Burberry Introduces Smart Personalization for Shoppers

For the launch of its new Fall/Winter 2013 womenswear collection, the London fashion house Burberry created a seamless digital shopping experience. Following a similar principle to the Topshop “Enter the Catwalk” campaign, which provided viewers with live-streamed footage of the show and customization features, The Burberry smart personalization allows shoppers to browse and shop for items they like straight from the catwalk via their mobile devices.

Once an order is placed, shoppers receive tailor-made outerwear and bags with personalized, engraved nameplates. Shoppers are also invited to virtually

peek backstage at the fashion house: each item is equipped with a digital-enabled device that retraces its journey and conveys the brand’s values of craftsmanship and genuineness. The experience brilliantly connects every single brand touch point, as the new technology, embedded in the garment, triggers a short and exclusive video when shoppers walk into the London flagship store.    

Leveraging the value of transparency and introducing a twist of technology might seem quite paradoxical in a world where each piece of work is the result of a long, traditional process. Highlighting the triumph of “anytime, anywhere shopping,” this campaign also illustrates how the luxury industry is ceaselessly trying to find a balance between the demand for immediacy and the value of time, as a key element of quality, in order to stay at the cutting-edge of digital innovation.

Contributed by Jonathan Kagene, Integer Paris.