Augmented Reality in the Fashion World: HOT OR NOT?

Fashion. A trillion dollar worldwide industry.?“The revenue of the global apparel market was calculated to amount to some 1.5 trillion U.S. dollars in 2021 and was predicted to increase to approximately 2 trillion dollars by 2026.”

Fashion. An industry that almost EVERYONE (and we mean EVERYONE ) interacts with in some way.

Fashion. The next industry to be taken over by augmented reality.

EXHIBIT A: Maya Jama attended the 73rd British Academy Film Awards in a world-first augmented reality dress, powered by 5G. EE’s live stream had 1.2 million fans tuned in, and they all watched Maya walk the red carpet decked in a beautiful augmented reality garment. The designer, Richard Malone, used recycled ocean waste and other ethically sourced fabrics.?

So, maybe you’re thinking something like:

"Excuse me, not sure about you, but… we have to actually WEAR clothes!"

"Clothes are physical for physical bodies!"

"Sure, it can work on the runway, fashion shows, New York Fashion Week and all that, they’re always outrageous. Not for us normal people!"

"Fashion CAN’T go digital."

Woah. Slow down there. Let’s have a look at why AR is taking the fashion world by storm.

Customers Love Something NEW & SHINY

Consumers still see augmented reality as a novelty, especially over other digital and print advertising forms. This novelty is EXCITING and customers want MORE. Augmented reality ads give the consumers an entertaining and rewarding experience, and can also solve many of their problems. The ‘try before you buy’ abilities of AR alone offers consumers a chance to truly shop from home, and feel more secure in their online purchase.?

A Truly Immersive Customer Experience AND Fewer Returns!

AR is the perfect mix of physical and digital to maximise online shopping opportunities for both retailers and consumers. 47% of consumers have said they “feel more connected with products” when the online shopping experience is immersive , and 47% of consumers say they would pay extra for a product that was customised or personalised via immersive technology .?

By allowing your potential customers to ‘see’ and ‘use’ the product before they commit to buying it, you also give them full confidence in their purchasing decisions. This means much lower return rates, as seen by big brands like Macy’s. They dropped their return rate to less than 2% with the help of augmented reality, a huge difference from the furniture industry standard of 5%-7%.

Every Day Is A School Day (Part 1)

Augmented reality offers a unique way to give customers all the information they need about a product, in a way that they will want to pay attention to. No more junk drawer full of scrappy manuals or confusing instructions that customers can’t follow. With AR, your brand is able to extend the purchasing experience for consumers; content is no longer limited to labels and packaging; it’s simple to upsell complementary accessories and products; consumers feel safer in their purchasing decisions due to trying before buying.

Every Day Is A School Day (Part 2)

It’s not just consumers that can use your brand’s augmented reality experience to receive education or instruction. By engaging with your brand’s AR experience, users provide a treasure trove of data. Due to augmented reality’s high engagement rate, AR products can give truly valuable information to whoever is holding down the fort in your marketing department!

The Hard Bit Is Already Done

AR is already all over our social media platforms, in the form of filters, games, ads, and more. This can often give people a misleading image of what augmented reality can do for their brand. Instagram has reported an entire third of the most viewed Insta stories were all for businesses , plus, according to Blippar, people are using their AR filters for an average of 75 seconds - 4x longer than mobile video.

Just A Phase?

The novelty of augmented reality, mixed reality, virtual reality, the Metaverse, digital fashion, filters (and so on and so on) has truly taken the world by storm, and it hasn’t shown any signs of stopping. The facts and figures are telling us that augmented reality use is on the rise. Companies are showing high ROI for their AR experiences. Statistics reveal how engaging and immersive these technologies really are.

It’s not just a phase, it’s not just ‘what’s in fashion’... it’s the future, and the future is NOW!

Want to know what’s REALLY in fashion?

Subscribing to our newsletter for more insight into the augmented reality world, and how it is shaping the real world around us!