Getting customers back to the stores, creating a fast virtual dressing room application for clothing

Getting Customers back to the Stores, Creating a Fast Virtual Dressing Room Application for Clothing Stores Dissertation Title

Matthew Camilleri June 2013

Submitted to the Institute of Art and Design in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Graphic Design and Interactive Media

Authorship Statement

This dissertation is based on the results of research carried out by myself, is my own composition, and has not been previously presented for any other certified or uncertified qualification.

The research was carried out under the supervision of Ms. Moira Zahra.

Signed ________________

Date ________________

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Copyright Statement

In submitting this dissertation to the MCAST Institute of Art and Design I understand that I am giving permission for it to be made available for use in accordance with the regulations of MCAST and the College Library.

Signed ________________

Date ________________

Contact Address; 275, “Piertrist�, Constitution Street.

Mosta Malta MST9052

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Acknowledgments

Firstly, I would like to acknowledge and thank my school staff and administration for allowing me to conduct my research and providing any assistance requested.

I would like to thank Ms. Moira Zahra, who approved that my idea was sufficient and supported me during my dissertation work as my tutor. By her good advice and teaching experience this thesis was completed in time and it was enjoyable to do.

I would like to thank my family, my mother Theresa, my two brothers Tristan and Pierre, and my partner Leanne for their ongoing support, patience and love throughout the year.

Finally, I would also like to thank my former ICT teacher Gerrard Said, whose assistance and patience were invaluable to this project. As well as to all who participated in the online surveys and informal discussions.

Matthew Camilleri June 2013

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Contents

Dissertation Title.............................................................................................................................. i Authorship Statement .................................................................................................................. ii Copyright Statement ................................................................................................................... iii Acknowledgments ...................................................................................................................... iv Contents....................................................................................................................................... v Abstract ...................................................................................................................................... vi Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 1 1.

Literature Review................................................................................................................. 6

2.

Methodology and Data Collection ....................................................................................... 9

3.

4.

5.

2.1

Research Methodology ................................................................................................. 9

2.2

Data Collection ........................................................................................................... 14

2.3

Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 15

Findings.............................................................................................................................. 16 3.1

Selected People Questionnaire ................................................................................... 16

3.2

Fashion Enthusiasts and other Questionnaire ............................................................. 18

3.3

Informal Discussions .................................................................................................. 20

Discussion of Findings ....................................................................................................... 24 4.1

Discussion on the current statistics of social and digital media ................................. 24

4.2

Discussing the questionnaires sent online .................................................................. 26

4.3

Discussing the informal discussions ........................................................................... 26

4.4

Conclusion and limitations faced ............................................................................... 27

Conclusion ......................................................................................................................... 28

Bibliography .............................................................................................................................. 30 Appendices ................................................................................................................................ 31

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Abstract

This dissertation reflects on the existence of virtual mirrors and how they can be incorporated within clothing stores in order to increase sales. The psychology behind buying clothes will be investigated along with the pros and cons of both online and in-store shopping.

The purpose of this dissertation is to analyse the advance of technology and online marketing, and why clothing stores aren’t benefiting from such measures but instead relatively losing sales.

The writer of this dissertation wanted to create something which will decrease the absence of people buying in-store by building a new experience and a solution to the clothing store owners.

The main aim of this study was to take the advantages of online shopping and translate them onto a traditional shopping context to increase in-store sales.

Qualitative and quantitative research methods were adopted to tackle this aim. Local clothing store managers were interviewed for qualitative research, in order to gain a better understanding on the current situation without the existence of virtual mirrors, as well as on what clothing store managers think of such an inclusion/innovation within the local market. For quantitative research online questionnaires were sent to selective people in this field to be able to identify whether the system is approved or not by the general public.

As part of the analysis other artists’ work including that of: Fashionista by Zugara (November 2009), Webcam Social Shopper by Zugara (June 2011), StyleMe by Cisco (April 2012), EON Interactive Mirror (April 2012), Swivel Virtual Dressing Room by Facecake (September 2012), Uniqlo Magic Mirror by Dai Nippon Printing (October 2012) and F&F Virtual Mirror by Tesco (November 2012), were researched. The author looked into their work and techniques in order to support his final piece.

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Introduction

My perception on clothing stores When I get inside clothing stores I feel like I am somewhere better, away from anything that is boring. It is like being transported to another world, where your mind is clear, thus focused on aesthetics especially when purchasing clothing. Even though I am generally proud of my purchases, even in seventh heaven sometimes, I still feel there is a missing piece that could have made my day complete.

No it’s not the purchasing part. Nothing is free anymore nowadays and it will never be like that.

But before I make my final decision of which clothes to buy, I am faced with the problem of having to try on the bulk of clothes selected, since the art of dressing and undressing is not to my liking. I am sure that I’m not the only one to share this line of thinking (Figure 1) and I feel that with the advance of technology currently on the market, the mentioned problem can be tackled and solved.

Figure 1 - Facebook post by local fashion blogger, Lara Boffa, Christmas 2012.

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Why aren’t virtual mirrors already popular?

The principal questions arising from the aforementioned argument are: Even with the advance of technology, why virtual mirrors (Figure 2) aren’t already popular in-store? Shouldn’t incorporating virtual mirrors be a good investment? Employers would be able to employ less people, and the mirror itself would be appealing to clients and give an easier, fast & convenient way of shopping in-store.

Figure 2 - StyleMe virtual mirror at John Lewis, UK (Fretwell, 2012)

There are multiple factors that one has to consider before coming to conclusions. Due to the uncertain economy at the moment, it might not be wise to invest in new expensive technologies.

Another factor is that local stores, probably, might like to play it safe since they are afraid of incorporating new ways of merchandising notwithstanding that such incorporation, like online shopping, are widely approved by the general public. Technology tends to fail sometimes thus ongoing maintenance is required. Numerous customers are either not completely used to being highly personal with digital media or are scared of making use of technology, or else afraid of change or even reluctant to change from a traditional shopping experience to a modern, fresh one.

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Computer literacy is another factor which might be inhibiting retailers to incorporate such technology, since it is likely not to catch the attention of senior citizens, meaning targeting only those people who are computer literate.

In order to have a complete Virtual Mirror, one must have: a) Internet access to update changes frequently, such as new collection and items on sale; b) reliance on and reliability of the internet/Wi-Fi; c) Virtual Mirror always running and consequently internet connection never down or it will result in an open-close clothing store which is not very good for the retailer; d) and finally, and most importantly, privacy as most might find it quite awkward to change clothes in front of others.

Existing Virtual Mirrors With the advent of times, more clothing stores are incorporating new technologies into their stores since statistics, from famous brand corporations (Figure 3), show that sales are hugely increasing with such innovation.

Figure 3 - RayBan outdoor Virtual Mirror in London UK

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What I want to create My aim is to create an in-store virtual mirror, which is fast and convenient for the consumer to decide what to buy. It will also be of great benefit when mixing and matching different outfits together, thus resulting in higher sales to the retailer. Through this virtual mirror, one would be able to superimpose a three-dimensional garment on his reflection.

This would be of benefit to the local consumers since this technology would be totally new to the general public. Since most of the foreign already-existing virtual mirrors are mainly focused on superimposing a two-dimensional outfit rather than a three-dimensional one, my version of the virtual mirror will give the ability to have a better idea of the fit itself with a full 360 o view of the outfit chosen.

Why introducing this application now?

