The online gurus at Google seem to never run out of things to do. On Nov. 17, the search engine giant unveiled it’s latest creation, Google Boutiques, a personalized fashion search tool they hope will make shopping for clothing and accessory items more pleasant.
For this project, Google brought together a team of computer scientists and fashion experts in the industry. The description, which sounds straight out of the film Terminator, states that Boutique utilizes computer vision and machine learning processes in order to analyze your personal taste and style. Similar to data mining, it uses a fashion algorithm that provides recommendations based your search, selected preferences and boutiques from fashion experts. The computer is learning how you dress in order to help you dress.
The site also includes a “social” feature, such as Twitter, where shoppers can “follow”their favorite boutiques. Much like the YouTube celebrity phenomenon, we can expect a whole new wave of amateur fashion experts to emerge soon. Clothing brands may also find a new friend in Boutiques as a social media tool to promote their products.
Boutiques creates a dynamic shopping experience for shoppers. Can’t figure out what goes with this color or that specific outfit? Wonder what that celebrity is wearing? Boutiques includes a useful visual search, analyzes a particular items shape and color, then provides a recommendation. There are even fashion “Do’s” and “Don’t”s, to prevent you from committing that fashion crime. It’s a personalized fashion expert at your finger tips.
Boutiques is an interesting experiment and a nice addition to creating a more “social” shopping experience, by connecting fashion experts and the casual shopper. Currently, Boutiques is only available in the US for women’s fashion (sorry, guys).
Share your experience or tell us what you think about Boutiques in the comments section.
Written By: Daniel T.
