Due to COVID-19, many stores that are reopening now will do so without fitting rooms, due to the social-distancing constraints. Thanks to Augmented Reality (AR), consumers could potentially try on as many clothes as they want, without even touching them.
So far, virtual changing rooms have been more of an experiment, rather than a true commercial asset. For example, in Japan, a retailer called ‘Urban Research’ launched an AR experiment in a Japanese shopping mall. The AR experiment leverages virtual changing room technology to power a pop-up store called ‘Wearable Clothing by Urban Research’. The store itself has the size of a fitting room, and uses no in-store inventory of clothing. How it works; the customers stand in front of two 60-inch screens, choose the items they want to try on and afterwards can see themselves dressed in those clothing items within a matter of seconds. All customer movements are being displayed on the screen in 3D and they can also use an iPad to make pictures of their outfits and share it with their community on social media networks. (In Japan, Urban Research Experiments with Virtual Changing Booths, 2014).
You might wonder how this virtual fit technology is developed? The idea is to be able to digitize the 2D image of a clothing item and break it down into 80 000 different segments. The result, a “map”, is then layered onto a 2D image of a human model. This means that any person can try on any piece of clothing, without ever leaving their house or without touching the clothes. (Tatum, 2020) Fashion brands have been testing out virtual technology for years already. Back in 2018, Burberry had installed AR mirrors in two stores, in front of which customers could experiment with the classic Burberry tartan ribbon material and print. But all these experiments are usually used as a marketing tactic to lure customers into the brand’s flagship stores, adding another stimulus to the whole in-store experience rather than being a standard asset.
A London-based startup, Superpersonal, which will launch its own 3D virtual clothing technology next fall, has received a lot of attention of retailers lately due to the pandemic. They were in conversation with a luxury retailer to install a virtual fitting room in their store, which would not only let the customers try on new clothing virtually, but also create super-personalized virtual content as well. To use the technology, customers would have to upload a selfie, and fill in their height and weight. The AI technology then transposes their face onto a body, which translates into a moving video of the virtual result. The idea is that the dressing room becomes a part of personalized content. (Tatum, 2020)
Due to the pandemic, there are more brands embracing the opportunities with AI. Last May, ASOS launched a trial of “See My Fit”, an online tool that uses AR technology to dress 16 models of different shapes, ages and ethnicities in each outfit across its catalogue virtually, as a way to replace the physical photoshoots. (Tatum, 2020)
AR certainly has a lot of potential to improve the in-store retail experience, but there are also downsides. Some people don’t like entering their weight and height details, because they feel exposed. Nonetheless, due to the current pandemic, AR could have a lot of potential to allow people to still try on clothes virtually, if the shop is not allowed to physically anymore.
Do you think virtual fitting technology will be something that will be more widely used in the retail industry in the near future? Do you think people would actually use it? How about privacy concerns?
Tatum, M., 2020. How AR Is Changing Fitting Rooms For Social-Distancing Measures. [online] Raconteur. Available at: <https://www.raconteur.net/retail/ecommerce-2020/ar-retail-covid> [Accessed 12 September 2020].
The Business of Fashion. 2014. In Japan, Urban Research Experiments With Virtual Changing Booths. [online] Available at:<https://www.businessoffashion.com/articles/fashion-tech/japan-urban-research-experiments-virtual-changing-booths> [Accessed 12 September 2020].
Hi Elena, interesting post! It’s pretty cool that Urban Research has a sort of mixed brick & mortar store the size of a fitting room. I already see some interesting benefits for both the supplier and the consumer. By having a small digital store there is no need for classic cost items like employees, supplying the store directly and rent. For the consumer it’s very convenient that they can already see the fit on themselves without having to physically hold the items. As the fitting process is now digital they can have access to more clothing then a physical store could every contain. Furthermore, it probably also decreases the return shipments as you can see the ‘fit’ already on. The only downside for me would be that sometimes it’s just nice to touch the fabrics and see how a piece of clothing really fits on your body. Height and weight measurements can only predict your body to a certain degree.
To answers your question, I do think that virtual fitting will be something that will be more widely used in the retail industry. One of my colleagues is actually working on a machine learning models that allows somebody to fit clothing completely digital for stores like Zalando, Hema etc. I think that this complete online application has a higher chance of success as you really don’t have to leave the house anymore to shop correctly. In the fitting room example you still need to go somewhere and you are a bit in between experiences. I do think that adding a virtual fitting room as a store experience is very cool!
There is also an argument to be made for a positive effect on the environment. I know a lot of people that just order many pieces of clothing or tech to try them at home. What they don’t like they send back in a box.
Privacy of course is here very important but I think the concerns are negligible. Filling in your weight, height in combination with a picture of your face is for me personally not that exposing. Yet, there do pop some things in my mind when I think about how companies can monetize this data if you do this on the regular. For example, insurance companies, pharmacies or drugstores can target advertise you if they see your weight increase/decrease over time. Luckily, you are not forced to shop this way and there are offline alternatives if you don’t feel comfortable.