Introducing this technology application now is not a matter of personal opinion but it’s a matter of awareness on new technologies. People nowadays are more aware of the availability of technology on the market. Since this application will be taking the shopping experience a step ahead: a fast and convenient way complimenting a busy lifestyle, by introducing this application there is the chance that people make use of it.

Seeing yourself in a digital way has become natural, and most people are becoming more technology-dependent. When more than ten years ago you thought that the concept of Minority Report movie stuff was awesome and truly innovative, today it’s just a different way of having things done. With the introduction of Nintendo Wii, Sony PlayStation Move, Microsoft’s Kinect for XBOX (Figure 4) and the recent introduction of Smart TV’s & Leap motion controller, it is unquestionable that life is directing towards a digital dependence.

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Figure 4 - Game played via Kinect for Xbox (Van Domelen, 2012)

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1. Literature Review

Throughout the years many retailers have shown interest in incorporating new technologies such as the Virtual Mirrors into their stores and numerous people, who have done so, all seemed to benefit from sales increase and customer satisfaction. Findings of existing Virtual Mirrors and other related topics which have supported my thesis results, were reviewed from the following online sources: blogs, articles, statistics and e-books listed here below.

The online journal Statistics and Facts about Online Shopping found on Statista website, (the leading international statistics portal on the Internet), states that the sub-category of e-commerce was of relevance since it stated, in other words, the need of getting customers back to the stores by defining the benefits of online shopping. As stated in this journal, online shopping offers a wide range of advantages to the consumer, it is often faster, cheaper, more convenient and the range is vaster. (Kril, n.d.)

Online shopping is rapidly growing and it is forecasted that it will continue to do so in the near future. This is also of relevance as it shows that retail shopping websites, more than any other websites, generate the largest share of online revenues, thus resulting in more customers that choose to shop online. Krill (n.d.) also argues that online shopping is used especially during the holiday season in order to avoid the large amount of queues generated in-stores, which makes it in-store impractical to shop.

As relevance to this matter I researched existing research papers and according to the Online shopping paper (Corc, 10) it shows the potential threats that would arise to in-stores in the near future. This paper mentions the benefits of online shopping and the growth it is forecasting and even states that with the advance of technology, such as the virtual mirror, customers will have an easier and more realistic shopping experience online.

As stated by both writings, online shopping is often a faster, cheaper and more convenient avenue for the customer to shop from a vast range of virtual goods available. Both writings mention that online shopping is forecasting to grow. The online journal Statistics and Facts about Online Shopping shows this through statistics whilst in the research paper Online Shopping Paper this is forecasted to become easier and reliable with the advance of technology.

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Both writings were relevant to the topic of this thesis for the reason that both show why customers are opting more for online shopping rather than in-store shopping.

The online post entitled Microsoft is Imagining a Natural User Interface future from Microsoft’s official blog was of insight since it clearly shows that technology plays an important role in our lives and that one doesn’t “have to look very far to realize that technology is becoming more natural and intuitive”. (Clayton, 2011) Such examples of Natural User Interface (NUI), within our daily lives, are the use of touch interfaces smartphones and local based ATMs. A clear example that has changed the way of gaming as we know it is Microsoft’s Kinect for Xbox 360.

This was an inspiring invention to nearly every part of the globe, where more than 8 million consoles were sold in just 60 days after it was released. Microsoft believed that “Natural User Interface will make technology more accessible and more intuitive to a wider audience” (Clayton, 2011) and now we can say that Microsoft was right, since a clear evidence is the fact that various retailers have incorporated Kinect based NUI technology into their stores. Gartner’s Research, the world's leading information technology research and advisory company, as cited in The On-Demand Brand - 10 Rules for Digital Marketing Success in an Anytime, Everywhere World, projects that “nearly 50% of European retailers expect to offer these kind of NUI services to customers by 2015.” (Mathieson, 2010, p.215) The e-book entitled The On-Demand Brand - 10 Rules for Digital Marketing Success in an Anytime, Everywhere World was also of help as it covers many aspects of this particular thesis. It argues that “In the digital age, brand marketers—both physical world retailers and their product marketer partners—are beginning to understand that personal connectivity is now pervasive. Just as consumers want to be able to buy from you on demand, wherever they may be, they also want access to their digital lives when they actually do make it into your physical store.” (Mathieson, 2010, p.207).

It continue by explaining that “Today, a growing number of store brands and their productmarketing partners are recognizing, acknowledging, and acting on trends ignited by the ondemand revolution”. It also states that “Interactive kiosks and displays immerse shoppers in the brand” (Mathieson, 2010, p.208). A good example that shows pervasive personal connectivity is the brand Polo Ralph Lauren, where the senior vice president of the company; David Lauren, was cited in the e-book The On-Demand Brand - 10 Rules for Digital Marketing Success in an Page |7

Anytime, Everywhere World stating: “I really wanted to find a way to make that amazing technology a retail reality” (Mathieson, 2010, p.209).

Furthermore this book analyses the rise of social retailing as popularised by Tom Nicholson, whose firm IconNicholson, revolutionised the in-store experience for renowned brands like Prada. Here the vice president of the abovementioned firm, Rachael Mc Brearty, maintains that social retailing offers “a vision for how they can reach the audience at the center of the social computing craze seen in websites like YouTube and MySpace, to connect in-store shopping with the online world in a way that is new, entertaining – and completely relevant” (Mathieson, 2010, p.211). Supporting this view Tom Nicholson further claims that “essentially, social retailing really is nothing more than taking a lot of those features and activities that are happening online today and finding a way to move these into the physical environment.” (Mathieson, 2010, p.212) Some believe that this experience will be engaging, resulting in staying longer in the store, and that inevitably leads to more items purchased. On the other end of the spectrum Julie Bornstein, senior Vice-President of Sephora Direct, rebates that social retailing will never replace having “highly trained people in our stores to really provide advice.” (Mathieson, 2010, p.217) Also of pertinence were statistics conducted by researchers at Nielsen, a leading global information and measurement company that enables companies to understand consumers and consumer behavior, which totally differ from Bornstein’s belief as found on The On-Demand Brand - 10 Rules for Digital Marketing Success in an Anytime, Everywhere World. Results show that “eight out of ten shoppers now routinely read online product reviews before placing an order” and “consumers are two and a half times more strongly influenced by customer reviews than by a sales person’s advice” (Mathieson, 2010, p.216). In addition, according to Nielsen’s State of the Media: The Social Media Report 2012: “social media is still growing rapidly, becoming an integral part of our daily lives. Social networking is now truly a global phenomenon.” (Anon., 2012)

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2. Methodology and Data Collection

This chapter discusses which methods have been adopted, why and how work was approached.

Here research was carried out using mostly online resources for the reason that such research problem is recent and there are no books that tackle the relevant information on the subject.

2.1 Research Methodology

The purpose of this dissertation was to create an in-store virtual mirror, which enables the customer to superimpose a three-dimensional garment on his reflection on the mirror. Through this, the customer will be able to have a better idea when deciding what to buy or not. It will also provide less hassle to try on different garments, making the experience more enjoyable in today’s clothing stores.

Information was gathered upon sixty percent (60%) of secondary sources and other forty percent (40%) on primary sources. By carrying out primary sources 40%

after reviewing secondary research, a better understanding on the current situation and insight into the issue, was gained.

Primary Research 60% Secondary Research

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2.1.1 Primary Research

This type of research will be of great benefit since it will be focused on both qualitative and quantitative issues. It will be addressing specific research issues and through this the author will also be able to have a higher control over how the information is collected.

2.1.1.1 Limitations The limitations that were found during this research are mainly established upon: 1. Expenses: These were mostly incurred in preparing the needed documents for print and to rent/ or buy the equipment needed to record voice or to develop a test experiment of some sort.

