Dive Brief:

• Clothing rental company Armoire on Thursday launched "Looks," a digital dressing room for members, according to an announcement emailed to Retail Dive.

• Users can upload photos of their favorite rented looks into a curated feed and discuss the fit and style in the comments. The tool is designed to digitally recreate the in-store shopping experience of trying on new clothes, per the company. 

• The company noted in its email that it came up with the idea thanks to its Facebook community, where users went to share and talk about their favorite outfits.

Dive Insight:

Taking its cue from the steep decline in apparel sales, clothing rental company Armoire turned its attention to the uptick in e-commerce, the company noted in its email.

"Millions of Americans pivoted to shopping online for everything, and this includes clothing," the company noted in a statement. "The online shopping experience continues to quickly evolve as customers yearn for more IRL experiences, community, and authenticity in a time of crisis."

With the cleanliness and safety concerns the coronavirus pandemic has brought, retailers have been working to reach consumers through technology while they shelter in place. Tanger Outlets rolled out a virtual shopping concierge in June to let customers shop remotely. Meanwhile, David's Bridal unveiled a virtual appointment service last month using video conferencing software Zoom.

Now that digital channels are a primary means for retailers to attract customers, other social media platforms have introduced new features to create a social shopping experience for remote consumers. Pinterest added curated style guides and shop tabs to its platform in April, and Snapchat unveiled its first shoppable show featuring streetwear brands. In May, Facebook debuted Facebook Shops, a feature that allows small businesses to set up digital storefronts, directly communicate with customers and tag their products via live streams on Facebook.