With technology advancing and digital devices becoming increasingly integrated into daily life, fashion and beauty e-commerce has seen significant growth over the past few years.
However, the landscape isn’t without its challenges, mainly because consumers can’t easily try on or test products as they can in physical stores. To combat this, many online retailers have leveraged innovations like artificial intelligence (AI), virtual reality (VR), and augmented reality (AR) to boost the shopping experience and purchase confidence. Though such tech is often associated with video games or tech industries, they’re providing to be helpful in the fashion and beauty e-commerce space by using them for virtual try-on tools. These tools simulate a product’s look, and more and more retailers are looking to employ them for their e-commerce platforms. The virtual try-on market had an estimated value of $9.17 billion in 2023 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 26.4% from 2024 to 2030, showcasing the high demand. Here’s a look at virtual try-on tools and how they’re being used in the fashion and beauty e-commerce space:
Beauty e-commerce
Though many shop for beauty products online, purchasing beauty products has often relied heavily on being able to try and test out the products before buying. Physical stores offer testers to allow shoppers to see if a foundation matches a skin tone or if a lipstick applies smoothly. However, shopping for beauty products online doesn’t provide the same testing experience, and consumers often rely on photos of models or reviews. Utilizing virtual try-on tools for beauty e-commerce helps boost purchase confidence and prevents returns from dissatisfied customers. It can potentially provide more convenient testing. Perfect Corp’s AR virtual try-on solutions for beauty brands enable digital simulations to adapt to users’ facial features so individuals can test various beauty products. This won’t involve any physical application and removal, creating a mess-free experience. It also provides a more detailed look at what the products will look like when actually worn, as testing products physically is often limited to swatches. This reduced e-commerce frictions and aligns with the growing online shopping industry.
Eyewear shopping
Being unable to try on frames when shopping for eyewear online has been a significant challenge for the eyewear e-commerce space, as consumers may feel less confident about their purchase compared to buying from a physical store. Virtual try-on tools have become instrumental in improving eyewear e-commerce, allowing consumers to use their device’s camera and an AR filter to simulate the look of various models to see which styles they prefer, or which look more flattering. Eyewear retailer Sunglass Hut leverages virtual try-on technology to offer an enhanced shopping experience that aligns with its premium selection. Shoppers can browse its range of designer sunglasses and click on models like the Prada PR 06YS or the Versace VE4361 Biggie and look for the ‘Try Them On’ option to use the virtual try-on tool. This technology is crucial when shopping for designer shades, as these are significant investments consumers want to feel confident about purchasing.
Buying apparel
Online shopping often doesn’t consider various body types when displaying a product, which can cause confusion and dissatisfaction in consumers. Virtual try-on breaks these limitations by allowing shoppers to be their own models for the clothing rather than relying on a limited set of images of models that don’t look like them. Retailers like Walmart use this technology to allow shoppers to use their own photos to model clothes from brands like Champion, Levi’s, Athletic Works, and more. The company acquired Zeekit to utilize this tool, using computer vision and neural networks to analyze catalog images of garments to create a dressed image. This considers variations like size, color, fabric draping, sleeve length, and more to create a realistic portrayal. Customers can also use other models with a similar body type to use the virtual try-on tool if they don’t want to use their photos. By allowing customers to get a more personalized look at a piece of clothing’s fit and look, they’ll feel more sure about purchasing the product and are less likely to return it.
