Walmart has announced plans to acquire Zeekit, a start-up tech company that enables shoppers to try on clothes virtually.

Denise Incandela, executive vice president of apparel and private brands at Walmart US, said that in an increasingly online-driven market, customers don’t just want a variety in styles but also a personalised digital experience that makes shopping for apparel easy, fun, and social.

“That’s why I’m thrilled to announce Walmart’s plan to acquire Zeekit, a female-founded, Israeli-based company that combines fashion and technology through its dynamic virtual fitting room platform to create a significantly enhanced customer and social experience,” added Incandela.

Through Zeekit’s technology, Walmart customers will soon be able to virtually try on items from a range of national brands.

When the experience is live on the retailer’s website, customers can upload their picture or choose from a series of models that best represent their height, shape and skin tone to instantly see themselves in any item of clothing, mimicking the experience of trying on clothes in a store.

They can also share their virtual outfits with friends for a second opinion, which the retailer describes as bringing an “inclusive and social experience” to digital shopping.

Walmart said that the technology has already been trialled by top brands and retailers in the fashion industry.

Zeekit’s platform uses real-time image processing to map a person’s image into thousands of segments.

Clothing is processed in a similar manner and the equivalent points of the two are mapped into one final simulation.

Walmart thinks that the technology could also be used for other fashion experiences, including the ability to build the world’s largest virtual closet and mix and match clothing.

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