Dive Brief:
- To help retailers reduce returns, Fytted, the AI-driven body measuring platform, debuted its virtual fitting room, according to a Tuesday press release.
- Using the tool, shoppers can try more than one million items from over 600 brands like Free People, Lululemon and J. Crew. Fytted’s mobile app allows customers to preview how clothes will physically look on them before buying them, the release said.
- The app is available for Android and iOS users, per the press release. So far, the company said it has reduced returns by over 40%.
Dive Insight:
With its new virtual fitting room feature, Fytted aims to address a multibillion dollar headache retailers are facing: returns. Beyond finding the precise fit, the tool guides shoppers toward items that “fit their color season, body shape, personal style and more,” CCO Olivia Dicopoulos said in a statement.
“We’ve made it simple for users to browse clothing, try them on, check out the look and find their perfect fit in one convenient place, merging the benefits of both online and in-person try-on shopping into one easy-to-use app,” Fytted CEO Greg Auerbach said in a statement.
The returns process remains an expensive problem for retailers, research suggests. A Narvar report released in August found that customer returns cost retailers between $25 and $30 per return because of product damage, customer support calls, shipping and other expenses.
Similar to Fytted, other companies have been trying to crack the code for virtual fittings. In May 2021, Walmart announced its acquisition of Zeekit, a virtual try-on technology provider, for an undisclosed sum, a move that could also give the retail giant insight into customers’ clothing preferences.
So far, some companies that have invested in virtual try-on technology have yielded results. In a recent report, Perfect Corp. said brands using try-on technology have seen their sales spike 2.5 times. Additionally, 38% of report respondents said virtual fitting rooms and virtual try-ons were the best way to bridge the gap between digital and physical retail, per the report.
