The market for virtual fitting room technology, which covers everything from Virtual Mirrors to mobile AR applications and 3D Body Scanners, is expected to reach $4.8bn in 2023 and to continue to grow at more than 20% through to 2030, according to a report by Fortune Business.
Separate reports, from Grand View Research, Global Market Estimates, predict the growth rate will be closer to 25% per year and anticipate that the market will exceed $20bn by 2030.
The product categories that will benefit most from the technology, in order of the size of the opportunity, are apparel, eyewear, cosmetics and jewellery.
Virtual fitting apps on mobile are based on augmented reality and artificial intelligence. They provide customers with personalised avatars and 3D visualisation of products that enable shoppers to try before they buy. This is said to increase sales and dramatically reduce returns, especially for online purchases.
The Fortune Business report predicts that as influencers on platforms, such as TikTok, Snapchat, Pinterest, and Instagram, encourage consumers to buy specific outfits, personal avatars will allow them to dress in those outfits and put themselves at the heart of the social commerce experience.
The report concludes that the growth of virtual try-on software is closely tied to mobile devices and therefore is fuelling, and being fuelled by, the migration of shoppers to mobile.
