A start-up is using AI to reimagine online shopping through storytelling, while also aiming to reduce returns of apparel. We test it out on a smartphone
With denims getting wider, and T-shirts becoming baggier, Gen-Z fashion is known to prioritise comfort, community-building, and sustainability. The generation born into a digital world thrives on e-shopping. But often, it takes one click on the 'return' option to send their sustainability goals down the drain, in a landfill.
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Reports claim that over five billion pounds of waste is generated through returns. The problem, Roshan Raju, co-founder of start-up Imersive, believes is usually with sizing. "Brands lose over $200 billion on returns [of apparel] annually. Of this, 66 per cent returns are related to sizing concerns," shares the Chennai-based 26-year-old, who is working on reimagining e-commerce through Augmented Reality (AR), WebXR, and Artificial Intelligence (AI). Of the three products released since the company's inception in July last year, the most recent one provides a solution to reduce returns caused by sizing, while also enhancing and gamifying the overall online shopping experience.
Raju holds up the phone as this writer stands in front of the camera to begin recording
To try it out, this writer meets the young entrepreneur at a five-star lobby in Bandra. When we hear of technological jargon like AR, WebXR and AI, we expect a full set-up, and devices and equipment like VR headsets. However, Raju turns up with just his mobile phone. The idea is to make e-shopping more efficient without needing extra devices other than the ones that are already being used by the consumers. "Our products are in plug-in and play format. You don't need separate apps either. The website you wish to purchase apparel from will plug us in, and you will be able to use the feature on your phone," he explains.
The focus is equally on saving the consumer's time. With a click on a link, and after giving essential log in details, we are ready to be sized within ten seconds. Raju clicks on a T-shirt, enters our height, and asks us to stand in front of the camera. We rotate twice, and the AI is ready with our measurements and the recommended size to buy for the selected T-shirt as per the brand size. These measurements include everything from shoulder breadth, hip, neck, waist and chest circumference, to head, bicep, wrist, calf and ankle circumference. "As you rotate, AI makes a 3D model of you, and sends the readings to our set-up in the office [in Chennai]. No matter what clothes you wear, the system will be able to measure you with a possible difference of half cm. We guarantee 90 per cent accuracy -- which is also what people look for in ready-to-wear clothes," he suggests. The product also lets you edit the measurement if you prefer looser/ tighter fits or know your exact measurements.
While this product was first demonstrated in Bandra at streetwear festival All You Can Street earlier this year, Raju gives us a glimpse of another product.
The AI tool takes 10 seconds to record and read your measurements
This one, he says, caters to both online and offline shopping. "Imagine you're in a mall, and pass by a mirror outside a store. You pause to catch a sneak of how you look, but what you see on yourself are not the clothes you initially wore, but a pair of new launches by the store," Raju says. He turns on his front camera, and shows us how that works. The writer selects a sweatshirt, and our clothes change on screen. "This feature will show you how you will look in the selected apparel, if it fits right, is according to your liking, etc, in real time. It will also display if the product is available in your size. All that's left to do then is purchase it from the counter," he explains.
The size chart includes elaborate measurements for chest, height, hips, ankle and wrist circumference, among others. It also recommends the size to buy for the selected apparel
While AI is being explored in various fields, very few are taking it ahead in fashion in the country, Raju notes. "Most of my clients are from Mumbai. If you were to ask me, I'd say Mumbai is the fashion capital of India, followed by Delhi. People here are accepting of change and open to experimentation. But the problem with online shopping is that it is flawed. I understood this as a postgraduate student, and hence founded Imersive with Giri [Vedagiri Vijayakumar] to integrate storytelling into fashion through technology." The first product launched by the duo gamifies shopping centres in AR. This could be experienced through VR headsets or your mobile phones globally. It allows you to experience physical shopping online, where you can walk around the virtual store, check out their offerings for sale, make purchases in real time, or hang out in the space.
Another product allows you to try on clothes virtually on a mirror or your phone's screen. Pics/Shadab Khan
"Online shopping is booming. But returns cause a huge setback to brands. I won't be surprised if they stop accepting returns in the near future. Our products enhance online shopping and allow brands to keep their carbon footprints in check. We chose technology because it isn't just a futuristic tool that might work; it has already proven to work across generations and will continue to do so with innovations like these," Raju amuses us.
Five
billion pounds of waste generated through returns end up in landfills
What is it? Three tools enable size recommendations within ten seconds and gamify online shopping experience through storytelling.
How it works? Using WebXR technology, these tools can be accessed globally on smartphones.
Who it affects/benefits? Aimed at reducing returns substantially and enhancing online shopping, the tools help fashion labels keep their carbon footprint in check and build a community with their customers.
