Amazon is reportedly scanning people's bodies so it can sell you clothes
- Amazon is reportedly inviting people to participate in a 3D body-scanning survey. Those selected will have the size and shape of their body monitored over a 20-week period, according to The Wall Street Journal.
- The invitation comes from Amazon's new 3D body-scanning unit, which was developed after Amazon bought New York-based startup Body Labs in October. Body Labs created a software that captures the body's shape and motion in 3D.
- Amazon could be creating a way for customers to virtually try on clothes and shop for styles that are better fitted to their body shape.
Amazon knows your name, your address, your credit-card details, and what milk you like in your coffee - now it wants to know the shape of your body.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Amazon is inviting people to a New York office to have the shape and size of their bodies scanned. Participants are asked to complete an online survey that determines how much their weight and fitness have fluctuated in the past year, and whether they have plans to lose weight, the Journal reported.
According to the invite, those who are chosen will need to be scanned every two weeks for 30 minutes.
"We are interested in understanding how bodies change shape over time," the survey says.
Amazon did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.
According to the Journal, the invite comes from Amazon's new 3D body-scanning unit, which was developed after Amazon bought New York-based startup Body Labs in October.
Body Labs makes a software that captures the body's shape and motion in three dimensions. This can be used not only for gaming technology but also for fashion, its website previously stated.
Amazon could be creating a system for customers to virtually try on clothes or shop for styles that are better fitted to their body shape.
The retailer is making moves to grow its apparel empire. In the past year, it has accelerated the growth of its private-label brands and introduced Prime Wardrobe, a try-before-you-buy and return service.
The company is now expected to become the leading US apparel retailer in 2018, according to a report from Morgan Stanley. Currently, it lands in second place after Walmart, which had 8.7% of the market share in 2017, compared to Amazon's 7.9%.
The ability to virtually try on clothes could also help to curb the number of customer returns, which is an expensive byproduct of selling clothing online.