Dynamic Imaging: The Most Important of Apparel Industry Trends

By: LiquidPixels | June 23, 2021 | 7 Min Read

All of the major apparel industry trends were impacted by the pandemic.

Brands were forced to close their physical stores and move their business online. Brands that invested in online infrastructure saw their sales flourish and are beginning to physically re-open their brick-and-mortar stores now. Those that were unable to adapt were forced to close down for good.

This disruption accelerated existing trends around the need to adapt to consumer demand. The U.S. has witnessed steady apparel industry growth for many years, with a projected value of 2.25 trillion dollars by 2025. Companies are striving to maintain this growth by making use of tools that compliment trends around consumer demand. 

This is why dynamic imaging is a critical piece of technology for the apparel industry: it enables companies to create the online experience that customers want. Fashion houses work hard to cultivate their unique brands. Dynamic imaging allows them to present their products online with the same authentic experience a customer would expect in person. Read on to find out why dynamic imaging is one of the key apparel industry trends for 2021 and beyond. 

The Apparel Industry Trends of 2021

According to McKinsey’s The State of Fashion 2021 report,

“After a year in which the fashion industry posted record-low economic profits, business leaders are on the front foot, seeking to innovate while continuing to engage their core constituencies. Given the disruptions of recent months, many companies are reconnecting with their supply chains, making tough decisions—for example, about ROI at store level—and ramping up omnichannel services.”

McKinsey cites ten main trends. From our perspective, the three most interesting are:

• Living with the virus
  "Companies shoudl rewire their operating models to enable flexibility and faster decision-making, and balance speed against discipline in the pursuit of innovation."
• Digital sprint
  "Fashion players must optimize the online experience and channel mix while finding persuasive ways to integrate the human touch."
• Less is more
  "Companies need to reduce complexity and find ways to increase full-price sell-through to reduce inventory levels by taking a demand-focused approach to their assortment stratefy, while boosting flexible in-season reactivity for both new products and replenishment." 

The pandemic was an unforeseen and major challenge. However, industries that responded strategically to the ordeal—food, technology, and fashion—showed resilience and a determination to survive.

How does dynamic imaging play into these trends? And how can dynamic imaging help companies implement these strategies? 

Facing Industry Challenges with Dynamic Imaging

Many apparel companies that were already established in the brick-and-mortar world migrated online. In the virtual space, creating a tactile, interactive, lifelike browsing experience is essential. This is where dynamic imaging factors in. 

In 2021, posting a static product photo with a basic magnifying glass feature is not enough to satisfy web-savvy shoppers. Customers want high-detail visualizations of the product they are browsing. Dynamic imaging answers this need, which is why it is the most important of apparel industry trends. 

Taking a Demand-Focused Approach

Throughout the pandemic, major companies struggled with apparel industry supply chain interruptions, exacerbated by significant variances in restrictions from country-to-country and state-to-state (in the U.S.). Even when they managed to source everything they needed, the demand was not there. We saw companies slash and burn under-performing divisions just to survive.

Faced with this near-term scenario, companies need to find ways to increase full-price sell-through and decrease inventory levels at the same time. Apparel industry competition, even in these turbulent times, is still strong. Therefore, innovation and deploying a new operating model that targets demand where it exists, are the only ways to stay competitive.

Even before the pandemic, it was impossible to show the entire depth and breadth of warehouse inventory on a showroom floor. This was a challenge in the brick-and-mortar age, and it remains a challenge for retailers seeking to adapt to new industry pressures.

The ability to digitally customize and personalize items, then to see a virtual representation of what is being purchased, are critical to keeping customers happy and satisfied. When companies offer customization by reinventing their already existing stock items, they immediately increase their desirability and gain flexibility over their brand.

Dynamic imaging makes it easy for users to mix-and-match their coveted fabric and color options to customize their purchases. This guarantees that retailers can capitalize on every ounce of the demand that is there, and suffer minimal revenue leakage.

Optimizing the Online Experience

As suggested in the McKinsey report, the fashion industry must optimize the online experience and channel mix while finding persuasive ways to integrate the “human touch.” Apparel industry competition calls for brands to stand out amongst their competitors. What better way to do that than to make the browsing experience as smooth as possible?

Case in point: customers do not want to scroll through hundreds of pictures; it is time-consuming and gets boring. 

Apparel companies, therefore, need to allow two UI experiences: one that lets new customers browse and discover, and one that enables motivated customers to find exactly what they want. This two-sided dynamic is what every successful high-end store seeks to create; fortunately, dynamic imaging makes this readily available in an online setting. 

Investing in dynamic imaging solutions allows companies to double down on the optimization of their customer’s online experience. Instead of flooding customers with thousands of photos to scroll through to find the product design they desire, sellers can save them time by showing a dynamic version of their product images instead. This gives buyers a white glove experience, and encourages them to commit to purchases.

Establishing Deeper Partnerships Across the Board

According to the McKinsey report, fashion brands need to establish closer partnerships with their suppliers. This will help the apparel industry supply chain become more resilient moving forward. However, this is not the only “partnership” to which brands should pay attention. Establishing a deeper relationship with your customers is also a key to success.

Seventy-four percent of customers feel frustrated about non-personalized website content. Ninety-one percent of consumers are more likely to shop with brands that provide relevant offers and recommendations.

In short, consumers love personalization. And dynamic imaging offers one of the most powerful and targeted routes to offering personalization. 

Dynamic imaging allows the customer to create and play in a virtual environment that delivers unique experiences tailored to them. Dynamic imaging empowers customers to customize products in highly personal ways, creating an emotional link that will endure for a long time. 

Increasing Retail ROI

The in-store experience is not dead, but it took a heavy blow during the pandemic. Even in an era of social distancing, people still have the basic desire to touch, explore, and try on clothing. However, retailers may need to move to a highly customized boutique feel for the in-store experience and allow their customers to do most of their exploration online. Once again, we circle back to the importance of dynamic imaging technology.

Online, the importance of authentic color representation cannot be overstated. Brands need a dynamic imaging solution with the ability to render highly authentic color representations. Also, the ability to zoom in and see every specific detail (stitching, fabrics, depth, buttons, etc.) is critical in higher-end and bespoke clothing.

Moreover, the data that you get from dynamic imaging solutions can help you determine which color, pattern, and design combinations are more successful online. Guided with that insight, you can increase product production based on those same combinations and sell them in retail or brick-and-mortar stores.

Finally, you can direct physical shoppers to your online catalog by capitalizing on these customized products, and in turn encourage them to personalize their own clothes. Through this unified omnichannel experience, your retail store’s ROI will increase and you will get more visitors to your site. This will also solve the problem of bad inventory management and stocking slow moving products. 

Time to Innovate

Dynamic imaging is the most important of apparel industry trends because it ties into these industry truths: brands must stay innovative, relevant, and versatile. They must distinguish themselves with unique omnichannel customer experiences, while staying true to their core creative vision.

The automation provided by dynamic imaging allows companies to keep pace with apparel industry supply chain management and inventory demands in spite of tight deadlines and other challenges presented by market volatility. Now more than ever, dynamic imaging capabilities and solutions are the key to apparel industry growth.

To display your ever-changing garment selections with true photographic quality, and integrate dynamic imaging in your e-commerce site now, contact us here and start today.