable and connected, disguising
workouts in games. Adding in the gaming element tricks people N int end o

into feeling like it's not actually exercise, resulting in them

sticking with routines for longer.
Innovation: Gucci’s collaboration with Tennis Clash shows the
opportunity for personalisation, selling products into a game but
also making them available offline.
Details: When it comes to clothes to play in, make sure they
allow for the freedom of movement required for each activity.
Stretch panels and breathability will be key. Understand the
requirements of equipment and make sure pockets
accommodate them. N int end o

Relevant for: e-workouts, training, HIIT

Gucci x T ennis Clash
 Influences
2 Vollebak
1 Puma x CSM
Puma x Central Saint Martins'
Day Zero collection was
entirely digitally sampled and
marketed, bridging the digital
with the physical.
4 Ring Fit Adventure 
Nintendo Switch's fitness
ring gamifies the workout
for those who are averse
to gyms.
3 Nike Inflate Jacket
Nike's ISPA Inflate Jacket
offers personalised
adaptability via a hand
pump, enabling bespoke
The innovative brand's Full
temperature regulation.
Metal Jacket is made from
11km of copper, chosen for
its virus-killing properties.
5 Yoganotch 
The ideal companion for 6 adidas x Jacquard
remote workouts, The responsive and
Yoganotch relies on motion connected insoles created
sensors to offers hands-on- by adidas and Jacquard
adjusts, without the need By Google allow wearers
for a teacher in the room. to gamifiy their workout.
 WGSN Future Strategies 2022
The report timeline for WGSN's 2022 trends

FUTURE DRIVERS
Annual
November 2019

The global macro- Seasonal A/W 21/22:

Annual Oct 2019 – Feb 2020
economic drivers that

FUTURE INNOVATIONS
November 2019 Annual
will shape 2022, and Seasonal S/S 22:

TREND FORECASTS
strategies for success January 2020
The 12 areas of Apr 2020 – Aug 2020

BIG IDEAS
innovation that will lead Future Drivers and
transformation across Future Innovations Trend Forecasts present
industries in 2022, and contextualised for the the seasonal design
their implications for Fashion, Beauty, and directions for each
FUTURE CONSUMER

Annual business and culture department, with more

Lifestyle & Interiors
January 2020 than 40 reports
industries
published twice a year
The key consumer
sentiments and
profiles that will Fashion / Beauty / Lifestyle
disrupt industries in Fashion / Beauty / Lifestyle & Interiors only
2022 Insight / Fashion / & Interiors only
Lifestyle & Interiors only
Insight only

Business Strategy Product Design

 WGSN Future Strategies 2022
The trend matrix, from Future Drivers to Trend Forecasts
DRIVERS
FUTURE

The Fear Factor Climate Urgency Degrowth for Good Balancing Age Mass to Micro Global Power Shift Migratory Patterns

Digital Identities Digital Identities The Pleasure

INNOVATIONS

Principle Digital Identities

The Pleasure Principle Made in Nature
FUTURE

The Pleasure Principle

Creating Intimacy The Tactile Internet
Survival Mode The Tactile Internet Decolonisation
Time Affluence Pre-Futures
The Horror De-Materialisation
BIG IDEAS

Tech-Celleration Design Resolution Leverage

the Local
Selling Survival Pleasure With Purpose
FORECASTS

New Mythologies A/W 21/22 Conscious Clarity A/W 21/22 Phantasmagoria A/W 21/22
TREND

Connected S/S 22 Resourceful S/S 22 Euphoric S/S 22

Business Strategy Product Design