American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets, discount department stores, Walmart, has launched an AI-powered virtual try-on tool technology that helps shoppers to see how a clothing item would look on them.
This technology helps customers visualize clothing on models that share the same body type as them, to know if such clothing will be a great fit.
Before this recent technology, Walmart allows its customers to select among the dozens of models on its platform to find the one which best looked like them, before selecting the outfit.
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Currently, the company has advanced, by launching a new technology called “Be Your Model,” which lets shoppers use their photos to see how clothing looks on them, instead of choosing one of the existing fashion models.
The computer vision and neural network-powered feature is capable of analyzing catalog images of garments to create a dressed image.
The use of neural networks will help shoppers to determine the different variations of a product, including size, color and other factors like fabric draping or sleeve length.
The feature is currently available on more than 270,000 items across Walmart’s portfolio of exclusive, elevated brands and private brands.
Walmart SVP of New Businesses and Emerging Tech Cheryl Ainoa, disclose that the new feature presents a more realistic imagery than some other experiences where a photo is simply laid overtop another image, which makes it feel different from other tech, like AR-enabled shopping.
“Where we didn’t feel like customers were satisfied is that a lot of the AR experiences are basically the equivalent of taking and laying a flat image on top of a flat image,” she says. “That doesn’t let you actually experience what this article of clothing is going to look like on me.”
This feature is now available on more than 270,000 items across both national brands like Champion, Levi’s and Hanes, and Walmart’s portfolio of brands, including Sofia Active by Sofia Vergara, Love & Sports, ELOQUII Elements, Time & Tru, Athletic Works, Terra & Sky, No Boundaries, Avia and The Pioneer Woman.
A smaller number of items on the Walmart Marketplace also support the feature. It’s also expanded from 50 models to now over 100.
As inflation continues to surge, which has driven up the prices of commodities, also cutting down on customers spending, in a bid to enhance customers’ experience Walmart is unveiling the new tool at a time when selling new outfits has gotten tougher.
With the coming expansion, its customers no longer have to only select from the available models.
Instead, desktop shoppers on Walmart.com and users of Walmart’s mobile app will be able to use their own photos in order to create a more personalized shopping experience. This option is rolling out first to iOS users of the Walmart app and to the web, with Android launching in the weeks ahead.
It is interesting to note that Walmart is the first to offer a virtual try-on experience for apparel brands at scale.