What: H&M is seeing if it can succeed where other mass retailers haven’t and make high-tech stores work.

Why is it important: At its COS brand, the company is rolling out a series of technological enhancements across its eleven US stores. They’ll include mirrors on the shop floor that recognise the product you’re holding and recommend items to pair with it. Fitting rooms will know which items you’ve brought in so you can easily request other sizes or colours. Customers will also be able to check out directly from the fitting room if they choose.

Shop associates, meanwhile, will have a real-time picture of inventory they can see on a tablet or other device. They’ll have full visibility into which products, in which sizes, are in the stock room or out on the selling floor, where they can also see how customers interact with them. They’ll know what inventory is available in other stores or warehouses where COS’ system is live, without having to pull it from a back-end inventory management system.

The aim of the technology is to better serve and engage shoppers, whether by suggesting other items they might like based on what they’ve been eyeing in the store or letting them know straight away if an item is available nearby or can be ordered online.

COS is cracking the code on high-tech stores