Fashion and beauty tech solutions provider, Perfect Corp, has launched a Small Business Beauty Tech Accelerator to provide women and minority-owned small businesses with the opportunity to develop their brand through AR 

Ever tried on a Clinique foundation on your phone? Or, tested a new lip shade with a Benefit YouCam filter? These tech developments – and numerous others – have been pioneered by Perfect Corp. 

Now, the technology providers are democratising beauty augmented realities by offering beauty SMEs six months of free access to its self-service virtual try-on solution. 

With 68% of Gen Z customers seeking personalised recommendations for skin and beauty products through beauty AR (Value of Beauty, 2023), virtual try-on is becoming a vital part of the modern consumer journey. However, access to the tech has been limited to big-name brands – think Estée Lauder and Charlotte Tilbury.

In response, Alice Chang, CEO and founder of Perfect Corp wants to democratise AR. She said: ‘As AR and AI technology becomes an essential tool to engage consumers and provide personalised shopping experiences, our mission is to increase access to these transformative digital innovations and make these tools accessible to brands of all sizes.’ 

Via its Small Business Beauty Tech Accelerator programme small businesses will be able to increase conversion across seven colour product categories including foundation, mascara, lip colour, blush, eyelashes, eyeliner, and eyeshadow.

‘With these powerful solutions, brands can reimagine the consumer experience, provide personalised beauty to all, and unlock new growth opportunities,’ continued Chang. 

Those who are accepted onto the accelerator programme will be able to host ‘Virtual Try-On’ buttons on their eCommerce site and gain full-feature access to the Perfect Corp online console. 

Need more persuading? The benefits of try-on technology are well documented. Perfect Corp reports that many of the brands they work with see sales conversions increase by two and a half times, whilst also seeing an average 40% increase in order value.

Brands interested in applying for the six-month initiative are encouraged to fill out a three-minute form, which details annual turnover, the number of employees, and the reason why they should be considered for the opportunity.