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Zara have announced a plan to roll out an augmented reality (AR) experience across 120 of their flagship stores globally from April 18.

The two-week initiative will allow customers who have downloaded the ZARA AR app to hold up their phone to certain store windows or a sensor within the store and see models come to life on their screens – walking and even talking - wearing selected items from the Zara range, which they can then click through and buy.

The functionality will also allow app users to see the visuals when they hover their device over a package delivered from an online Zara purchase.

Owned by Inditex, the world’s largest clothing retailer by sales, Zara has built an empire on its ability to get new designs into its stores in less than a month.

The bricks-and-mortar retail behemoth is however facing increasingly tough competition from online-only players like Boohoo and ASOS (who have even quicker turnaround times) and millennial consumers who increasingly favour online shopping over purchasing in store.

The AR initiative is part of a wider digital drive which saw Zara pilot an online-only shopping experience in Westfield in January, and increase use of robots in its logistics chains.

Zara is not the first fashion brand to invest in AR technology. Burberry added AR functionality to it’s app in September last year, and brands like Rimmel and Gap have also launched AR initiatives to encourage customers to ‘try on’ products virtually.

For now, the technology remains clunky, but Apple CEO Tim Cook predicts the convergence of augmented reality and fashion is inevitable. “I don’t think there is any sector or industry that will be untouched by AR,” he told Vogue in October.

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"Experimentation in AI technologies is increasingly at the forefront of traditional retailers’ strategies to improve convenience for shoppers and increase in-store footfall," says Alastair Harvey, Chief Solutions Officer of Cortexica, a world-leading expert in visual AI solutions. "We fully expect to see this as the norm in the near future.”

In addition to enabling online shopping, the app features a tool for sharing the experience on the social media, encouraging users to take and submit photos of the hologram models.

The ZARA AR app can be downloaded using either a QR code or from iTunes or Google Play. It will also be accessible via the www.zara.com website and the ZARA app.