Monsoon, Acne Studios and Country Attire become the latest fashion retailers to go live with Swedish online fitting room #Virtusize in the UK. So, what exactly is Virtusize and how is it going to help retailers?
According to the Virtusize website:
“Virtusize helps online retailers to visually illustrate the size and fit of clothing. We guarantee to help online shoppers buy clothes that fit, every time.
Our comprehensive virtual fitting solution is trusted by some of the most prestigious brands in the industry including ASOS, Magaseek and WeSC. We reduce the fit related returns, increase sales, as well as improve the shopping experience. Right fit, every time!
Virtusize helps you, as an online retailer, to strengthen the relationship with your customers. By supplying an accurate and effective way to illustrate size and fit, shoppers are more likely to make a purchase at your online store – giving you a vital edge over your competitors.”
With online shopping becoming a larger chunk of retailers overall business, successfully understanding the importance of correct garment fits and sizes is vital to gaining recurring sales. It is extremly hard for online customers to understand what size to choose and to visualise whether a garment will fit when buying clothes online. The size and fit varies between brands, markets, seasons and styles. An American small can sometimes translate to an Italian large and even if shoppers know their size in a specific brand it is impossible to know the fit of every individual style.
Furthermore, a high rate of returns is a significant problem for an online retailer and costs the eCommerce industry millions per year. According to Virtusize the only solution is garment-to-garment comparison. The industry has been experimenting with 3D technologies but due to high costs for the retailer, the lack of accuracy and the effort required by the shopper, they have not taken off – and are not about to anytime soon. Other applications such as recommendation engines, another type of fitting solution, recommend a size but don’t show the shopper how an item will fit.
So how does it work?
Using a garment the customer already owns as a reference for their new purchase is the best and most accurate way for online shoppers to understand the size and fit of an item. The Virtusize solution has been developed alongside designers, pattern makers and industry leading online retailers who share the same view that garment comparison is the only way to clearly and objectively showcase size and fit to the customer.
- Visible
- Typically solutions that use body shape fail to highlight the nuances of a garment and illustrate how it would fit in reality. The 2D garment method allows shoppers to overlay the garment they wish to buy with the one they already own to convey how the garments differ in cut.
- Intuitive
- Illustrating fit online in a comprehensible way requires an intuitive reference point. The connection between the real and the virtual world is easy to grasp when you can refer to a garment you are already familiar with.
- All garment types
- Overlaying garment silhouettes makes it easy to compare garments from any brand, in any style and category including shirts, t-shirts, trousers, dresses, sweaters, skirts and jackets and so forth. Virtusize is even available at an online retailer selling dogs’ clothing.
- Low barrier
- We’ve made it super simple to reference or tag a garment. It takes two minutes to measure a garment at home or one click to tag a previously bought garment online at any retailer that uses Virtusize. It is more straightforward since it does not require photography or any other complicated input from the shopper.
- Cost effective
- It is easy for an online retailer to integrate Virtusize with its online store and we can scale to 100% of a retailer’s range extremely quickly.
The software which is now available on 225,000 garments across 30 online retailers internationally has been designed for retailers to: increase sales, decrease returns, improve the shopping experience and build customer loyalty.
Fresh off the back of a “Retail Technology Initiative of the Year” scoop at the World Retail Awards together with ASOS, the company was also named a Young Bull at the White Bull Summits in Barcelona.
Peder Stubert, co-founder at Virtusize said. “It’s good to be working with more forward-thinking retailers in the UK. We have had a great year so far.”
Wee Fashion Shower! 