What if the next time you walked into a retail clothing store you found out that the mannequins were watching you? Sound creepy? It might be happening at your favorite retail store.
An Italian company called Almax SpA has recently released a new mannequin design called the EyeSee that comes equipped with a video camera complete with facial recognition software. The mannequins are designed to monitor the habits of customers and track trends in what items they look at and which customers are most likely to buy.
The mannequins, which sell for approximately $5,072, were created as a way for brick and mortar retailers to gather as much information about their customers as an online store can. For example, when you are shopping online, retail websites typically ask you to create an account and they store information about what items you look at and which items you actually buy. A good example of this is Amazon. When I log into my Amazon account, I get a list of recommendations based on my past purchases, items I've recently viewed and things on my wish lists. It's a little creepy, but I have to admit that most of the time Amazon recommends products that I'm actually interested in. Instead of being an annoyance or making me feel as though my privacy has been invaded, it is more a personal shopping assistant.
Unlike online retailers, brick and mortar stores face a larger challenge in trying to understand their customers. Still, there are many (myself included) who think that spy mannequins are taking things too far. These mannequins look like any other display, but inside, the facial recognition software creates a log of each person and tracks their movements while they are inside the store. The technology is very similar to what law enforcement uses and it keeps records of the race, age and gender of each person in the store.
Retail stores have often utilized security cameras, so the idea of being recorded while you're in the store isn't something new, the difference is that these cameras aren't providing security footage and they aren't being used to limit shoplifting losses or to protect the safety of employees and customers. These cameras are used almost exclusively to gather information about customers and their buying habits.
The mannequins, which have been available for sale since last year have gained traction with stores in Europe. After using them, several companies have actually changed the types of products they offer and the way that they display them based on information the cameras have given them. For example, one retailer decided to introduce a children's line after finding that the majority of shoppers bring children into the store with them.
Although there is no way to know which companies are using this new technology, Nordstrom, Inc, has stepped up to say that while they offer Wi-Fi, video screens and even iPads to connect with their customers, they don't currently use these spy mannequins and what's more, they don't plan to introduce them. The official statement from Nordstrom said that they think that using facial recognition software is taking things too far. According to Colin Johnston, Nordstrom understands that it is a changing business landscape, but they are sensitive to their customers boundaries.
This type of customer profiling raises both legal and ethical issues. While it's still a new technology, current privacy laws allow retailers to use recording devices in the store as long as they display a sign that informs customers that video surveillance is being used. Since the mannequins don't store any images, they aren't breaking any current laws. However, the bigger question is about the right to privacy. If you create an account with an online retailer, you are given a list of the type of information they might collect from you and you are given the option to either opt out or shop as a guest. With a physical store, customers don't have those options and in most cases, they aren't being given any indication that this type of monitoring is happening.
Another big difference is that while Amazon might collect information about my shopping and viewing habits, they aren't taking photos of me or keeping records of my race. Even Google, who collects anonymous data on users, isn't able to record things like race and gender. The best they can do is ask or make educated guesses. In fact, they make your marketing profile readily available so that users can see exactly what guesses Google has made about them. When I checked mine, I was surprised that they believe that I am a 25 year old male.
In addition to the video recording, Almax is testing out a new audio recording device for the EyeSee that would record any customer conversation that occurs near the mannequins. These audio recordings would monitor customer's opinions about the mannequin's outfit and items being displayed in the nearby area.
As if that wasn't enough, they are even considering adding video screens behind the mannequins that would engage the customers with suggested styles or other advertising. To me, I think this sort of monitoring is a huge invasion of privacy and could end up backfiring in a big way. After all, who wants technology that mimics an annoying salesperson?
What do you think about these mannequins? Please share your thoughts in the comments.
Source: Financial Post; Image Source: OpenClipArt
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