Sizing Up Shopping in Web3 and the Metaverse

The past 20 years has given way to an astronomical rise in online fashion consumerism which has completely revolutionized the fashion industry. Just as well as how we buy the clothes we wear everyday. Looking forward, the next 20 years with the integration of Web3 and the metaverse in conjunction with virtual and augmented reality technology; we could see an even greater cataclysmic change in how parcels are shopped for and distributed directly to the consumer.  

So you, the consumer, need a new fall coat, but shopping, frankly, can be a bad time. There’s dealing with the traffic to the mall, or the aimless wandering around a parking structure looking for that yellow Hummer you swore you parked near?  

Or my least favorite, feeling judged by snooty high end designer retail staff. Especially one giving you the third degree because you want to try something on in the fitting rooms.

Relax Chlarissa, I’m not trying to steal ‘the fall collection’ Mirabelle topcoat in Italian wool-cashmere. I just want to see if it makes me look boxy or FOXY! It’s a simple question. 

Shopping in Web3 has some issues.

Thanks to technological innovations, you can simply order that Mirabelle topcoat in Italian wool-cashmere. It will be at your door in a couple of days. Nixing all of the comings and goings, wheelings and dealings involved with traditional brick and mortar shopping Amazing, right? What an age to be alive, how could life get any better, right? WRONG! 

The Mirabelle topcoat in Italian wool-cashmere that looked so effortlessly drapey and casual on the model in the catalog photos does not in fact make you look FOXY. It makes you look very BOXY! It’s not the dressed up casual style you were hoping for. Instead you look like you’re on your way to a wake, or an orthodox bar/bat mitzvah. 

Returning this jacket you already paid so much money for, and waiting a week to receive in the mail, is time consuming and wasteful. How could this be avoided? 

READ: 🔒Milan Fashion Week🔒

Luckily, there are possible solutions.

Besides going back to a brick and mortar location, moving forward we will have more eloquent solutions. VR tech will allow us to insert a 3D scan of ourselves to the exact measurement while shopping in Web3. According to CB Insights, companies like 3DLook have already created software that utilizes deep learning-based 3D body scanning technology. This tech has the ability to register 100 data points of a person’s physique. In other terms, we will virtually be able to try on clothing that has also been digitally rendered to the exact specification of the designer. Just like dressing up a ‘sim’ on your old PS2, you will now be able to dress up a 3D image of yourself. 

Without leaving our homes we can see how certain clothes fit on our bodies. Whether the clothes hang off our shoulders (post-grunge revival chic is SOOO IN, I think) or if they are slim through the waist? How certain materials reflect in the light or even possibly if they make a sound when they move. We could also see how certain colors and pigments on clothes compliment our features. Or how they distract or clash with a given complexion or hair color.

Buying clothes online without trying them on is like buying food from the grocery store that you’ve never tasted. Barely anyone’s body is similar or alike, so how can we blindly trust an antiquated 5-size range unit of sizing?

Here’s what needs to change.

Small, medium, large or extra large are words with very little solid sanctified meaning. They are incredibly variable from make to make and designer to designer. With the advent of Web3 and VR tech direct-to-consumer fashion could be more efficient and effective to consumer happiness. Additionally, cut down on wasted resources and logistical manpower it takes to ship a sweater to someone who doesn’t know that they should’ve sized up in regards to the new spring collection’s french inspired knitwear. 

Not only will Web3 VR cut down on logistical waste and upset customers, but it would increase consumer confidence exorbitantly. Imagine having the ability to literally see what you’re getting, in a digital space, on your own body before you buy it? 

The more apprehensive consumer would be willing to leave the brick and mortar way of buying clothes and more readily enter the marketplace of e-commerce. Potentially increasing the consumer base to older consumer bases untouched by current E-commerce platforms.

Virtusize, a Japanese based company that boasts Balenciaga and Lands end among its clients, claims neutralizing the apprehension around size and fit, it can raise “average order values by 20%”, and “lower return rates by 30%”. Virtusize plans to accomplish this by allowing shoppers to measure the clothes in their closet and inputting that information into a specialized profile, or by correlating past purchases and specific brands’ sizing standards, reports CB Insights.

These technological innovations from companies like True Fit, Virtusize as well as startups: 3DLook, Perfitly, Drapr, and Zeekit, could revolutionize the fashion industry in ways only previously dreamed of in regards to market growth and maximum profit in the market. 

Needless to say, shopping in Web3 and the metaverse is destined to change. It's only a matter of time that this new technology is integrated into the life of the everyday consumer.

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