Bio-synthetic fur is a research and development project that can be recognised as the first application of stem cells and immortal cells in the development of fur materials and even in the fashion industry. This innovation is a new expansion of three dimensions: theory, practice and commercialisation.
On the theoretical level, stem cell and immortal cell technology has mainly focused on the development of the medical field. Bio-synthetic fur is a project that combines existing theories with the theory of animal fur structure, and pioneers the basic idea of using cellular synthesis in fur, which establishes the unrivalled technological and methodological advantages of bio-synthetic fur.
Some Details on Secondary Research:
On a practical level, although this is an academic project and my academic background is more oriented towards fashion marketing. Through this research and intervention journey, I successfully collaborated with authoritative laboratories and participated in the process of realising the theory of bio-synthetic fur. Moreover, I learned a lot about experimental planning and cell culture.
On the business side, from establishing the business model to filing the patent application to setting up the company, all the contents are new to me personally. This level of knowledge is based on academics but higher than academics. The business model has evolved into my systematic thinking of a bio-synthetic fur business model through learning from previous business proposals and investor advice. Patent application is more about learning from lectures and the feedback I got from activities such as Dragon Den & Guest Speaker, and it is deepened from the initial knowledge of IP protection.
Overall, this learning journey has been very rewarding, enriching my background and elevating me from an academic to a researcher. The new knowledge has helped me to make the transition from academia to business in a better way.