2. Time: To be done properly this type of research required the time of development and execution of a research plan, whereas for secondary research it was not required.

3. Outdated data: By the time research is conducted this might become out of date, especially research on such topic, where technology is proposed, since this is always updating.

4. Low Response: One can always forecast to ask certain questions and gather a set amount of answers but this depends on the participants’ willingness whether to take part or not.

In order to carry this research, the tools mentioned below were used.

2.1.2 Online Questionnaires In order to gather feedback about my proposed application, and the public’s view, I emailed online questionnaires to selected people who are in a way or another connected to this particular field which my study is conducting. These included: Social Media enthusiasts, Fashion stylists, Fashion bloggers, Fashion designers and Public Relations Executives.

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Another set of questionnaires were also sent via www.surveymonkey.com, to people who are still likely to be updated about fashion, such as models, fashion enthusiasts, frequent fashion purchasers, fashion photographers and salespersons.

The benefits of distributing online questionnaires as part of my research are mostly: - Fast to develop and complete: no need for printing and good amount of time to spend on the design work. They are “two-thirds shorter to complete� than that of a traditional research method. Whilst for the latter one has to wait for the papers to come back to him/her, in an online environment this is done automatically once it is completed.

- Cheaper to create and send: websites, such as Survey Monkey, are free of charge.

- Quick: they can be analysed any time and the results can be presented in either graphs or tables.

- Easy to use: ninety-percent (90%) of people prefer to participate in an online survey since they can answer the questions liberally in their time which suits them best.

- More authentic: according to market researchers, participants are likely to provide longer and more detailed feedback, for the fact that they feel safe in the anonymous environment of the internet.

- More selective: it allows me to pre-screen participants and collects only the response from those who match my target profile. (Anon., n.d.)

2.1.3 Informal Discussions

As part of the research, discussions in an informal manner, with two store managers of renowned local clothing outlets were set up to further discuss such topic. This was carried out to: have a better understanding whether the sale rates are either increasing or decreasing throughout the years; to evaluate their views on whether virtual mirror would further attract the public; to check whether they would be willing to introduce it into their stores or not (and eventually why not); and whether they think that social media is affecting consumers’ purchase.

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Through conducting these informal discussions it was able to ‘acquire the most transparent feedback possible since the interviewees didn’t feel obliged to answer all pertinent questions.

The participants’ views feeling on the subject helped to understand the formation of one’s opinion whilst from the online results some are more likely to cheat and search the internet before actually answering a particular question’. (Anon., 2009) 2.1.4 Secondary Research

This is the process of information obtained through books and other secondary material, also known as “desk research”. This includes summarization and general reviews of existing material.

As based on the previous ‘Chapter 1 – Literature Review’ this research was required in the preliminary stages in order to determine what’s out there already and what new data is required to be carried out.

2.1.4.1 Limitations

Limitations that were found during this research are mainly established upon: 1. Unreliable information: This can be collected online from authors, publishing information

on

their

thoughts

rather

than

on

the

statistics

and

facts.

2. Too much information: Where many good sources as possible to further improve and support the write up had to be collected, yet keeping in mind not to exceed the word count.

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In order to carry this research, the research tools mentioned below were used.

• Online Papers Online papers were helpful to this dissertation in order to seek what others have already concluded in their research and to improve on what is already tackled.

• Online Journals Online journals were the most used for this dissertation, since the most advancements and existing applications are likely to be first published as online journals rather than published on a book that can be physically touched.

• Video Research Video research, via YouTube, was also of great help since it was more likely to gain knowledge of something which is also visually appealing while informative rather than just something explained through plain text.

• Company Websites Company websites were also used, especially when it comes to the developers of existing virtual mirrors since it’s the most reliable information one can gather.

• Blogs Blogs are especially a good research tool, almost as much as online journals, as one is able to comment on the subject listed and leave his comments based on his/her experience or thoughts.

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2.2 Data Collection

2.2.1 Qualitative and Quantitative Research Methods In this dissertation both qualitative and quantitative research methods were used. Qualitative research was mostly carried out by questionnaires sent to the people that are in a way or another connected to this particular field, since it was done to analyse the individual’s perception of the proposed application. While quantitative research was mostly acquired through statistics & facts related to the subject found online on statistic portals and online journals among others.

2.2.2 Research limitations After sending the questionnaires to a selected audience, the response was very high. Only three out of nine people (3/9) didn’t participate.

39% Participated Didn't Participate 61%

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For the other set amount of questionnaires which were sent to an audience which is still likely to be updated with the latest fashion trends, the response rate was more than fifty percent wise, where twenty-three out of thirty-eight (23/38) participated.

Participated

39%

61%

Didn't Participate

2.3 Conclusion

The aim of this chapter was to present the research methodology used in this dissertation for gathering the relevant information needed. The study was based on an exploratory form. The data collection method was based on both primary and secondary research and both quantitative and qualitative research methods were analysed. Careful attention has been given to create a high validity study.

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3. Findings

This chapter is based upon the knowledge of the subject, upon the feedback received from the general public and from people that might use this application in the near future, such as clothing store managers.

As already discussed in the previous chapter this was carried out on both qualitative and quantitative research, where qualitative research was collected from the questionnaires distributed to a selected audience in relation to this subject, whereas quantitative research was conducted based on the statistics and facts from online websites including different statistic portals.

This chapter starts by representing the first set amount of questionnaires that were distributed and conducted online from the audience in relation to the subject. It then continues on questionnaires conducted from a less related audience, including photographers, fashion designers, sales persons and fashion enthusiasts, which are either still likely to experience the in-store clothing stores or likely to keep updated with different fashion trends.

3.1 Selected People Questionnaire For this section the questionnaire was sent to the nine individuals mentioned below, together with their profession:

Elisha Camilleri – Fashion Designer, Textile Designer and Fashion Illustrator.

Gayle Zerafa Cutajar – Fashion Blogger and Fashion Stylist.

Lara Boffa – Fashion Blogger, Columnist and Writer.

Luke Engerer – Stylist, Creative Director, Image Consultant, Personal Shopper & Marketing and PR Executive.

Pavli Medmedova – Social Media enthusiast and Fashion Stylist.

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Sef Farrugia – Fashion Designer, Textile Designer and Fashion Illustrator.

Shideh Olafsson – Modeling Agency Director, Fashion Marketing Tutor and Producer of an International Fashion Show Runway.

Matthew Attard Navarro – Director & Founder of a Fashion Magazine and Fashion Illustrator.

Daniel Azzopardi – Fashion Blogger.

The first question asked to the above mentioned participants was whether he or she has ever heard of the term of a Virtual Mirror, for which the response was 100% positive. For the second question, when it was asked whether such technology would be useful to the general public or not, a 100% positive response was as well given. Further response was given as follows: According to Luke Engerer and Pavli Medmedova the main benefits of this technology are that it’s easier for the customers and that it will save them time. On the same note, Lara Boffa stated that this will save time especially during busy hours and sales. Gayle Zerafa Cutajar added that one might wear different items of clothing that perhaps would have never thought of wearing whilst according to Sef Farrugia the customer would have a better picture before actually trying the garment on and this may result in not needing as much advice from the sales person. In addition, the response taken from Elisha Camilleri states that this technology will certainly enhance the shopping experience and it will help the customer decide on which item to purchase.

