RFID hangers add new dimension to shopping

Retail therapy is another nice way of describing shopping, and it is most devastating to the bank account balance when one does so with wanton abandon while being on an emotional roller coaster. Well, those who happen to live or visit Japan might soon come across RFID-equipped clothing hangers at all departmental stores, where these hangers will “replace” humans in terms of pushing, nay, selling you other products and accessories that match the garment which you just removed from the rack.

Developed by Teamlab, this system currently sees action in one of Vanquish’s men’s stores in the Shibuya ward of Tokyo. There is a bunch of LCD displays located right on top the clothing rack, and whenever you remove a garment, it will burst to life, letting you feast on the specifics of the product while suggesting some other stylish accessories.

I guess RFID hangers do far more than just selling other products in a subtle manner. Heck, it would definitely drive up walk-in traffic as word spreads of this rather novel method of selling items, although those do not translate into sales all the time. Still, a busier shop tends to attract more customers, following the principle of success attracting success.

Edwin Kee
Categories: Gadgets
Tags: Japan, rfid, shopping