Amazon has quietly bought Shoefitr, a startup based in Pittsburgh whose 3-D technology helps consumers purchase footwear online by providing measurements pertinent to fitting, according to numberous reports. Financial terms and other details were not made available.
The obvious intention behind the purchase is to help encourage sales of shoes online using Shoefitr’s technology, but there are question as to whether Amazon will it implement the Shoefitr tech itself directly on its own site, will it integrate it into Zappos subsidiary, or both? Also unclear is whether Shoefitr will continue to work with its existing customers, which included the likes of Nordstrom, Cole Haan, REI and others.
Currently, Zappos deals with the tricky shoe fitting online by offering a flexible return policy. Shoefitr estimates that its technology has a direct effect of customers being satisfactied with what they get, with the number of shoe returns decreasing by 20% for businesses that have implemented its technology.
Matthew Wilkinson and co-founders Nick End and Breck Fresen started the Shoefitr business after graduating from Carnegie Mellon University, and focused initially on running shoes. The company has clients in other countries and in late 2013 partnered with Nordstrom Inc., which used Shoefitr’s technology on its Web site to help shoe-shopping customers get the right fit.
Both the companies have not yet officially commented on the subject but according to TechCrunch, citing insiders, Shoefitr will eventually move to Amazon headquarters.