In question three, whether such application would eliminate completely the traditional way of shopping was asked, all the participants answered negatively, and additional response was as follows: Luke Engerer further stated that the traditional way of shopping is about instant gratification, where one can get an opinion, feel the product in his hands, try it on and see how it makes the person feel. Like Luke Engerer, Lara Boffa also argued that there are different aspects that keep the traditional experience of shopping alive, but also added that such application would certainly make it more fun and add something different to it.

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Pavli Medmedova, on the other hand, implied that trying on the actual clothes and going shopping with friends is enjoyable, especially when it comes to buying clothes for a special occasion. Gayle Zerafa Cutajar feels that many people will still be likely to actually try-on the clothes before they purchase anything. On the same wavelength Sef Farrugia agreed that traditional shopping won’t be eliminated completely even though it may diminish the communication between the sales person and the customer, which as we all know a very effective way of sales depend on attitude. Furthermore response by Elisha Camilleri states that it’s a matter of preference because it depends on how much experienced the shopper is: how well they actually know their body, if they still want to check for fit and fabric properties.

For the fourth and final question the participants were asked to give their input on what they would include if a virtual mirror was going to be built on their own needs. The majority of the participants came up with something different such as: - 360o view of outfit chosen.

- Mix & match different outfits simultaneously.

- Style advice or maybe a whole outfit.

- Shoes that go with the chosen style.

- A makeover experience apart from clothes.

- Different ways of wearing the selected garment.

- A total tab to monitor your shopping cart.

3.2 Fashion Enthusiasts and other Questionnaire

For this section the previously mentioned questionnaire was sent to thirty-eight individuals, for which only twenty-four of them filled it out.

For the first question when asking the participants if they have ever heard of a virtual mirror or not, the response was of 46% saying yes while the other 54% said no. In the second question 88% thought that this technology will be useful for the general public while the other 12% P a g e | 18

answered negatively. The third question was about whether this technology will eliminate completely the traditional way of shopping for clothes, for which 38% thought that it will while the other 62% thought that it will not.

For the fourth and final question the participants were asked to give their input of what they would likely to include if a virtual mirror was going to be built on their own want, and the results were as follows: - Professional Branding.

- Stock left to encourage the user to act more fast when it is low in stock.

- Prices of the clothes being tried on, different colours and materials.

- Taking a photo with the selected outfit and maybe a link with social media.

- How to wear the clothing.

- Compatible smartphone app.

- Add to cart feature.

- Filtering of available clothing.

- Search results show in ascending and descending order and maybe from Price low to high or the other way around just as any other online clothing store.

- Complete my look option such as “Complete the look� on Asos, recommended clothes based on your search criteria.

- Makeup, accessories and shoes.

- Good security features.

- Clothes section that matches your skin tone.

- User friendly application with minimal graphics.

- Photo album to keep record of what is bought.

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3.3 Informal Discussions

In order to acquire the most transparent feedback possible, clothing store managers and shop assistants were met in person in order to informally discuss with them the proposed virtual mirror application. The feedback that was needed to be acquired was whether they believe such application will be a success or not and whether there is the need of this technology in today’s busy lifestyle. The persons met were the following: Angele Azzopardi - former TWOC Shop Assistant Bernice Borg - Zara Shop Assistant Michela Said - JB Shop Assistant Undisclosed - Debenhams Shop Assistant Thea Vella - Guess Shop Assistant Rebecca Bonaci - VFG Shop Assistant Undisclosed - Mango Manager Marie Vella - Guess Manager

Whilst carrying out this research with the abovementioned shop assistants, some topics were brought up in order to build up the discussion. By getting an idea on what is their take on sales and whether the clothing stores they work at are generating gains or incurring losses, it was noticed that this all depends on the people’s perception of that particular store the shop assistants work at. For this, fifty percent of the response was that these stores are generating more sales and the other fifty percent said that they are relatively losing sales.

The reasons behind those thinking that they are generating more sales are because: they offer a vast range of clothing; their material is genuine; people are becoming more interested in fashion and their respective outlets they work at are generating more sales from one year to another, which is reflected in the opening of new outlets. Some added that it’s because their customers likes their brand image.

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On the other side of the spectrum, for the other responses, participants attributed the decrease to the economy crisis, bigger competition and the opening of new outlets which they cannot compete with. They also added that people are becoming lazier, so the internet is found useful and more convenient to buy from.

In the second topic it was discussed whether the internet is affecting people how to do their shopping. Hundred percent of the response was positive, where some stated that on the internet one could find a wider selection and cheaper prices, (which is having a huge impact especially on the younger generation), people are getting lazier and one of the assistants, in particular, added that it is also affecting how people think as well.

Moving on to the next topic it was discussed whether incorporating the benefits of both online and in-store would help the clothing stores generate more sales. All of the respondents, except one, argued that it would generate more sales. One participant in particular stated that people will then have the opportunity to pre-order new coming collection of garments. Another respondent said that it depends on the person concerned, since if he or she are likely to buy in-store or online they will continue doing so nonetheless.

Whether a virtual mirror would be beneficial for both the retailer and the customer, was the following question discussed, and here again all the respondents, except one, agreed it would, since the in-store will give the customer a new experience. Two of the respondents added that pre-ordering of clothing would be possible in in-stores, others said that by this incorporation there will be less hassle in the dressing room, one would be able to try-on virtually a complete outfit without the need of undressing and the shop will be more organised and updated. The other respondent was a bit skeptic on this and said that it depends on the individual, whether he or she likes to change the way of shopping.

In these informal discussions it was as well discussed whether this will fasten the process. The response was also of all participants saying yes it will except for one. Stating that, mainly it will be faster because actually trying on clothes will be required only when the clothes look good on you and one won’t miss anything that is available for sale especially in large stores. The other P a g e | 21

respondent stated that this might not be of good use with those who take ages to decide. Whether people are more likely to buy from your shop with a virtual mirror incorporated was further discussed and all the respondents thought that it will surely get the attention of both the usual customers and new customers with a technological, modern and sophisticated look.

Further discussions were on whether incorporating a share button would be of benefit to both the retailer and the customer. Here all of the respondents said that it would, for the reason that the retailer would acquire more brand knowledge because more people would know that one is buying from that particular shop. This will also be beneficial for the customer mostly because other assistance apart from that of shop assistant will be given, including that of friends and relatives connected with the person on social networks. It was as well added that this feature is already happening in a way, since people are taking images of different garments in stores from their smartphones and share them on social networks to acquire feedback from their friends and relatives. In contrast, some added that this wouldn’t be beneficial to the customer if feedback is not given by people with good taste in fashion, thus resulting in obtaining unprofessional assistance. However this sometimes depends on the shopping assistants, since some might be biased in their feedback in order to drive up sales.

The last topic surmised was whether this might result in employing less staff and even though some of the participants were shopping assistants, they had a potential conflict of interest, yet most of them were still realistic enough. Since the shop will be more focused on automation and that this is where the world is heading, they thought that this might happen. Others, who didn’t agree that this would happen, said that the shop will still have to be organised and for those who are still likely to seek professional advice, this will be possible.

Whether sales are increasing or decreasing was also discussed through these informal discussions with managers of two different clothing stores located at The Point in Sliema. Both managers said that sales are increasing; Marie Vella thinks that this is mostly due to the increase of tourism in Malta and events organised at The Point throughout the year, whereas an undisclosed duty manager of Mango store thinks that this is because people are becoming more fashionable. The following topic discusses whether the internet is affecting people’s manner of doing shopping, for which both respondents said that it is. Whether incorporating the benefits of both in-store and P a g e | 22

online experience into a one new experience would generate more sales was also discussed with these managers. Duty manager at Mango thought that it would be a good idea and yes it would surely generate more sales but Ms. Vella was a bit skeptic about this since in her opinion we are a small country and one cannot compare it with other bigger European countries.

