For my secondary research I decided to look at other companies who have tried to use a similar technology to help their customers. Places such as IKEA, Specsavers and GAP have all used this approach to make their customers lives easier by effectively offering them ‘try before you buy’.

Competitors:

Fitle –

• provides a service which allows you to take pictures of yourself from different angles and generates what certain clothes would look like on an avatar which is customised to look like you. This is originally my idea for my project but since finding this competitor I am slightly changing my idea from using an avatar to project the clothing on to, to using real time augmented reality where you can map the clothing on to yourself using ‘mirror selfies’. similar to IKEA’s app.
• Positive Learning: I have established that this is a problem which has tried to be solved and has succeeded in a similar way to how I would like to do it.  It has given me a greater idea of how the technology works.
• Negative Learning: The idea I had thought of had already been taken and brought to my attention that it would maybe be too much hassle for customers to create an avatar and use exact measurements, as our bodies constantly change

GAP – https://adressed.gapinc.com/blog/gap-ces-announcement-2017-dressingroom-app

• Called the DressingRoom – GAP have created a virtual dressing room which allows users to create an avatar with the exact measurements of your body to create a realistic augmented reality version of yourself trying their clothes on. The app lets you point the camera anywhere and place whichever clothes on to the avatar. Although this idea is extremely similar to mine, the factors which differ the two is that GAP use an avatar and is only available for GAP customers, whereas my product works in partnership with all major online clothing companies and uses augmented reality to map the clothes on to your own body in real time using the camera on the customers smart device.
• Positive Learning – I have established that this is something which clothing companies want to try and introduce for their customers and that it is something the customers do want. Also the fact that this system works and has been tried before.
• Negative Learning – The idea which I originally had was to create an avatar, which GAP have already done. This means I had to adjust my idea for my product.

Inspiration & Analogous Research

IKEA –

• have created an app called IKEA Place. This app allows you to point your camera on a smart device at the room you want to put your new furniture in and choose which furniture you wish to try. It positions the furniture in your room so you can have an exact idea what the product would look like before buying. This is the same technology which I have decided to look into for my own product as it shows in real time what the product would look like on your body.
• Positive Learning: It has taught me the technology and how it works to provide a benefit to their customers.
• Negative Learning: IKEA are not a technology company so I am just taking their idea, there is no real indication as to how the technology works.

Specsavers

• Specsavers have introduced a feature on their website which allows you to pick a pair of glasses which you’re interested in potentially buying, and lets you try them on before you buy. They use the camera on your smart device and augmented reality to position the glasses on the customers face so they have a clear idea of what they will look like in them glasses without having to go in to the shop.
• Positive Learning – although this isn’t in the clothing industry, this feature shows that more people are wanting this opportunity to know what things will look like before they commit to purchasing the product. And this is something that people are interested in using when shopping online.
• Negative Learning – The app reviews for this idea are very low (1 or 2 out of 5 stars). Many users saying that the concept is a brilliant idea, but the design of the app makes it difficult to use.

For my primary research I identified a target audience of females aged between 17-25. This age group of girls is one which I consider to be the most likely to use online shopping the most. Students also I feel, are more likely to shop online due to the big discounts and the ease of not having to go in to a physical shop to find clothing. To conduct my primary research I decided to look at major online clothing companies social media posts, and find customers who have commented on their posts and approach them with my questionnaire. The people I have targeted are direct online shoppers and I felt that the results would be most accurate by asking these people.

I created a questionnaire on google forms, and sent the link to my target audience to fill out. I didn’t want to send it to too many people as the questions had a lot of open answers so I wanted just enough to see a trend.

Analysis of questionnaire results:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1xyLzU71gJjMqJkWv-_uSk0lKLPOXZguinPiZQT7XjPs/edit#responses

What is the reason you shop online for clothes rather than in physical shops?

Nearly all of the answers to this questions suggested that online shopping was convenient and easier and that you get a better choice online.

What is the reason that you may still shop in physical shops/shopping centres rather than online?

The answers to this question suggested that one of the reasons they still go shopping is to try the item on to ensure it fits, and to also know what the quality of the material is like, which you cant do online.

Name a problem with shopping online for clothes.

Most answers to this question mention the fact that sizing is an issue and that the item looks different in person to what it does online. The hassle of delivery was also mentioned in that you have to pay extra for it, and it can take too long.

What are the factors which determine your decision to shop either online or the physical world?

Most of the responses to this question mention the fact that it saves time to shop online, especially for people who are far away from physical shops.

What is your experience in regard to not being able to try clothes on online?

The majority of answers for this question mention the fact that they have had to send items back and re order new sizes which can take a long time to be refunded and you also then have to pay again for delivery.

