Over the weekend hundreds of hackers descended upon New York City for the first ever Hearst Fashion Hack kicked off by Hearst Magazines. Sponsored by Amazon, Facebook, Google, Spotify, Microsoft and more – programmers and developers came with one goal in mind, a chance to win $10,000.
Hearst Magazines hosted the Hearst Fashion Hackathon with more than 150 developers working for 24-hours straight to create innovative fashion-focused apps and programs on API platforms from sponsors including Hearst brands (ELLE, Harper’s Bazaar, Cosmopolitian and Marie Claire), Amazon, Facebook, Google, Klout, Microsoft, Singly, Spotify and more. Premier hackathon competition producer AngeleHack facilitated the weekend-wide event.
When asked about the hackathon, Hearst Magazines President David Carey said “Fashion and technology are ever-changing, evolving at lightning speed. Our readers are passionate and well-versed in both, so it is a priority for us to continually provide new, first-to-market online and mobile experiences. The buzz of energy and creativity at this hackathon is going to be extrordinary and inspiring.”
In the aftermath of Nemo’s snowfall on Saturday, developers came together forming teams and ideas at the Hearst Fashion Hack inside Hearst Tower in Columbus Circle. The following day, after 24-hours of brainstorming, coding and prototype development each team presented their app ideas to a panel of judges. After the more than 40 presentations were complete there could only be one team left standing. An early on favorite, Team Drobe presented an app that any fashionista would love.
Drobe, an online outfitter, won the $10,000 prize and an opportunity to work with Hearst Digital Media. The Drobe app helps users mix and match outfits from the grand world of fashion. Users can arrange looks, get inspired, suggest outfit changes for friends, share & shop with Drobe around the world!
An obviously successful event, who knows if the Hearst Fashion Hack will become a New York Fashion Week staple for seasons to come – a Diva and a Dork could only hope to see Hearst Fashion Hack bring more geeks to New York Fashion Week again soon.
