The NY Fashion Tech Lab announces its 10th cohort, celebrating a decade of supporting women-led startups in retail technology

The New York Fashion Tech Lab (NYFTLab), the premier program for advancing women-led fashion and retail technology companies, returns to announce its 10th cohort of participating B2B retail tech startups. The decennial cohort, as selected by major fashion and retail partners, will now participate in the 12-week program.

This year, the NYFTLab is proud to announce new partners Saks, Selfridges, TJX and Wolverine World Wide, Inc. These new Lab partners are joined by returning partners: Burberry, Levi Strauss & Co., LVMH, Macy’s Inc., Richemont and Vera Bradley Inc. In addition, Accenture and Fenwick & West LLP are also proud supporters of NYFTLab. During the 12-week program, the 2023 Lab Companies will collaborate with NYFTLab’s partners to inspire and enhance their business development. The emerging technology company founders will participate and benefit from weekly sessions and workshops and meet with the lab’s network of experts. The experience will culminate with the annual Tech Runway Demo Day where the founders will present their innovative technology to retailers, brands, investors and the press.
The 2023 Lab Companies are:

● Altr
● Hue
● PSYKHE AI
● Sociate
● Sparkbox
● Try Your Best

“We founded the NYFTLab with the goal of identifying some of the most innovative fashion technology entrepreneurs and connecting them directly to industry leaders to advance the retail landscape,” said Kay Koplovitz, co-founder and chairman of the board for the NYFTLab and Springboard Enterprises. “Ten cohorts later, we’re so proud of our alumnae and how far they’ve come. This year’s cohort will undoubtedly add to the ongoing success of the initiative.”

The NYFTLab is a business catalyst for women-led companies and over the last ten years, the lab has supported 75 innovative companies including DRESSX, EON, Obsess, Reflaunt, StyleSage, Trendalytics, VNTANA, Zeekit and more. These NYFTLab alumnae find great value in the program and walk away with actionable insights that drive further growth. Elysa Kahn, co-founder of Squadded, a 2022 Lab Company, said, “The NYFTLab provided us the opportunity to develop our business and meet leading retailers. This contributes to the market validation we always seek as a start-up and is a real step in our journey.”

Similarly, Neha Singh, Founder & CEO, Obsess, a 2017 Lab Company explained that the “NYFTLab was immensely valuable to Obsess. We met our early customers through the NYFTLab partner brands and we also met investors through the lab mentor network. We felt so fortunate to have been accepted and to have had the opportunity to go through the experience.”

After participating in the program, these companies have continued to excel independently and have gone on to earn tremendous accomplishments such as partnerships with leading retailers, impressive capital investments and notable acquisitions. These inspirational success stories are common among NYFTLab alumnae, and this year’s cohort will be no exception.