Nordstrom tests smart fitting rooms

Using software from eBay, Nordstrom is testing interactive "smart mirrors" in fitting rooms that provide shoppers with access to in-store inventory information, product recommendations and other data typical of web shopping.

The mirrors are being tested this December in its Seattle Southcenter Valley Fair and San Jose locations.

Shoppers enter the dressing room with items found on the selling floor and see what appears to be an ordinary full-length mirror. Picking up a barcode scanner and scanning the items activates the mirror for touch-screen and interactive display. Much like web browsing, the shopper can see different sizes, colors and styles available in the location related to their items. They may also see complementary items suggested by Nordstrom's stylists, such as shoes or a handbag to match a dress. Product reviews are also viewable.

Shoppers can then request that staff members bring a desired item. Clerks get an alert on their tablet that a shopper wants help and their return messages appear in the shopper's mirror.

"The way customers shop for clothes has evolved," Jamie Nordstrom, Nordstrom's head of stores and former leader of its Nordstrom Direct digital business, told Fortune. "How do we take all the information that's available to customers while they're sitting on the couch at home browsing and add that to the dressing rooms, so it's the best of both worlds?"

Steve Yankovich, VP of innovation and new ventures at eBay, told Internet Retailer that it's possible to use an RFID reader to collect the product information automatically as the customer enters the dressing room, skipping the bar code scanner. The system could also connect to a retailer's customer relationship management database so suggestions become personalized for each shopper based on previous purchases and other information. Mr. Yankovich said, "The software can be dynamically changed based on what works."

Nordstrom's test will explore how shoppers and associates are interacting with the mirror before determining what other functions to add, such as sharing online.

Rebecca Minkoff and Kate Spade have also recently worked with eBay's software to implement touchscreen-based shopping assistants in their boutiques.

In Rebecca Minkoff's New York City flagship, shoppers have options to add items they have tried on to their personal profiles to receive curated suggestions from stylists based on their picks. They also can send any item directly to checkout and receive a digital receipt. A separate massive digital touchscreen wall on the selling floor enables shoppers to see Rebecca Minkoff's recent runway shows and to request one-one-one fitting room sessions or drinks.

Bloomingdale's recently equipped with its fitting rooms with wall-mounted iPads to achieve some of the same tasks.

• Nordstrom taps eBay's tech to build fitting room of the future - Fortune
• Nordstrom tests web-connected digital mirrors in store dressing rooms - Internet Retailer
• EBay's Plan to Reinvent Retail Shopping With Magic Mirrors - Wired
• eBay Inc., Rebecca Minkoff Deliver Next-Generation Shopping - eBay