Fashion

ASOS's New Style Tool Searches The Site For Similar Clothing Items Based On Your Own Photos

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Ever have a case of fashion envy? You see someone wearing a snazzy shirt that you'd like to add to your closet but don't want to awkwardly ask, "Hey, where'd you get that cute top?" Perhaps you don't have the time to page through a retailer's inventory to find a piece you saw on the street and passionately covet. Well, fast fashion behemoth ASOS is launching its Style Match visual search feature in the U.S. on Friday, March 9. Global customers are going to absolutely love this ASOS app capability.

This photo-driven function has been active — and successful!— in the UK since last August.

Here's how it works.

You take a picture in real time —of a friend, an Instagram screenshot, an editorial image, or even a stylish stranger whose apparel you admire as long as you ask nicely and do so discreetly. Or you can upload a photo that is already stored in your camera roll.

Next, use the Style Match search function in the ASOS app to instantly identify its closet match — that is, any similar item available on ASOS.com.

Style Match makes it soooo easy for shoppers and stylistas to quickly sort through ASOS' inventory of over 85,000 products and locate items akin to something they want.

Courtesy of ASOS

ASOS has a huge assortment of stuff. Approximately 5,000 new products are added weekly, according to press materials received by Bustle. Why waste time paging tirelessly through all those items when you have Style Match at your fingertips? This feature will do all of the fashion legwork for you.

Style Match is essentially the ultimate "see now, buy now" tool in the fast fashion realm. See something you like, snap it, upload it, and find something similar. Boom. You're done.

In a press release, ASOS Digital Product Director Andy Berks said, "Inspiration can strike you anywhere and at any time – whether it's a photo in a magazine, scrolling through an Instagram feed, or even on a local street corner. Now, with just a couple of taps of their mobile device, ASOS customers can capture that fleeting moment and instantly search our 85,000 product lines to find the item that’s inspired them — or similar — at just the right time."

The brand has already seen major engagement with this tool. Users are actually uploading images moreso than they are taking them directly. So it's clear there is a need for this function because street style inspo is seriously a thing. Since nearly 70 percent of ASOS UK sales come from a mobile device, this functionality is another way for the brand to super serve its customers. It also capitalizes on the fact that shoppers want instant access to something they see IRL and in the the moment.

ASOS also noted that its app users spend about 80 minutes a month browsing it. "We know this is where our customers are and it's how they interact with us every day, so we're always looking for mobile-native ways to make their experience even better," Berks furthered.

We truly live in the digital shopping age and that fact dictated ASOS' creation of Style Match. "Ever since ASOS was founded, we've been driven to delight our customers and improve their lives in little ways by using innovation," Berks stated. "But our technology has always been in their service, and never just for its own sake."

That's so true. Style Match helps users find what they are looking for.

Style Match lovers are vocal about the function on Twitter.

Say "hello" to your new fashion bestie

We've seen the future of fashion and it's Style Match.