Amazon wins patent for on-demand apparel manufacturing

By

Rebecca Taras

Published
Apr 21, 2017

As analysts predict Amazon will dominate 50% of all e-commerce revenue in the United States by 2021, the Seattle-based retailer just won a patent for on-demand apparel manufacturing—an important accolade as the company is primed for becoming the biggest clothing retailer in the U.S. due to the launch of its eight in-house fashion brands.

The savvy patented manufacturing system has the capability to collect and fulfill orders from around the world in an efficient manner—literally snipping and stitching immediately after an order is placed through the website. Two of the inventors of the patent—Aaron Barnet and Nancy Liang, co-founders of the 3-D printing startup Mixee Labs—have worked at Amazon since 2015. Other retailers like Walmart are also patenting cutting-edge technology to stay ahead of the retail game. The discount chain created in-store drones to assist with its in-store merchandise fulfillment.

While the patent is currently geared towards clothing items, its inventors insinuate that there could be future plans to broaden the range of products produced, to include accessories, bedding, footwear, towels and curtains. Materials such as leather, rubber, plastic and paper will also be added into the mix.