Propelled by digital transformation, the fashion retail industry has been evolving at a rapid pace to become more personalised and immersive in sync with changing consumer trends and preferences.
It is no surprise then that keeping up with evolving consumer expectations is key to any brand’s success and staying on the pulse of the latest consumer trends across beauty, fashion and technology can help brands create more meaningful and long-lasting connections with their customers.
In this regard, artificial intelligence (AI) and augmented reality (AR) virtual try-on technologies help brands create unparalleled interactive shopping experiences for their consumers, while taking personalisation to new heights and opening doors to new growth opportunities.
56 per cent of shoppers say that AR gives them more confidence about a product and 62 per cent of shoppers now prefer to shop with retailers that offer AR experiences. – Harvard Business Review
In its latest report, Perfect Corp.’s YouCam analysed virtual try-on big data from nine markets, namely The United States, Great Britain, France, Germany, Spain, Brazil, Mexico, Japan and China to reveal the top trends around the world.
The unique insights detailed in this article, will help brands calibrate their marketing efforts in accordance with current consumer preferences.
The rise of fashion tech
As AI- and AR-powered technologies such as virtual try-on become increasingly essential to drive consumer engagement and product discovery in the world of beauty, these innovations are beginning to influence other categories and retail sectors as well.
According to Harvard Business Review, 56 per cent of shoppers say that AR gives them more confidence about a product and 62 per cent of shoppers now prefer to shop with retailers that offer AR experiences.
For the fashion industry especially, AR virtual try-on technology can transform the customer experience, allowing shoppers to virtually try-on dozens of styles in seconds in order to find their perfect fit.
This technology solves a major pain point in the fashion industry, taking the guesswork out of shopping while providing each customer with a personalised experience.
With the virtual try-on feature, shoppers can clearly and easily visualise which sunglass style is best for their face shape or try on various types of engagement ring styles, all with a few simple taps from their smartphone.
Virtual try-on technology solves a major pain point in the fashion industry, taking the guesswork out of shopping while providing each customer with a personalised experience.
The rise of fashion tech is evidenced in big data sourced from the YouCam apps. Across the world, consumers are quickly turning to fashion tech experiences and virtual try-on tools for fashion product advice and inspiration.
In the past year, there were over 270 million fashion accessory virtual try-ons in YouCam apps as consumers turned to the app to experiment with eyewear styles, jewellery, hair accessories and more.
In addition to fashion accessory try-on tools, Perfect Corp. continues to develop new innovations and advanced fashion tech features. In February 2022, Perfect Corp. introduced the new clothing retouch tool to the YouCam Makeup app, allowing app users to easily change the colour and pattern of their clothing by utilising AR technology.
For the fashion industry especially, AR virtual try-on technology can transform the customer experience, allowing shoppers to virtually try-on dozens of styles in seconds in order to find their perfect fit.
Revolutionising fashion retail using fashion tech empowered solutions
To meet the growing demand for personalised shopping experiences and virtual try-on tools in the fashion industry, Perfect Corp. has developed a comprehensive suite of fashion tech solutions that can help brands increase customer purchasing confidence while boosting consumer engagement.
For hair accessory brands, Perfect Corp.’s AI-powered virtual try-on technology helps consumers visualise how they would look wearing different head accessories including hats, headbands and more.
The company’s AgileHandTM technology allows brands and consumers to harness the power of AI and AR virtual try-on to visualise what different hand accessories, such as rings, bracelets and watches, would look like when worn.
The hand tracking technology is trained on real hand models with a complete array of gestures, skin tones, textures, as well as hand and finger sizes, in order to provide the most engaging and true-to-life virtual try-on experience.
For eyewear brands, Perfect Corp.’s AI-powered virtual try-on solution for glasses provides a seamless way for brands to engage their customers and transform their omnichannel shopping journey. With this solution, consumers can try various eyewear frames, lenses and tints from their mobile or desktop browser.
The most popular fashion accessories tried-on
In H1 of 2022, users of the YouCam apps community were highly engaged with fashion accessory try-on. Hair accessories were the most popular fashion categories with headbands and headgears accounting for 13 per cent of total fashion accessory try-ons.
Eyewear virtual try-ons accounted for 18 per cent of fashion accessory try-ons in H1 of 2022.
Globally, some of the most frequently tried-on eyewear items were summer-ready styles such as red-tone, reflective aviators (13 per cent of eyewear try-ons) and oversized frames (10 per cent of eyewear try-ons).
App users also frequently tried on simple frames with gemstone embellishments (9 per cent of eyewear try-ons) and colourful patterns (12.5 per cent of eyewear try-ons), styles offering easy ways to add personality to everyday eyewear.
Aviators proved to be a top trending eyewear frame in 2022, with the hit movie Top Gun: Maverick sparking interest in the style. App users tried on the signature aviator style made famous by the film over 50,000 times.
Consumers were also highly engaged with jewellery categories, with necklace try-ons accounting for 8 per cent of fashion accessory try-ons and earrings accounting for 8 per cent of fashion accessory try-ons. Some of the most popular styles included a diamond necklace (17 per cent of necklace try-ons) and dangling diamond earrings (11 per cent of earring try-ons). App users also used virtual try-on to experiment with statement jewellery including colourful gemstone earrings and pendants.
As consumers seek out immersive and entertaining shopping experiences, AI and AR technology will be at the heart of successful strategies.
As the world embraces a new normal, consumer beauty and fashion behaviour are evolving. In the year ahead, digital transformation will be essential to engage shoppers.
As consumers seek out immersive and entertaining shopping experiences, AI and AR technology will be at the heart of successful strategies.
AI + AR virtual try-on has quickly become a must-have component of the beauty shopping journey; this technology is beginning to influence new retail spaces, particularly the fashion industry.
“We are excited to share our next trend report with the beauty and fashion industries, and know that these insights will help brands better understand consumer preferences and needs as we move into the retail season ahead,” Alice Chang, Perfect Corp. Founder and CEO, said adding, “By leveraging the big data and technology insights provided by Perfect Corp.’s YouCam apps community, brands can fine-tune their customer journeys to drive maximum impact and engagement.”
Big data sourced from the YouCam Apps community reveals that app users are highly engaged with fashion virtual try-on taking place in YouCam apps in the past year.
Eyewear and jewellery were some of the most frequently tried-on fashion categories, with consumers turning to virtual try-on for style inspiration leading up to the season ahead.
