Fashion’s Future – How AR and VR will change how you shop and get dressed

You may be familiar with the plethora of smart speakers released by tech giants like Google and Amazon, including Alexa, Google Home and Amazon Fire. These automated home robots, also known as smart speakers, tell you everything you need to know upon request, from the weather to your schedule for the day, and even respond to commands like “turn the lights off” or “play a song.”

Among these high-performing smart speakers, is Amazon’s “Echo Look,” an electronic personal stylist. Like most other smart speakers, the Echo Look will listen to your commands and respond with answers to your questions.

However, its distinguishing feature, the Style-Check tool, separates the Echo Look from the rest of the pack. This feature takes pictures of you in multiple outfits and decides which one looks best. This is made possible through an app and a unique algorithm combining machine learning technology and human opinion.

The software of the Echo Look is influenced by Amazon’s fashion experts, who train it to judge style while considering fit, color, styling techniques, seasons, and current trends. Additionally, it recommends products to purchase from various brands according to your personal style.

Furthermore, more companies are utilizing augmented and virtual reality (AR and VR) to develop digitized shopping platforms that simplify and enhance shopping experiences for consumers.

One startup company that is implementing these technologies is Obsess. By looking through a VR headset, consumers can virtually tap on specific products and see a model wearing that product spin and pose from different angles, which may influence their purchase. It also allows them to compare products from different brands side by side in 3D right in front of them.

CEO and Founder of Obsess, Neha Singh, describes this concept perfectly.

“We are building the technology that will enable any brand and retailer to create discovery-based shopping experiences,” Singh said.

According to data by Obsess, “78 percent of millennial consumers in the U.S. would like to see VR incorporated into their shopping apps and 44 percent of Gen Z consumers want AR/VR to be incorporated into their retail experience within the next 12 months.”

Currently, the view of products that customers get while shopping online is very limited. Most websites have pictures of products with white backdrops, making it difficult for consumers to distinguish from other similar-looking options.

With the rise of advanced technology and consumers beginning to desire more detailed, personalized, fashion experiences, it won’t be a surprise if getting dressed in the morning or going shopping will all happen through the use of a VR headset or an electric stylist.