Indian Fashion Brands Arrive Fashionably Late to the Tech Party - Analytics India Magazine

Much similar each different product-based industry, the manner manufacture is besides opening up to the adoption of virtual and augmented world successful bid to make personalised lawsuit experiences, which is past expected to thrust accrued sales. Customers are engaging with specified brands passim their purchasing acquisition arsenic the second provides them with the unsocial attack of interactive shopping. 

This attack deploys emerging technologies, specified arsenic AR/VR and others, to let customers to prime their favourite products without having to beryllium physically contiguous successful the store to effort them on.

However, contempt specified concerted efforts crossed brands, determination haven’t been arsenic important improvements witnessed for their Indian counterparts implicit the past decade. It seems that possibly now—more than ever—we request to drawback up with these emerging trends and the technologies that lend to their rising popularity. But, wherever bash we begin?

AR/VR successful vogue

Italian luxury marque Gucci created an AR-backed iOS app that allowed customers to remotely and virtually effort connected its ‘Ace sneakers collection’ successful 2019. Gucci besides collaborated with the multimedia messaging app ‘Snapchat’ to connection a virtual trying-on acquisition done the app. It was the archetypal luxury manner marque to spouse with a societal media level to thrust income with an AR tool. Gucci’s introduction into virtual world proved to beryllium precise effectual successful shooting up sales. According to Robert Triefus, Gucci’s enforcement vice-president of marque and lawsuit engagement, the marque is moving towards an immersive buying acquisition by merging carnal and integer realities. The French sports manner marque Lacoste besides utilized augmented world exertion for a akin purpose—allowing customers successful offline stores to digitally ‘try on’ their LCST streetwear postulation and interact with further contented prepared by the company.

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In 2019, ASOS, the British online manner and cosmetic retailer, launched an experimental AR diagnostic called ‘Virtual Catwalk’ to assistance users visualise apparel connected quality models anterior to making a purchase. It besides created a diagnostic called ‘See My Fit’ successful 2020 amid lockdown that offered customers the enactment to spot however apparel acceptable connected 16 antithetic models—ranging from sizes 4 to 18—in a realistic-looking setting. However, ASOS received overmuch disapproval for not being inclusive capable since determination was nary exemplary supra size 18.

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Another absorbing improvement successful the planetary manner assemblage is Timberland’s AR magic mirror that enables customers to virtually ‘dress’ themselves successful prime outfits. In addition, Timberland collaborated with Lemon & Orange to beryllium 1 of the archetypal brands to bring virtual fitting rooms to Mokotów Gallery, a buying centre successful Poland. 

Beyond the manner hoopla 

But this is not constricted to manner brands alone. Other industries are arsenic enthusiastic successful their adoption of interactive shopping. For instance, successful the cosmetic industry, companies person been incorporating AI and AR to supply amended personalised experiences for their consumers. 

One of the astir notable developments successful this assemblage is the French constitution D2C L’Oreal acquiring Canadian AR specializer ModiFace in 2018. This acquisition allowed customers to prime eyeshadows, concealer shades, and lipsticks—among different products—and effort them connected a virtual reflector successful unrecorded video. 

Although deemed revolutionary prima facie, it was soon recovered that it isn’t casual to recognize whether the shades suit good adjacent if 1 tin spot them connected their skin. The articulator colour diagnostic is besides wonky arsenic the colour mostly turns retired to beryllium darker oregon lighter successful existent life. To adhd to the misery, the fake articulator plumping diagnostic makes it worse for buyers who are simply seeking products that champion suit them and not a virtually-modified mentation of them. With L’Oreal buying Maybelline, 1 tin usage this try-on constituent connected each apps which merchantability Maybelline products. 

Last year, the fashionable Indian ecommerce institution and cosmetic elephantine Nykaa said that it would bring L’Oreal’s ModiFace to quality enthusiasts astatine home. But, determination are yet to beryllium immoderate notable developments pursuing the announcement.

Playing drawback up

Contrary to the planetary market, the Indian manner and cosmetic industries person been dilatory successful their adoption of immersive technologies. With overmuch pomp and show, online manner retailer Myntra introduced an offline store for its backstage label, Roadster, successful Bengaluru successful 2017. CEO Ananth Narayanan claimed that the store would service arsenic an “experience zone” and planned to unfastened 50 specified stores by 2020. The store had VR displays and immense interaction screens. The items had radio-frequency recognition tags (RFID) to let customers to wage and cheque retired independently successful a substance of 30 seconds. The offline store chiefly aimed to summation marque visibility and besides had a VR zone, with 4 Samsung Gear VR headsets to ticker a 360-degree video showcasing the “Roadster life”. 

Myntra did not usage VR to heighten the customers’ buying experiences but utilized it simply arsenic a promotional tool. This yet led the Flipkart-owned institution to succumb to losses and shutdown the offline store successful March 2019.

But, not each marque utilized tech for promotional purposes alone. Omnichannel eyewear marque Lenskart took vantage of the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak to present virtual world devices for its customers. They could cheque however frames looked connected their faces from the website and made purchases without physically going to the store. This included look scanning and analysis. Based connected the look signifier and size, it recommended frames arsenic well. The virtual world instrumentality besides offered a 360-degree presumption of the glasses. However, adjacent if 1 could effort connected glasses, the interface could beryllium overmuch smoother. Several users reported that the instrumentality simply shows 1 static glimpse of their faces with glasses but disappears erstwhile it takes you to the main page. 

John Jacobs, a premium D2C eyewear brand, besides implements augmented reality. But, dissimilar Lenskart, it captures video of the customers’ faces portion trying connected glasses. You tin determination your caput near and close to spot however it looks.

Now oregon never

Although not galore brands crossed manner and cosmetics successful India person been speedy successful their adoption of emerging technologies, respective of them admit that AR has the imaginable to fundamentally revolutionise and rethink the lawsuit experience—whether it pertains to apparel, accessories, footwear, location decor, oregon different products entirely. 

Beyond the imaginable for conversion, AR’s capableness to lessen the important load of point returns whitethorn beryllium much alluring to brands and online retailers arsenic this exertion promises to springiness their customers a method method by which they tin correctly and confidently corroborate the size and signifier of a product, whether it’s a sofa oregon a sweater. 

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