These discussions further analyse whether a virtual mirror would be of benefit to both the retailer and the customer where it was agreed by both participants that it will be of benefit since then the process would be faster. In addition, according to the duty manager of Mango, life is becoming more hectic and people want everything right away. According to Marie, she meets a lot of people that doesn't like to be assisted and she thinks that something like this would work with those people, not with everyone though she added, since some seek professional advice provided by the shop assistants. It was then discussed whether the process would be faster, in which Mango’s duty manager agreed that it would be but in contrast, Marie stated that this depends on the person using it, since some decide quickly and others take ages to decide, so this can work both ways in her opinion. Ms. Vella also adds that similar to this is already happening in the UK and through tablets in Eastern Asian countries.

An additional topic was about whether people would be more likely to buy from their shop by incorporating this application. For this both of participants answered that yes they would for the reason that it would immediately get people’s attention.

It was also discussed with both managers whether a share button to social networks is beneficial and both stated that it would be, because apart from having only assistance provided by the shop assistant, people like to also acquire feedback from friends or someone who is acquainted. In the final question it was then discussed whether this would result in employing less staff for which both Mango’s duty manager and Ms. Vella agreed that since this is where the world is heading, this might be the case, so if there would be the availability of a virtual mirror it would automatically result in employing less staff.

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4. Discussion of Findings

After reviewing the relevant literature on the subject and analysing the research findings, this chapter would now discuss the research findings and their implications.

4.1 Discussion on the current statistics of social and digital media

It is clearly shown that technology is always improving and according to statistics carried out by Mist Media, �The Business Landscape is Changing� (MistMediaGroup 2013) (Figure 5), ecommerce is forecasting an increase and it is without doubt that the world is heading towards a more technological flow. In my opinion the world is heading towards automation; such example of automation is the Local ATMs, where almost everything is now possible to be done on this machine without any physical assistance. Also with regards to banking is the online banking, where transfers and account creations are now also possible without the need of visiting the bank physically.

With regards to this, it is in my opinion that people are now more aware of the technology available on the market and by introducing Swipe Virtual Mirror in local clothing stores there is the chance that people make use of it. The reason being that it would be taking the shopping experience a step further, turning it into a fast and convenient way and it would also match well with the current busy lifestyle.

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Figure 5 - Statistics carried out by Mist Media

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4.2 Discussing the questionnaires sent online

In my opinion getting customers back to the stores can easily be done by providing this application in local clothing stores. The response extracted from the questionnaires that were sent randomly to fashion enthusiasts and frequent shoppers shows that more than 50% haven’t heard of this application but almost 90% of these participants still think it would be useful to incorporate such application. In my opinion this response clearly shows that people welcome change and such a new experience would definitely immerse shoppers to enter clothing stores.

When I questioned whether such application would completely eliminate the traditional way of shopping, more than 60% of the respondents argued that it wouldn’t. Since I’m not excluding the fact that some users would still go for the traditional way of shopping, at the same time this is giving the option of using such application to those who seek it. I agree with this response given and believe this application would be of great benefit.

To confirm my beliefs on such application incorporation, another set of questionnaires were sent to selected people in this field. Here the response was almost 100%, where all the participants answered that they had heard of a virtual mirror before, that this would be of great use in today’s lifestyle and all also thinks that this won’t eliminate the traditional way of shopping. This response was of great benefit since people which are more into this field thinks that my application Swipe, would be of great benefit to local clothing stores.

4.3 Discussing the informal discussions

From the first response given here, by that of shopping assistants and clothing stores managers, it shows that sales are done according to the customers’ perception of that selected outlet, since on average the response was half of a sales increase and the other half of a sales decrease. Despite the fact that half of the response was that the sales are increasing, 100% of the response was that such application would be beneficial to clothing stores since it would immerse shoppers to enter the store which would eventually result in more sales. In my opinion, which was also added by the participants during these discussions, such application can work well with those who use this P a g e | 26

system wisely, where with some users this won’t fasten the process since they would still be likely to take ages on deciding the superimposed garment.

During this discussion another interesting point was arisen: that internet is affecting the customer’s shopping methodology, since some in a way are already making use of the features of a virtual mirror. Such example is the incorporation of a share button within Swipe, where users can share the image of the superimposed garment on them in order to acquire feedback from relatives and friends, that in my opinion and also stated by almost all the participants, this would be beneficial to both the customer and retailer since one would have more response from those who are more close to them and for the retailer by having more brand knowledge. Here no one disagreed that such application would decrease staff, since less staff would be needed with such system, which in my opinion is a disappointing fact for those who seek such work, but it’s a fact that we must be faced with, whether we like it or not.

4.4 Conclusion and limitations faced

The responses given in the findings section were mostly done to my expectations where most of the responses were based on my own thoughts on the subject. Such limitations faced in this section were mostly endured by time and response given, since many didn’t answer the questionnaires sent or agreed on meeting me face to face for an informal discussion. Another limitation in my findings was that the responses given via informal discussions were contacted only by store managers who work at The Point in Sliema. Some in fact stated that their sales are increasing due to the fact that organised events are continuously happening in Sliema and that The Point is now known as one of the biggest shopping malls in Malta, which in my opinion is likely to start putting an end to other local clothing stores.

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5. Conclusion

From the research carried out, it was found that people are very keen to try out something new.

When such an innovative idea, such as this incorporation is available, just as any other new experience, shoppers would immerse themselves into this new experience. This would eventually result in more sales increase as already stated by those who already incorporated such system.

Without any doubt, initially it would be definitely expensive to build such application since a lot of programming and features have to be done in order to make a truly viable experience and robust system. At the same time this would be cost effective in the long run.

According to several statistical portals, research shows that people are now more comfortable with automation and the online world. This would definitely be a good initiative within local stores since some customers, in a way, are already making use of such features that the proposed system would offer, such as that of sharing the garment with friends and relatives before actually purchasing it.

Such system incorporation are mostly incorporated within well-known International clothing stores, so unfortunately it won’t be effectively spread around all clothing stores in Malta but mostly within International clothing stores based here.

Unfortunately as I said in the previous chapter the idea of such incorporation is not very well digested with those who love doing this job, case in point shopping assistants, as less staff would be required to run the store.

Regrettably the mentioned virtual mirror wasn’t completed since the timeframe and resources were restricted, but instead a different form of today’s window display was done using Kinect for Xbox where user interaction is required (Figure 6). This project allows passers-by to change the outfit on the mannequin by just swiping their hand rather than just seeing the usual static window display. Through this one can also see multiple garments on one mannequin.

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Figure 6 - Exhibition Concept

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Bibliography Anon., 2009. Informal Discussion. [Online] Available at: http://www.psc-cfp.gc.ca/plcy-pltq/qaqr/appointment-nomination/informal-informelles-eng.htm [Accessed 22 March 2013].

Anon., 2012. State of the Media: The Social Media Report 2012. [Online] Available at: http://www.nielsen.com/us/en/reports/2012/state-of-the-media-the-social-media-report2012.html [Accessed 3 March 2013].

Anon., n.d. 10 Advantages of Online Surveys. [Online] Available at: http://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/articles/10-advantages-of-online-surveys/#.UYq006Jmh8F [Accessed 22 March 2013].

