Retail technology innovation of the week: Eileen Fisher taps new Veesual virtual try-on tool
Retail Technology Innovation of the Week is a new series brought to you by RTIH and sponsored by 3D Cloud by Marxent, highlighting stand out deployments, launches, and initiatives by retailers and tech suppliers.
Every week, we will showcase forward thinking tech plays that have impressed our Editor and the Retail Technology Innovations Report judging panel, in the run up to the publication of the 2024 report in April.
So far, we’ve flagged up sterling work being done by the likes of Ocado Retail, Decathlon, Lacoste, Downtown Spirits, TalkShopLive, Huck’s, Rovertown, Wing, Nobody’s Child, IKI, Pixevia, Walmart, A.L.C., Archive, Therabody, Outform, Kingfisher, PMC, Boots UK, Ocula Technologies, Grace O'Malley Irish Whiskey, Metacask, Ikea, Carrefour Belgium, Matalan, and McDonald’s.
And this week we’re focusing on Veesual, a Paris-based AI powered virtual try-on platform for the fashion industry that recently announced the closing of a $7.5 million dollar seed round led by AVP (AXA Venture Partners) and Techstars.
The investment will accelerate the company’s plans to expand into the US market by opening its first office there, recruiting senior talent, and enhancing its current product offering for American apparel companies.
A cornerstone of this expansion is a new partnership with women’s fashion brand Eileen Fisher.
This will see Veesual’s virtual try-on technology integrated into the latter’s online shopping experience.
"We are thrilled to be the first US brand to partner with Veesual on this innovative new virtual try-on tool,” says Blair Silverman, Vice President of E-commerce at Eileen Fisher.
“We are committed to inclusivity, designing clothes that cater to every body shape. Navigating online shopping poses challenges, particularly in predicting how garments fit diverse body types.”
“Our collaboration with Veesual addresses these challenges head-on and we are proud to be launching a tool that is sure to be a new standard for e-commerce.”
"We are proud to invest in Veesual, in order to accelerate its commercial roll-out and pursue its technological developments, as well as its international expansion," says François Robinet, Managing Partner at AVP.
"They have demonstrated a strong ability to execute and understand market challenges by offering fashion brands solutions to optimise their customer experience. With a presence on both sides of the Atlantic, AVP's teams will be able to support Veesual in the next stages of its development."
Veesual will open its first US office in New York in 2025. In addition to e-commerce, it aims to create value for brands by displaying generated images on their acquisition and retargeting channels.
“The global fashion ecosystem is undergoing a seismic shift right now. The industry is increasingly focused on sustainable production, a better, more relevant buying experience and upcycling as a new standard,” says Veesual Co-Founder and CEO, Maxime Patte.
“We’re meeting those changes by drastically improving how shoppers buy online which creates a more inclusive retail experience while also improving fit and reducing waste.”
“This fundraise is critical for our plans as we scale in the United States with brands who are pioneering the augmented shopping experience. We anticipate significant growth in 2024 and beyond.”
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