H&M is using a new AI text-to-image program to let people design their own products, which will then be printed on demand for them to either sell or buy themselves.
The H&M Creator Studio takes written prompts and “draws up” apparel mock-ups with the custom artwork on a selection of H&M apparel styles. On the Creator Studio page, H&M says that users can buy direct, meaning that a merchandise designer could theoretically design merchandise to sell the same way print-on-demand sellers are using spaces like Etsy or Amazon to sell apparel that ties in with a particular event or pop culture moment.
I saw this morning H&M Group Brings AI Art-Generating Tool For Creators & Shoppers To Sell T-Shirts: Screenshot via Creator Studio
H&M Group has a lesser-known on-demand printing service called Creator Studio. New to the platform is a… https://t.co/xVxhdfz0PR 👁 🪚 👉🏻 🌄
— alasdair lennox (@isawthismorning) October 25, 2023
Other traditional promotional apparel end-buyers could use the fact that there are no minimums to order a small batch of shirts for a company event, school spirit event, or other things like that.
Once the product is designed, the user can select a custom label to be printed for the garment, as well as custom packaging for the product to arrive in.
This is an example of how the latest technology exists within the promo space. Industry people have been questioning for years now how AI fits into promo, and the ability to create art in seconds without the need for trained artists is one of the uses. Obviously, there are quite a few moral questions within that, but it’s clear that some people are using it now.
There’s also the idea of print-on-demand and attracting customers by offering no minimums for orders. Many modern end-buyers want to be able to buy products online, like they would buy their own consumer products.
If distributors can offer an experience like that, using web stores and online ordering, they can compete with the big names like H&M who are introducing programs like this.