Clayton, S., 2011. Microsoft is Imagining a NUI future. [Online] Available at: http://blogs.technet.com/b/microsoft_blog/archive/2011/01/26/microsoft-is-imagining-a-nuifuture-natural-user-interface.aspx [Accessed 9 February 2013].

Corc, K., 10. Online Shopping Research Paper. [Online] Available at: http://onlineshoppingpaper.blogspot.com/ [Accessed 30 January 2013].

Fretwell, L., 2012. CiscoŽ StyleMe™ Virtual Fashion Mirror Pilot a Success for John Lewis. [image online] Available at: http://blogs.cisco.com/tag/styleme/ [Accessed 11 January 2013].

Kril, J., n.d. Statistics and Facts about Online Shopping. [Online] Available at: http://www.statista.com/topics/871/online-shopping/ [Accessed 15 January 2013].

Mathieson, R., 2010. The On-Demand Brand - 10 Rules for Digital Marketing Success in an Anytime, Everywhere World. Broadway, New York, United States of America: Amacom.

MistMedia, 2013. Youtube. [Online] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Slb5x5fixk4 [Accessed 23 May 2013].

Van Domelen, D., 2012. Play your way to better health. [Image Online] Available at: http://phresearchaction.blogspot.com/2012/11/play-your-way-to-better-health-dane-van.html [Accessed 13 January 2013].

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Appendices

1. Statistics by Mist Media

During a local TV programme, Statistics on Social and Digital Media Revolution were being shown by means of a video. Thus I found these relevant to my research and after requesting the link for the video I did a poster showcasing some of the statistics mentioned in the video.

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2. Surveys

Survey sent to selected people

Hi, I am Matthew Camilleri, reading a BA Hons in Interactive Media and Graphic Design at the Institute of Art & Design and I am writing my dissertation on how to get customers back to the stores by creating a fast virtual dressing room application for clothing stores.

In other words I strive to create a Virtual Mirror in local clothing stores in order to make the whole process faster and engaging to the customer thus creating a whole new experience.

A Virtual Mirror would allow the customer to superimpose a garment without getting undressed.

Since your position in this sector is relevant to what I am writing, I would appreciate your participation in a short survey to include it with the information that I am gathering:

Have you ever heard of a Virtual Mirror?

Yes ☐ No ☐

Do you think such technology would be useful for the general public?

Yes ☐ No ☐ If No, why?

Click here to enter text.

If Yes, what will be such benefits?

Click here to enter text.

Do you think such application would completely eliminate the traditional experience of shopping?

Yes ☐ No ☐ If No, why?

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Click here to enter text.

If Yes, why?

Click here to enter text.

If you had to design the Virtual Mirror yourself, what features would you include?

Click here to enter text.

Thank you for your time and response.

The survey sent to the general public was pretty much the same except for the first explanatory part. The following was removed:

“Since your position in this sector is relevant to what I am writing, I would appreciate your participation in a short survey to include it with the information that I am gathering�

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The following is the response gathered from the questionnaire sent to selected people:

Elisha Camilleri - Fashion Designer Gayle Zerafa Cutajar - Fashion Stylist Lara Boffa - Blogger, Columnist and Writer Luke Engerer - Stylist, Creative Director, Image Consultant, Personal Shopper, Marketing & PR Executive Pavli Medmedova - Social Media enthusiast and Fashion Stylist Sef Farrugia - Fashion Designer

Have you ever heard of a Virtual Mirror?

Elisha Gayle Lara Luke Pavli Sef

Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

Do you think such technology would be useful for the general public?

Elisha Gayle Lara Luke Pavli Sef

Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Why? Elisha This type of technology may enhance the shopping experience. It does help the customer decide on which item to purchase.

Gayle I believe it would make it much easier on the wearer to try on clothes and see if a garment suits them without having to go through the hassle of the changing rooms or waiting in line. Also, I think that the virtual mirror would help people to ‘try’ on different items of clothing that perhaps they would have never thought of wearing.

Lara

It would save time especially during busy hours and sales.

Luke

It’s easier and saves some time.

Pavli

I see the main benefit in saving time of customers. Trying clothes will be faster.

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Sef

The customer would have a clearer picture of the whole outfit before even trying it on.

This may also help with the actual decision of buying that specific item or outfit. It can also save the sales person time and perhaps not needing as much advice from the sales person.

Do you think such application would completely eliminate the traditional experience of shopping?

Elisha Gayle Lara Luke Pavli Sef

No No No No No No Why? Elisha It is a matter of preference since it depends on how experienced the shopper is i.e. how well they know their body.

Also the experience of shopping with the help of a virtual mirror may be enhanced during the process of decision making.

However when deciding on the final garment, a customer would still need to check for fit and fabric properties. This will be done by trying on the actual garments.

Gayle

I don’t think it will eliminate the experience of shopping because I believe that if people lack a sense of style or know-how this will not change that, so they would still need a personal shopper/stylist such as myself. And like online shopping, people still want to try on the clothes. I meet a lot of people who still do not shop online for the simple reason that they want to try on clothes and see the exact fit.

Lara

I think there are other aspects that keep the traditional experience of shopping alive. It would certainly make it more fun and add something different to it.

Luke

Traditional shopping is about instant gratification. Getting an opinion, feel the product in your hands, trying it on and how it makes you feel.

There are ways to combine the two.

Pavli

I don’t think it will eliminate the traditional experience because for us women trying clothes and going shopping with friends is fun and enjoyable. Especially when it comes to buying clothes and dresses for a very important occasion.

Sef

It wouldn’t eliminate the whole experience, but it may diminish the communication in between the sales person and the customer, which as we all know is a very effective way P a g e | 36

of selling if the sales person is good. This may make the customer not ask for anyone else’s advice and so it may work both ways it may help but it could come in the way.

If you had to design the Virtual Mirrors yourself, what features would you include?

Elisha Perhaps a sort of virtual personal shopper which will help the customer pick garments

that will complement their shape Gayle I will not only add clothing items but I would also add different hairstyles, makeup and

nails. So that I would give the person an experience of a makeover. This will help people not to be afraid to take risks and see whether a certain colour suits them without having the commitment. With all these features I will include in the virtual mirror it will push people to make a change and take more risks to better themselves.

Lara

I would include options that allow the user to ‘virtually’ try a garment with other pieces. The mirror would almost give style advice as to what can be worn with the particular item in question.

Luke

1. Photo Upload or Body Scan 2. 360o view 3. Add Accessories

Pavli

The most important would be 360 view. And maybe to be able to choose type of shoes to go with that particular new dress or piece of attire. I don’t know how complex are you thinking but maybe to be able to style whole outfit?

Sef

1. different ways of wearing that specific product 2. different ways of styling the product 3. suggestions on with what you could pair the product chosen 4. a total tab to tell you how much it all costs

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3. Informal Discussions

Points discussed with the participants:

Compared to previous years, in your opinion are sales increasing or decreasing?

If decreasing, why do you think this is happening?

Do you think that Internet is affecting the public when buying clothes?

Since a lot of people are choosing the alternative to buy clothing online, do you think that incorporating the benefits of both online and in-store into one new experience would result in more sales?

A Virtual Mirror would allow the customer to superimpose a garment without getting undressed.

Do you think a virtual mirror would be of great benefit for in-stores?

Do you think that such application would make the process faster for the customers?

With a virtual mirror, do you think customers would be more likely to buy clothes from your clothing store?

Having a share button within the virtual mirror, meaning having the option of sharing the outfit before purchasing it, do you think would be of good use for both the customer and retailer?

If no, do you think that feedback given from relatives or friends apart from that of sales assistants would be of great benefit for the customer?

