CRYSTAL.AURELIA.LIN

Canvas is a 5-month personal project to reinvent the fitting room.  The Canvas Kit changes a fitting room into a social photo booth with proper privacy.  Social media marketing for retailers; real models for real shoppers. 

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Canvas re-centers fashion away from self-defeating validation and unattainable norms.  Retailers appreciate that it uses the shopper's phone to integrate local retail with social media.

Users connect with their phones via bluetooth or docking station. Configurable kit offers minimal installation to full setup with two cameras, energy efficient LED lighting and built‐in wifi.                

Cost is more than reasonable to retailers ($500 - $1000). 

Photography is self-service and in users' control, offering 360-degree photos and videos.  Advance versions offer different lighting types, e.g. ambient, directional, dim, or flash.

I built a functional prototype to tackle the project's two biggest challenges:  

• taking full-body shots in limited space
• running all necessary software on users' phones.  

Two programmable cameras (Sony DSC‐QX10/W), a stand, a wifi-router and an iPhone6 Plus were used.  I developed software running on the phone that communicated with the two cameras and stitched the photos together for a seamless body shot.  Though it finally worked, speed of the software still needs improvement.

Mobile UI is kept simple.  Colors and themes were chosen to appeal to women age 13-25, its initial target user segment.  When docked to a photo station, the app functions as a photo booth.  When undocked, it is a fashion social media app.

I first started with wireframes and then iteratively created mockups to show retailers near Union Square in San Francisco.  Feedback was generally very positive.

The Process

Observing and talking to a wide variety of retails and shoppers in the surrounding vicinity revealed frustrations that were congruent with my hunch that something was broken with the fitting experience.

• disconnect between physical and online
• opportunities for social media promotion
• better use of space in stores
• more access to instant feedback to drive buying decisions
• online shoppers often didn't buy to avoid hassle of returning

For shoppers at physical stores, when asked what should be improved about the fitting room experience, responses received were (i) no waiting, (ii) easier ways to seek opinions, (iii) 360 degree views, (iv) photo-confirmation, (v) bigger rooms and (vi) control over lighting.

For online shoppers, the top requests were (i) more feedback and reviews from others with similar body shapes, (ii) more personalized fashion editorials, (iii) photos and videos that look like the real product and (iv) make returns easier.

Mapping out the flow of fashion retail emphasized the new role of social media photography. Influencers such as fashion bloggers and tastemakers have began to produce a significant impact in driving online sales and store visits.

Combining social media photography with the fitting room addresses some of the most frustrating bottlenecks in fashion retail (denoted by the pink dots above). Technology helps democratize the benefits of fashion photography to "everyday models" in all shapes and sizes. If everyone modeled for everyone else, the benefits can be far reaching. 

Shoppers get to share and see others like them. Store brands would get highly engaging crowdsourced content, creating a win-win situation for the brand, physical store and customers. This can connect the divide between the online and the physical experience. 

Two large challenges still remained: privacy concerns and photography in limited space. See Prototype section above for the proposed solution.