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Meet: HYBRID RITUALS

Digital tea set
  • Written byEleanor Harvey
  • Published date 29 April 2021
Digital tea set
Digital tea set by Zheng Fu, Graduate showcase © University of the Arts London

Mo Zhou and Marcus Wong both started the BA (Hons) Creative Direction for Fashion at London College of Fashion (LCF) in 2013. But they didn’t properly meet until 2016, when they worked on their final project together, exploring the intersection of fashion communication and technology. Five years later, they reconnected when Mo reached out to Marcus about launching a consumer-focused website that would share the latest trends and news in fashion and lifestyle tech. And so HYBRID RITUALS was born.

Mo and Marcus spoke to us about how their time at LCF shaped their future brand, and what they think the future of tech in the fashion industry is.

Photo fo a woman
Mo Zhou

Why did you choose to study at LCF?

Mo: I liked the way the courses were planned. It offers a range of relevant subjects in one course for students to try out, so you can learn about the whole industry rather than focusing on one specific skill set. I find this is very important for freshers who are not sure about what they want yet or would like to approach a management role in the future.

Marcus: To me, LCF has always been an intersection of fashion, art and business, it is not a college that focuses other one end of the spectrum and ignores the opposite. Somehow that seems to me to be the most important thing.

Photo of a man stood in front of a wall with illustrations on
Marcus Wong

What was your time at LCF like?

Mo: My time at LCF was very fruitful. I've made a lot of friends which I still keep in touch with today. I would like to give a shout out to two of my tutors here — Mandeep of LCF IPF, he really helped me understand what fashion media was. I was completely clueless about the media side as my previous focus was fashion design. And also Jason Kass of CDFF, our course leader who later helped me during my bachelor’s degree. The BA course reading list was also what brought Marcus and me together.

Marcus: Studying at LCF made me feel heard and seen artistically, but the emphasis on practicality and execution has amplified my understanding of the creative industry, it is a great university for students to develop their artistic acumen as well as their professional mindset.

You met whilst studying at LCF and have now launched HYBRID RITUALS together. Can you tell us more about how it all started?

This isn't the first time we have collaborated. Marcus and I did our final major project together back in 2016 to explore the intersection of fashion communication and technology. For the project, we designed everything from scratch including branding, product design, and gamified VR experience as the launch campaign. Five years later, I asked Marcus if he would like to join HYBRID RITUALS and continue our paused ventures, and he said YES! Marcus is now the creative director of the company, and I oversee the business' general operations and business development.

Screenshot of website page
© HYBRID RITUALS

What are the goals of HYBRID RITUALS? Who do you want to reach, and what do you want to deliver?

HYBRID RITUALS connects the gap between fashion and lifestyle brands, consumer and high-tech innovations. The tech industry has been growing exponentially in recent years, we believe the world is becoming a digital hybrid, and it is changing how we go about our daily rituals. Our target audiences are people who are interested in new innovations, good designs and passionate about driving change. This includes scientists, designers, investors, project managers and engineers.

HYBRID RITUALS has 2 sides of the business — a media front, and a marketing agency as the backbone. The goal is to use our knowledge in marketing, tech and corporate innovations to help brands communicate better. Whether if it’s 2C or 2B. On our media platform, we touch on topics such as fashion tech, wellness tech, sustainability tech and everything about the metaverse. For the agency, we offer consulting, marketing and XR production services for both CPG and tech brands.

What are your plans for the future of HYBRID RITUALS? Can people get involved?

The plan for this year is to build our foundation and continue to provide for our growing community. We will have an events section and a job board this summer that welcomes everyone to submit their listings for free. There is also a discord group that you can join for casual chats. HYBRID RITUALS is always curious and looking for new projects to talk about. If you're cooking up something fun, have interests to contribute or would like to collaborate, hit us up via our email at info@hybrid-rituals.com

Screenshot of website page
© HYBRID RITUALS

What do you think the future of technology in fashion looks like?

Technology is already changing the fashion industry from research and development to marketing, shopping experience, and disposal and recycle. Even UAL’s courses have become more digital-focused. It is inevitable that our lifestyle will follow the steps of technological advancement. When AI, AR, 3D, manufacturing tech, material innovation and new media tech is matured and ubiquitous, how we shop and what we wear will change completely in order to satisfy our new needs and values: sustainability, ethicality, efficiency, effectiveness and excitement.

What advice would you give to someone graduating this year?

Every company uses tech in some way or form, no matter what job title you possess. In order to stay competitive, it’s important to get yourself familiar with the latest software or products that could help you in your respective field.

Find out more about HYBRID RITUALS and how you can get involved:

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