Do you think that such technology could decrease the amount of staff needed and much of the work done by sales assistants?

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Transcripts

Angele Azzopardi - former TWOC Shopping Assistant I think sales are decreasing because people are buying more from the internet nowadays, which is easier for them and I think there is also economy crisis to it as well.

I think a virtual mirror would be of great benefit to local clothing stores in Malta.

A share button would be also beneficial for those people who would like also the feedback from their friends apart from just the sales assistants, especially amongst the youngsters.

I think it would be of benefit mostly to the customers since it will give them a new experience when shopping for clothes.

It might be expensive to buy the virtual mirror, but this will only be faced upon purchasing so it's inexpensive in the long run.

The disadvantage of this to those who love this job is mostly that less people are then required but beneficial on the retailer since their expenses are less and for the customer there will be the possibility to pre-order clothing that aren’t available in-store at the moment.

Bernice Borg - Zara Shopping Assistant Increasing, I'm not in a position to say why they are but they are increasing from one year to another. The internet is affecting a lot the people since there one can find clothes cheaper and similar to what we offer.

I don't think that combining the in-store experience with the online will generate more sales because if you're at home and you're likely to press that button to buy something, whereas the in-store one still have to visit the place and as a price it's still the same so one won't be affected to it because it all depends on that in my opinion.

From my perspective I think a virtual mirror would be of benefit to both customers and retailers since clothes doesn't need to be taken out from there place every time someone wants to try something out, there will be less work to it for me it's better as long it won't be depending everything on the virtual mirror itself.

I think it will make the process faster since one won't find any queues to try something out, faster, trying out what seems better on you only and one won’t miss anything that there's available especially in a large store such as Zara.

With a virtual mirror in-store I think it will attract more people since the shop will have that technological, sophisticated and modern look.

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with a share button it would be beneficial to both retailers and customers since a retailer will be benefiting from free advertising and for the customer since many like to share what are they doing and others opinion on social networks since different opinions are given from those which knows them more than the shopping assistants as long their friends have good taste in clothing.

As a retailer some need to send reports on their clothing, if the clothing fits the customers well etc... and with this share button it will serve as a review as well, which this will definitely help the retailer be updated with their clothing range.

Unfortunately for people like myself I think it will eventually result in employing less people since there won't be the need of giving assistance and putting clothes back in their space.

Michela Said - JB Shopping Assistant Decreasing because of the economy crisis. I think people are affected by the internet since most of their ideas come from there and even it’s even affecting them in the way they think in my opinion. I think by combining both the in-store and online it will be of beneficial and by incorporating a virtual mirror in particular it will be good as well since superimposing a garment before making a purchase is always better with regards to online and less hassle with regards to in-store.

It would make the process faster and customers will be more likely to buy from your store since you will be providing them a new experience, encouraging them more to enter in your store. with having the option to share the outfits with relative or friends would be of beneficial since for those who like different opinion apart of that given from the sales assistant is now possible, but the assistant would provide more professional advice so it depends on the person concerned because opinion from an assistant might be also biased to sales drive and a relative or friend is more likely to give you advice based on your personality and look but in the same time they might be incompetent.

I think this will decrease the workload on shopping assistants since we are moving forward to everything that is based upon automation.

Debenhams Shopping Assistant - Unknown I think sales are increasing, because here in particular people like our brand and we offer a vast range of sizes and we never had people complaining about the material of the garments we offer, as result of this we also opened another store in the heart of Paola.

I think the internet effects people a lot especially the younger generation which most of them buy from our online stores as well.

I think by combining both the benefits of online and in-store this will generate more sales since people will have the opportunity then to pre-order clothes which otherwise they wouldn't have noticed if it was going to be available.

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I think a virtual mirror would be of benefit since then one will be able to try a complete outfit virtually without the need of undressing. The process will be a lot faster and with this app people will be more likely to enter our store for sure.

A share button will also be of benefit to us since customers are already doing this with their tablets and mobiles, especially with the younger generation posting everything on Facebook to get their friends feedback, which will helps them more making up their mind, apart from the sales assistants.

I don't think it will decrease the amount of staff needed because it all depends on the customer's approach on the virtual mirror, I think there will still be the need of shopping assistance especially with those who are likely to seek for it, and not every customer is the same.

Mango Manager Increasing because people are becoming more fashionable, the internet in my opinion is also effecting the customer when buying clothing and by combining both the in-store and online experience it will result in more sales.

I think a virtual mirror will be of benefit since the process is a lot faster and life is becoming more hectic, people want everything right away. By incorporating a virtual mirror in my opinion it will get people's attention and by this it will generate more sales. a share button would also be of good use since people will have the option to seek their online friends apart from the assistance of the shopping assistant itself. and in my opinion this will result in less staff needed to run the store

Marie Vella - Guess Manager Increasing as a whole, the tourism factor and planned events helped a lot, generated more sales. I'm a bit skeptic about combining both the experiences into one experience since we are a small country, one cannot compare it with other European countries but in the long run this might be the case. I think a virtual mirror will be of benefit since i meet a lot of people that doesn't like to be assisted and something like this would work with those people, not with everyone though since some seek professional advice provided by the store assistants.

I think the process will be faster but as I said it depends on the person. since some decide quickly what looks good and bad on them and some take ages to decide, this can work both ways, depends on the character of the person.

I think by having a share button again here this will work with some people since some like to seek other's opinion rather than just the opinion of the assistant.

I think it will effect on the employee yes, It's where the world is headed so if there will be the availability of a virtual mirror in a shop it will automatically result in employing less employees, such Asian countries P a g e | 41

are already making use of this service on their IPADs if I’m not mistaken in order to get a better understanding of what goes with what.

Rebecca Bonaci - VFG Shopping Assistant Decreasing because there's is more competition, a lot of more shops are opening and people tend to buy from selective shops instead of different shops.

I think yes the internet is affecting how people buy clothes because people are lazy and on the internet one would find it cheaper.

I think yes it will generate more sales if both experiences are combined together.

A virtual mirror would of benefit since it's a new experience for the customer, one would enjoy this and it will make the process faster although before making a purchase one would still change in order to feel the fit. a share button would be of great benefit yes because some people are likely to seek others opinion who might know them more than we do, someone who knows their style and personality, some are also taking images and share it on social networks already to seek others opinion so it will surely be of benefit.

Unfortunately yes it will decrease the amount of staff needed.

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4. Research

During my research I came across Ray Ban’s online virtual mirror (figure 8), which allows you to superimpose 3D Glasses with augmented reality. I found this very enjoyable and more fun to go through the selection of glasses available.

Figure 7 - Ray Ban online virtual mirror

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Moreover classmate Graziella Delceppo informed me that this virtual mirror is available outside Ray Ban’s UK store (figure 9) too. She had tried it herself and found it very useful and enjoyable to use during her visit earlier this year.

Figure 8 - Ray Ban virtual mirror outside their store in London UK

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5. Development of Final Project

Pre Application Idea

Before submitting the Statement of Intent I started storyboarding the user interface of the system, which at the time I had in mind to create, and which I named VD Room (Standing for Virtual Dressing Room). i.

Interface for a new user who would like to search for clothes based on his/her measurements.

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ii.

Interface for a new user who would like to search for clothes and superimpose them on a desired avatar.

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iii.

Interface for an already-registered user.

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iv.

The All-in-one interface.

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Logo Design

Rather than the previous logo shown on section 1 Pre Application Idea, I wanted to create a more compact, fresher and modern-looking logo to be suitable for such application.

