Even the most die-hard online and mobile shopping enthusiasts would probably concede that the biggest drawback in using such channels to buy clothing and apparel is the inability to actually try the merchandise on.
Sure, advancements in product photo and video displays have helped some but consumers more often than not want to see what a piece of clothing looks like on their body before deciding to buy or not. In that regard, brick and mortar stores have had a distinct edge over their e- and m-commerce counterparts simply by virtue of being able to offer the low-tech resource of a fitting room. But that edge may be a fleeting one.
Marketing and technology company Weyrich Enterprises this week launched a new mobile application called Divalicious that allows a person to upload their own full body image onto a virtual mannequin. Shoppers can then take clothing and accessory images and place them over the mannequin for an accurate preview of what they’ll look like in the wares they’re considering buying.
This form of augmented reality, which relies on a smartphone’s camera to alter imagery, has already been introduced by several companies before, most notably eBay. What makes Divalicious interesting though, is how expansive a shopping experience it can offer: consumers can browse product images from more than 300 fashion brands, mixing and matching brands and specific products along the way, almost as if they were at the mall.
“With this application, you no longer have to go to the stores to see what you would look like with a dress from BCBG, shoes from DSW and a handbag from Saks. The clothes are all in one place, not in three different stores,” says Rich Kessler, chief technology officer at Weyrich Enterprises.
Quite a few big names have already signed up to offer their products through Divalicious, including Zappos, Macy’s, Victoria’s Secret, Urban Outfitters, Gap, Calvin Klein, Nike, Prada, Steve Madden, Ralph Lauren, American Eagle Outiftters, Nine West and more.
Weyrich worked with Sugar Inc.’s ShopStyle comparison and social shopping site to bring Divalicious to life. Products are listed on the application as links thanks to ShopStyle’s product data feeds, and shoppers are taken to a mobile-optimized product page hosted by specific retailers when they click on those links. Transactions can be quickly and easily completed with the merchant directly and the shopper can return to any area of Divalicious once the purchase is complete.
If any of our readers have already tried out Divalicious, we’d love to hear what you thought of it—leave us a comment!