 

In conclusion, the answers from my questionnaire make it clear that although online shopping is quicker and easier, it can also me more stressful as you can’t clearly indicate which clothes will suit you or be the quality which you expect them to be. The product I decide to make will solve these issues which will then save shoppers time and money as they will be less likely to return a product as they have already seen it on themselves.

A reflective summary of the peer-review activity including why it helped, what was difficult, what you learned etc.

In the workshop for week 1, we worked in groups to share our 3 ideas with peers and get some feedback and advice on which is the strongest idea to pick. I found this extremely helpful as I was quite stuck on which idea to go for. The task helped me to clear up a few issues or problems which I may have had with my ideas and ways to tweak them. Getting other peoples opinion always gives me a new perspective and is something that I like to go off when producing work. It was clear by then end of the task that I had a strong idea and had chosen my idea that I wanted to stick to.

The issue that seemed to be the most appropriate for this brief

The most appropriate issue for the brief fell under the open innovation category. I chose to go with the clothing idea which allows online users to visualise what they would look like in an item of clothing before they have bought it, saving them time and money.  Although the other issues were appropriate, I found that this issue was more of an original idea and is something that society hasn’t really been introduced to yet. Out of the 3 ideas that I had, the group gave this idea the highest score for originality and potential impact.

Any refinements to the issue (i.e. changes in scope or direction) based on suggestions/feedback from the group

From listening to my peers suggestions, and discussing potential competitors, we tried to come up with a slightly different twist to what competitors are doing. Some companies who have already looked into this project use digital avatars to visualise what you would look like, however we decided to make my idea different, we would use augmented reality in real time similar to snapchat filters to project the item of clothing on to the user who would be using their smart device camera. Although creating an app is slightly over done and conventional, myself and the group could not see another way to create this product without the use of a website/app and I feel this is justified with the nature of the idea and how the users are supposed to use it.

A list of sources to potentially research based on feedback from the group

after discussing the idea with the group and solidifying the issue I am trying to solve, one of my peers suggested looking at Specsavers website and app which they use a ‘mirror’ which includes a pair of glasses which you want to try on using augmented reality and shows you what you would look like in those glasses. This is the same concept as my clothing idea and I feel this will help a lot of people who do not have the time to physically go into their town/city and shop.

Out of the 3 ideas I had to begin with, I decided to go with the open innovation category which included a product which helped online shoppers save time and money by providing them with trying on service before the commit to buying.

For the brief I have responded by acknowledging the problems within society through the categories in the EYA. I have three problems within the categories of: healthy life, open innovation and active citizenship.

My first problem within healthy life is tackling becoming healthier after being overweight due to lack of exercise and the wrong diet. Food is a main reason for obesity which people have a misunderstanding of what is correct to eat. Many people are not educated on the healthier options which they could eat which are not so different to what they are already eating.

Statement/problem with the topic:

• What other ways can you motivate people to lose weight?
• More people need educating on the right foods for their body
• It is important for society to lower the obesity rates

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/nov/10/uk-most-obese-country-in-western-europe-oecd-report-finds

https://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/loseweight/Pages/statistics-and-causes-of-the-obesity-epidemic-in-the-UK.aspx

https://www.everydayhealth.com/healthy-living/obesity-prevention.aspx

Solution:

• App – enter in favourite junk food snacks the app automatically generates a healthy substitute which you can find in the supermarkets or will send recipe if home baked.
• You add in a picture of your body and the app shows you what it could look like if you stay on track

Active citizenship:

• How can the public help the homeless?
• How can the homeless build themselves back into society again?
• More than 250,000are homeless in England

https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/categories/social-welfare/help-the-homeless?utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=UK-Generic-Crowdfunding-Vertical-Homeless-Exact-Desktop-AlwaysOn&utm_term=how%20to%20help%20the%20homeless%20uk

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/nov/08/one-in-every-200-people-in-uk-are-homeless-according-to-shelter

• An app which you can share the location of homeless people with shelters and institutions which can help. Also make donations.

Open innovation:

• Internet users pay extra for delivery and may return their product and wait 2 weeks for a refund
• Wait 3-5 days for clothes that may not fit
• Does it cost more to online shop?

https://accountlearning.com/advantages-disadvantages-online-shopping/

http://uk.businessinsider.com/try-before-you-buy-clothing-brands-stitch-fix-warby-parker-amazon-prime-fashion?r=US&IR=T

Solution:

• An app which you enter in your location of town/city and type in the shop you are trying to find, the app will give you the quickest route to the shop and if the shop is not found, other shops in the area which can offer the same products.
• A website which allows you to create a realistic avatar of your body by using specific measurements and using an image of you for the head. It allows you to try clothes on online before buying them so you know if they will fit your body correctly according to the measurements you enter.

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