In a move to address the online returns rate, companies have turned to tech, like gaming tech. The company BODS has developed a virtual try-on tool to improve online shopping. By using your photos and/or biometric information, it creates avatars that can be customized to help you visualize how clothes might fit. Multiple brands are signed on and will be making this available on their websites. My curiosity got me, and I started to explore this tool with the upcoming collection from Balmain.
Unfortunately, I had to link from the BODS site, because there were no options directly on the Balmain site that I noticed. The link took me to the page of the Jolie Madame bag which is on pre-order. (I would later notice that all of the items appeared to be on pre-order.) To create the avatar, I just input height and body measurements (of course I played around with these because I could.)
From there I could also customize the avatar by increasing the size of different parts. I will say, this is where things show that this is an early stage product. When you move the slide to increase muscle tone, it does it in a unnatural way making the skin look more lumpy, not muscular. After I got done customizing the avatar, I was on to play dressup.
There is a small set of items to choose from likely because the teams are still developing the virtual clothing inventories, probably starting with the newest collections.
Everything looks like it fits, but you will notice when trying on pants unless you are runway model height, it will flash quick notice that the pants have been hemmed. This is helpful, but I would like to know by how much.
The other thing I notice is the fit map. This showed how the item would likely be fitting on the body using color coding. I assumed this was something that would haven’t depicted visually by how the clothes lay on the avatar. Rather than a fit map, I would be better off just getting measurements and comparing that way.
What I found most useful about this technology is that it creates a way for me to see the whole outfit together. I would use this tool, or a similar one, to help me shop for multiple items. I could see how having the ability to create outfits could help drive additional sales would suggest brands communicate that element of the tool as well, rather than focusing on fit and reducing returns.
As fun as it was to play dress up virtually, there are just some things that I believe this tech will lack. I don’t foresee clothing brands being honest with these avatars and indicating which fabrics show cellulite, run sheer, or are itchy. And it will be difficult to tell from my avatar if I would feel confident when I put it on. It is one thing to figure our sizing to figure out if an item fits me, and then there is whether fit for me. Avatars may be a nice start, but at the end of the day consumers will still need to experience items for themselves to make their decisions.
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A Wren Says 
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