Bridal gown retailer Alfred Angelo has launched a mobile application enabling in-store customers to record a video of themselves trying on different outfits and post it to social networks.

The app also features a chat feature, so that users can get instant feedback from friends about possible bridal fashions. Users can even gain points and win prizes for their activity within the app.

“Most brides are among the tech-friendly generations and are very open to letting new technology into their daily routines in an effort to streamline their lives,” said Dalit Braun, cofounder of Pickn’Tell, Tel Aviv, Israel. “This new Alfred Angelo app, powered by Pickn’Tell, is a natural solution to aiding in one of the biggest fashion decisions in a woman’s life.

“This technology includes a magic mirror that has an iPad attached to the back of it,” he said. “The iPad interacts with the bride’s smartphone.

“She can tell the mirror to take video or photos of her gown option, and the image pushes to her smartphone. She can share the file through social networks, email, text, within the app or even save it for later.”

Alfred Angelo operates stores in 20 states nationwide and distributes wedding fashions to a number of merchants in the United States and internationally.

Social shopping
The Alfred Angelo Bridal app is built on the Pick’n’Tell platform.

The app comes with a content management system that tracks all bar codes users scan and how the mirrors are used. The retailer can then send alerts to the bride’s smartphone about related sales, nearby events and other messages personalized to her needs and interests.

Additional features of the app include the ability to browse Alfred Angelo catalogs, add articles of interest into a gallery or wish list and obtain information about products by scanning the bar codes in articles.

The app lets users take  a video of themselves and share it.

Users can also get notifications about Alfred Angelo events and promotions, find the nearest Alfred Angelo store and get directions to a store.

Another feature is the ability to share outfits with others in the Alfred Angelo community to get real-time fitting advice and styling tips for pictures or videos as well as help others with their fashion.

The app is available for free in Apple’s App Store and Google Play.

On-the-go tools
Bridal retailers are embracing mobile for its ability to provide useful time management and shopping companion tools for on-the-go brides-to-be.

This spring, David’s Bridal partnered with Usablenet on My Event, an interactive platform that provides brides-to-be with the mobile tools they need to plan, organize, share and track all activities from their engagement till their wedding day (see story).

“The Pickn’Tell mirror links up with the bride-to-be’s phone so that she can share the dress shopping experience instantaneously with her social media networks, as well as friends and family from anywhere around the world,” Mr. Braun said.

“Think of this as wedding dress shopping of the future,” he said. “The bride stands in front of the Pickn’Tell mirror, takes a quick photo or video and her new look is shared with her specified networks.”

Final Take
Chantal Tode is associate editor on Mobile Commerce Daily, New York