Hugo Boss , L.K. Bennett, Nicole Fahri, Superdry and Adidas have all signed up to for online fitting rooms.
The five clothing brands have all signed on the line with Fits.me, whose software-as-service virtual fitting rooms allow website visitors who input their measurements to see how clothing would look on them. The Superdry, Adidas and Hugo Boss agreements also include overseas websites.
Fits.me founder and chief executive Heikki Haldre says retailers are acting in order to reduce return rates.
“More and more people are buying clothing online, which is leading to increased volume of returns because of the online fit problem: the impossibility for people to try garments on before buying.
“Returns are very damaging to profitability and what we may be seeing is that retailers are reaching some kind of tipping point, forcing them to address the issue. We are experiencing a great deal of not just interest in our virtual fitting room, but real intent. In my view we could see 2013 being the year in which virtual fitting rooms came of age.”
The new fitting rooms are currently being customized for each of the new clients and are expected to go live when spring collections are launched.
Jermyn St tailor Hawes & Curtis was the first UK retailer to sign up for Fits.me’s biorobotic virtual fitting room, back in 2010. Today its client list also includes Barbour by Mail, Boden, Ermengildo Zegna and Pretty Green.