Mirror, mirror on the wall: how Chinese start-ups plan to change the way shoppers try on clothes

With offline retailers struggling for shoppers’ attention in a world of digital distractions, some tech companies are betting there is one thing young shoppers won’t get tired of looking at – themselves.

While shopping offline has its advantages, like being able to try on an outfit to see if it fits or applying lipstick to make sure it match your skin tone, there are downsides. Despite the overwhelming choice of products on display, shoppers have time limits and often can only try on several outfits or make-up products before needing to make a decision to purchase or not.

To make the offline shopping experience more interactive at a time when “showrooming” – where shoppers browse offline but purchase online – is prevalent, companies like Shanghai-based Haomaiyi and Hong Kong start-up Actimirror are developing mirrors that double as hi-tech displays with touch screens and even augmented reality features to provide personalised recommendations to shoppers, and in return helping stores increase sales.

“People spend 11 hours a day looking at screens on their computers, phones, even televisions, and it’s just too much information. They start filtering out screens in their environment at a mall, they don’t look at it,” said Victor Ruiz-Sanchez, chief executive of Actimirror.

“We chose to do mirrors because looking in a mirror is instinctive, you’ll never filter out your own reflection.”