Internet Of Things Just Got Smart For Fashion And Retail Industry

“Now I can’t try 3 more outfits – aargh!” (Scene at a Store fitting room) Long queue, Unflattering lighting, scattered clothes, no helping assistant in sight…. And a couple of clothes that may/may not fit your body shape. This flight of imagination is enough to annoy you, right? Not in 2017 retail, as per the latest reports (retail bytes)! Say bye bye to those distressing fitting rooms—where a customer gets in with a pile of clothes to try and returns after 20 minutes, messy, sweaty….with nothing to buy. Well, say hello to Internet of things making a real quantifiable impact on fashion and retail industry that can be quickly translated into positive ROI, customer retention and a well-comprehended business that eases you to effective decision-making.

There are billions of connected smart tags (RFID- Radio Frequency Identification), tracking products and relaying data feedback that can typically track and record a wealth of information from these sensors, RFID tags, smart chips and that measures a multitude of things. These ‘things’ can include acceleration, rotation, orientation, pressure, angular velocity, altitude, temperature, gyroscopes, barometers, high precision temperature sensors, people counters, material & component stock, products SKUs and so on.

How Do RFID Tags Fix The Problems Of Fitting Rooms?

RFID tags, small chips on the garment’s care label can activate a sensor when the customer takes the clothes into the fitting room. A small tablet built into the mirrors has sensors that will pick up what size clothes the customer has on. Then the sensor connects to the database and calls up the options for the customer to show a size up and/or down. At the click of the ‘help’ button, the assistant then brings the new clothes in the desired different size or color.

This greatly helps in providing great analytics on observing customer shopping behavior, item popularity, most abandoned items etc. which will eventually help the retailer in taking more matured decision while making the purchase from manufacturers.

RFID: Success Strategies for Apparel Retailers

How RFID Could Tags Help Retail Brands Guard Against Theft?

Retail theft in general costs the industry nearly $32 billion a year. Apparently, luxury retail brands houses items that are more likely prone to theft and get sold on the black market. But RFID tags change the things here. Embedding RFID on the items allows a very detailed view on what products ‘walk out’ more than others. Knowing this, that item can be secured better in a more protected display.

Want to know more about the trending retail technologies, smart fitting rooms and how they can maximize your sales? Contact our Magento developers today!