Sown
VR & AR Start up

Sown is a virtual reality fitting app that provides users their best sizes. With Sown,
size your style and own your style

Project Information

A Relatable Problem

You just received a notification that your package came. You're excited like a kid on Christmas morning. You're ripping the package and see a glimpse of your clothing item. Excitement is in the air only to discover it's too small or too big...

1 in 5

In the online and retail industry, 1 in 5 customers are unsatisfied where the leading causes are sizing issues. Because of this, the average rate of return is 20.8%

Okay so what...

20.8% may not seem much, but it equals $218 billion in returns from $1 trillion of online sales, causing negative effects on both customers and the environment through increased greenhouse gas emissions

Problem Statement

Unfortunately, there is no universal sizing standard for online shoppers due to variations in sizing by brand, item, and other factors. However, we are here to make an ambitious attempt to tackle this issue

Solution Statement

We had an ambitious idea as we aim to bridge the gap between expectations and reality for online shoppers by revolutionizing VR & AR technology

Presenting Sown as a Solution

We are here to proudly present Sown: an application that utilizes Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality technology to provide users their best sizes

Our Identity

Sown's identity wearing a clothing item represents the future of users creating their own avatars to explore different clothing items and sizes, offering a fun shopping experience

Behind the Name

Sown is a portmanteau of "style" and "own" to let users personalize their virtual looks, encouraging them to explore their fashion identity in the digital age

Behind the Color

We chose a gradient color for our identity to represent the future of augmented reality, virtual reality, and the metaverse, aligning with the color trends of these industries

Value Propositions

With Sown we aim to...

1. Satisfy lets users explore sizes to find the best fit

2. Personalize allows users to try on a wide range of clothing items

3. Minimize returns by helping users choose the right size

4. Increase conversion rates for confident transactions with preferred brands.

5. Help the environment by reducing fuel usage

Unique Difference &
Competitive Analysis

Our unique selling point is fit and sizing. We don't recommend specific sizes or claim any as the best fit. Our objective is to help users find their optimal sizes in the subjective fashion world

The Freedom for Users to Choose

We recognize that shopping enthusiasts may prefer different fits, and we strive to enable users to visualize themselves with different sizes to express their identities for themselves and the Sown community

How We Enter the VR & AR Market

Our target market is young users experimenting with fashion in a digitized world. Our SAM is $17.86 billion, consisting of fashion brands willing to use AR/VR for sizing in the $453 billion global market

Stage 1
Seed Rounds & Testing

We aim to use start up resources such as Y-Combinator for feedback, knowledge, and exposure. Then, we'll hire a CTO and a development team to help acquire at least 500 users

Stage 2
Brand Partners

Our Stage 2 plan involves integrating our technology with interested brands and charging a low commission to gain exposure and access to user data once we've built sufficient exposure

Stage 3
Database

During stage 3, we would still lease our technology at a low rate and provide renderings of clothing items that brands want to showcase

Stage 3.5
Monetization

Our next step after acquiring a significant user base is to increase brand partnerships. We'll showcase their digital stores and products on our app with pre-rendered clothing items and direct customers to their e-commerce sites, receiving a small 0.01% commission

Stage 4
Into the Metaverse & Web3

With the final stage, we hope to be an oracle for fashion aesthetic in the meta verse as we help brands venture into the digital fashion in the Meta Verse

Demo Day

D-Day arrived and we pitched our product in front of five amazing judges and hundreds of audience members who came to support us

To Our Amazing Team

This has been the best project I’ve taken on and I really could not have done this without my amazing co-founders, Daniel Shin and Lulet Ayalew. It was a hell of a semester and thank you guys so much for the best semester a student can ever ask for

To Pi Class

This accomplishment was the final cherry on top to end my last semester. This was the best semester of my college career and endless meetings and all-nighters really meant something. My experience building a start-up at Sigma Eta Pi is something I can talk about forever because of the amazing accomplishment Pi Class has done to present fresh ideas as entrepreneurs.
Thank you Pi Class

The Future of Sown

Demo Day is not the end of Sown's story. We plan to continue to develop and fully understand our technology, and eventually apply to Y-Combinator in the VR & AR Startup section. Even if I'm not involved, I have faith that our team will succeed in using VR & AR to make the world a better place. Until then, stay tuned!