Today, retailers and brands understand the growing need to utilize technology-driven tools in order to provide greater value for their businesses and customers, and the Retail DT Grand Challenge is helping to drive technology innovation as part of that transformation. The contest, co-sponsored by the IEEE Standards Association (IEEE SA), Product Innovation (PI) Apparel and the 3D Retail Coalition, explores solutions to challenges faced by retailers such as intense competition and the need for speed while integrating new technologies and methodologies for shopping, a shifting consumer base with changing brand preferences and responsiveness, as well as a desire for increased social responsibility.
This year, 3DLOOK, an innovative 3D body scanning technology and application set, took top honors in the Retail DT Grand Challenge. The company was awarded during the regional PI Apparel conference held 17-18 June in New York. 3DLOOK was selected from amongst many outstanding submissions that included end-to-end solutions as well as products and solutions addressing body capture and scanning, digital raw materials, digital product creation, supply chain enhancement and customer engagement and immersion.
“We’re honored to have been recognized for our unique body scanning technology which generates accurate 3D avatars and 20 measurements from just two smartphone photos and enables applications that greatly increase consumers’ confidence when purchasing online,” said Whitney Cathcart, co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer, 3DLOOK. “The Retail DT Challenge has emerged as a valuable resource for companies like 3DLOOK to showcase cutting-edge technologies that are contributing to the ongoing digital transformation taking place across the retail industry.”
The 3DLOOK solution addresses the root cause of online returns by simplifying data exchange between consumers and brands, helping to drive industry growth as it transforms into digital commerce and an expanded digital supply chain. The technology allows retailers to create better fitting products for diverse body types, which has the potential to ultimately reduce waste in product development and returns in e-commerce.
“The Retail DT Grand Challenge is helping to stimulate technological innovation in a retail sector that is facing the challenges associated with expanding e-commerce,” said Rudi Schubert, director, New Initiatives, IEEE SA. “IEEE is committed to supporting the digital transformation that retailers and brands are undertaking in order to ensure their ongoing success, as well as building capabilities for the future of retail.”
Participants in the Grand Challenge were judged on the following criteria:
- Collaboration—the degree and/or diversity of stakeholders that collaborated on developing the submission
- Social Impact—the extent to which the submission addressed social and environmental impacts and implications
- Business Impact—the extent to which the submission addressed saving and/or making new value for customers and/or consumers
- Technology Impact—the extent to which the submission delivered improvements on existing and/or new capabilities
See how the 3DLOOK solution works.
The Retail DT Grand Challenge originated with the IEEE SA Industry Connections (IC) 3D Body Processing (3DBP) program, a collaborative effort to assess standards opportunities intersecting emerging technologies such as 3D scanning to enhance industries such as retail, medical, health and wellness, and sports and athletics. The IEEE SA IC 3DBP program is focused on designing and implementing scalable and robust immersive experiences in these industries through the standardization of 3DBP technologies. IEEE SA approved the standards project, IEEE P3141™ – Standard for 3D Body Processing (3DBP), in October 2017.
Complimentary white papers on 3D Body Processing topics can be downloaded on the IEEE SA Industry Connections 3D Body Processing Program web page.