I started off my project by designing an appropriate logo (figure 10) for my proposed virtual mirror. Here I wanted to create a logo which goes hand in hand with the application. A logo that can be freely associated with a clothing store and that is fresh. After some hand-drawn and digitally-illustrated sketches I decided to make use of a hanger since it’s the first image that comes to my mind when thinking of a clothing store.

i.

Inspirational Logos

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ii.

Sketches

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iii.

Sketches using Illustrator

iv.

Final Logo

Figure 9 - Swipe Logo

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Storyboarding I created two different storyboards for two videos to promote my application. One which will be available to download on tablets (Mobile App Promo) and another one that it will be available in-store (In-store promo). The following are the sketched storyboards created for these promos. i.

Mobile App Promo storyboard

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ii.

In-store virtual mirror promo storyboard

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Animatics From the storyboards created, two animatics were then created for each promo, in order to have a better understanding of the timing of each scene.

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User Interfaces

Two different user-interfaces were then created: one for a physical clothing store which lets you superimpose a 3D garment for the proposed application; and another one for a tablet application which simply lets you create an avatar based on your measurements in order to show the outfit on before checkout.

i.

Mobile App Interface

The user interface shown above was done before I came up with the finalised logo so colours were changed accordingly.

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ii.

In-store Virtual Mirror Interface

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Promotional Video A promotional video of Swipe Virtual Mirror which was filmed in a local clothing store Twenty2 in Birkirkara, was also created as part of the final project. Here I tried to make swipe look more real than just pen and paper. This was done on a very tight budget and timeframe so I must say that this could have been much better. Before I was granted the permission to shoot this into an actual clothing store, I first shot the promo inside my grandmother’s house. Before the actual shooting I also prepared a storyboard and an animatic in order to have a better idea of what to shoot.

These can be viewed on the following links: 1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=KHz860VO6ao 2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=pf95rAlicIE

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Brand Book I have also designed a brand book to be installed along with the window display. This was created in order to better explain the Swipe application, the logo usage, its advertising and the interface of the proposed virtual mirror application available both in-store and on tablets.

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Blog An ongoing process of this dissertation project was being published online on a blog (Wordpress.com). Here paper updates, installation progress and research were uploaded accordingly.

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Window Display Installation Unfortunately the proposed virtual mirror wasn’t complete due to lack of time and resources.

Instead, a window display installation was created. The idea being that of a concept incorporating virtual mirror (Swipe) to be installed outside shops, where outfits can be changed on the mannequin by the viewer via a Swipe gesture.

i.

XBOX and Kinect

In order to create this concept, the usage of the Kinect came to mind. This is a motion sensing input device by Microsoft for the Xbox 360 video game console. Using this would eliminate the actual controller.

Since I had both the XBOX and Kinect at home, I started off by setting up the Kinect with the XBOX. After all the required calibration done, I tried to operate the Windows Media Center as I thought that only a presentation running with the outfits’ images was required. This was not the case so I did some research of available programs on the internet that function the way I intended and which work through the slides of a presentation via a hand gesture or a swipe.

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ii.

Kinemote

One of the applications found online was Kinemote since this lets you use your hand as a controller instead of the mouse. Once again I thought that by downloading this software this would let me change some gestures according to my desired needs but unfortunately after downloading it, this wasn’t the case and it wasn’t very responsive as well.

Image Source - http://www.ubergizmo.com/2011/04/kinemote-kinect/

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iii.

Win & I and Air Presenter by Evoluce

Another two software packages available for download, against a small fee, were Win & I and Air Presenter. Before I did actually download, I read some of their features and viewed their promotional videos available on their website and it was actually clear that they weren’t going to be of help with my project since they won’t let you control the presentation via a swipe gesture but instead one have to drag his hand on a selected button or area and wait for a few seconds to go to the next image, slide or page.

1. Image Source (Left) - http://www.evoluce.com/kinect-for-windows-software.htm 2. Image Source (Right) - http://www.openpr.com/news/154098/Array.html iv.

OpenNI and Kinect SDK

A suggestion by a former B.A. Student in Interactive Media and Graphic Design, Keith Spiteri Kritsky, was installing OpenNI and Kinect SDK. According to him, there are loads of available ready-made programs (samples) which can be manipulated easily to my needs.

1. Image Source (Left) - http://tangochen.com/blog/?paged=2 2. Image Source (Right) - http://www.kinecthacks.com/guides/install-openni-on-your-pc/

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v.

Other Suggestions

I also met Keith in person for more information and suggestions that he wanted to put forward.

What he suggested was to uninstall all the files that were downloaded earlier, including SDK Documentation (Kinect for Windows) & any drivers related to that and install the Microsoft’s SDK for Kinect. On his part he thought that it was much more straight forward and easy to implement. He also suggested that I should make a plan B: using HTML5, by creating a Slideshow presentation with a set of PNG images and a background video of a shopping store environment since HTML5 allows you to do so. He also added that this could be possible using Flash to make a slideshow presentation by a click and drag from image to another, synchronised with Kinect. He even suggested I should speak to an MCAST ICT lecturer Silvio Nocilla. Since he practically teaches it, he would help me further.

I went to Paola to meet lecturer Nocilla and on the way to his staffroom I met another teacher Gerrard Said, who is a former lecturer of mine, who used to lecture about programming. I explained in brief the problem and he suggested that I should install Unity 3D, since according to him this will overcome my problem. Unity 3D is the ultimate tool for video game development, architectural visualizations, and interactive media installations.

I installed all the required software including Unity, a plugin and an SDK file (Zigfu Browser Plugin & ZDK for Unity3D – Trial 1.1). I run sample Zigfu applications found on Unity that uses Kinect, and they worked perfectly. The only thing needed to be implemented was to install another OpenNI version since some of the programs worked perfectly with my installed OpenNI didn’t, so I had to install another version.

After having several meetings with the lecturer discussing other problems, funnily enough it turned out that we needed to use a swipe script code to overcome the problems we were facing.

One of the problems that we needed to fix was the sensitivity of the gesture since by just a one swipe gesture, multiple outfits were shown but again these were fixed. Mr. Said became more familiar with it and online forums and blogs were found very helpful too.

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Image Source - http://www.techdrivein.com/2012/11/unity-4-released-adds-ability-to.html

vi.

Projecting the Outfits on a Mannequin

After exporting an executable file of this in Unity, it was time to show them on a projector and one of the drawbacks found were that the images were showing small. So what I did here is, I changed the images on Unity to landscape view in order to project them larger, then of course I had to project portrait rather than landscape so here I had to rotate the projector 90O rather than projecting the usual landscape.

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vii.

3D Logo Hanger

An actual 3D logo was also created during this project to be showcased along with this Thesis’ Final projection. This was made possible thanks Joe from Josie’s Silencers. In addition I also made available, the brand book mentioned earlier in the branding section which was available to look through.

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viii.

Mannequin

For this project a mannequin was needed too. This was possible thanks to Luke Engerer, the owner of a local clothing store, who gently lent me a mannequin as usually it costs 20 euros per day just to rent.

Suki, as named by Luke, was lent to me for a long period of time in order to make use of it during testing and for the final installation.

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ix.

Banner

Also as part of the installation, a banner was designed and ordered online, also to be featured during the Installation.

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x.

Testing

Before actually exhibiting the interactive installation at the end-of-year exhibition “Revolution�, I wanted to make sure that the system works correctly so I first tested it in class.

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xi.

Business Cards

I have also created business cards in a form of a clothing tag to be available for the general public during the installation.

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