Dive Brief:

• Neiman Marcus and in-store technology partner MemoMi are introducing Memory Mirror video capture devices at Le Métier de Beauté beauty counters in at least 20 of the upscale department store chain's locations, with plans to expand their use to more Neiman Marcus cosmetics departments next year.

• The Memory Mirror takes a 360-degree video of a client modeling a particular outfit or cosmetics, allowing them to see themselves from all angles, as well as save and share the video.

• The Le Métier de Beauté counters had previously relied on different technology using Microsoft Surface tablet PCs, but that solution was costly and lagged in quality, according to the beauty brand.

Dive Insight:

Neiman Marcus has been working with this technology for a while and appears to have plans to use it throughout a number of departments in its stores. This past summer it used at-counter Memory Mirrors to help with purchases of eyewear, and last year placed the devices outside dressing rooms in some of its stores so that customers could get all-angles views and video of themselves in different outfits after trying them on.

By putting what it describes as interactive digital touchpoints in cosmetics departments, Neiman Marcus has some grand ideas about how consumers trained on social media interaction will be attracted to using the devices. Whether that's the case or not, the Memory Mirrors seem like interesting sales tool to lure just about any customer.

Beyond users of beauty products who can have something to take home to remind them how different cosmetics should be applied, customers shopping for clothes or eyewear or anything similar can get a view of how they look that is much more informative than what a regular mirror shows them. The Memory Mirror can show them what other people might see as they view them in a particular outfit — which is really what everyone wants to know, right?

Things have not been going particularly well for Neiman Marcus. The retailer back in September reported its fourth straight quarter of falling sales. Memory Mirrors may have only so much ability to give Neiman Marcus a view of greater sales, but they are at least a new way of engaging with customers. And if customers are willing to walk in the door and try this kind of new in-store technology, they may be more willing to walk out that door with a bag full of purchases.