Does the development of new colloaborative platform’s like Nine West’s “Shoelaborations™” signal a new openess in the fashion industry? Whilst it is still hard to imagine elite fashion brands chosing this pathway, it is interesting to see a fairly mainstream one opening its door to new influences even if the selection process of the featured designers has not been made clear.

“Shoelaborations™” is a recently launched open innovation programme enabling talented artists and designers to collaborate with Nine West. Through this process, Nine West aims to bring fresh visions to their customers globally.

The first collection developed in partnership with CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund winner Sophie Theallet tells the story of “Sophie from Paris Takes a Trip to NYC” and includes uniquely designed pieces.

Autumn 2011 will see the launch of the “ Giles Deaconfor Nine West” collection. British Designer Giles Deacon is best known for his avant-garde designs with a pop culture influence.  His collection promises to be be cutting-edge in its incorporation of technology.

Whist Nine West’s initiative is noteworthy,  John Fluevog remains the fashion industry’s primary collaborative innovator. Not only does he provide an open source footwear platform, he is now inviting designers to create Fluevog ads.