Through the looking glass: South Korean 'augmented reality' mirror allows touchless cosmetics shopping

Amorepacific

03/07/2020 10:00

By Minwoo Park
    SEOUL, July 3 (Reuters) - An augmented reality (AR) mirror
at the new Seoul flagship boutique of cosmetics powerhouse
Amorepacific  090430.KS  makes easy work of seeing if that
scarlet shade of lipstick or long-lash mascara suits you - even
if you're wearing a face mask.
    The mirror takes a photograph of the customer's face and
analyses it, recommending products based on skin texture, and
addressing any blemishes, wrinkles or dark circles. Customers
can then see a computer-generated image of what they would look
like wearing a wide range of foundations, blush, eye products
and lipsticks.
    "Due to the coronavirus, it felt uncomfortable to test
cosmetics after someone had used them," said shopper Cho Yu-lim,
24, as she peered into the full-length mirror, which has "Find
Your Makeup Look" written on it. "This is very convenient as I
can see the actual colour on my face without even touching my
face."
    In addition to social distancing, South Korean government
guidelines recommend shoppers try out cosmetics on the backs of
their hands, not on their faces.
    "It was frustrating as I couldn't try cosmetics on my face …
but it was fun to find the product that suits me best through
this AR device," said 20-year-old student Song Da-hye after
hours of testing products on her hands at other stores.
    South Korea has been praised how it has handled COVID-19,
but Asia's fourth-largest economy has experienced persistent
outbreaks in recent weeks, mostly in the capital.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N2EA0NL
    To minimise human contact and limit the risk of virus
spread, the shop has also put QR codes next to all products on
display, so customers can check details with their mobile phones
instead of talking to staff. 
    "It took very little time and I didn't need to talk to
anyone before I made my purchases," Cho said.

 (Reporting by Minwoo Park; Editing by Karishma Singh and Gerry
Doyle)
 ((Minwoo.Park@thomsonreuters.com; +82-2-6936-1437;))