What Has Amazon Been Up to In Apparel Lately?

Credit: Getty Images by David McNew

Other than expanding its printing capacity for on-demand apparel, it's been a pretty quiet summer for Amazon apparel news. Or so we thought. It turns out the retailer has been making some moves in the apparel sector, and we thought it was a good time to check in.

Here are three of the bigger ones:

1. Personal Styling Service

Amazon is continuing to look for ways to stand out in the crowded apparel space, and according to GeekWire, it's hoping that more concierge-based services will help it get there. The e-commerce giant rolled out Personal Shopper by Prime Wardrobe, which is a service that tells shoppers what to wear.

For $4.99 a month, customers receive personal recommendations for clothes and accessories from the personal shopper team. It is a part of the Prime Wardrobe service, where shoppers can fill out their style preferences and fit guidelines. It is only available for women right now, but the company has plans to roll the service out to male shoppers as well.

2. Rihanna's Streaming Fashion Show

According to Marketplace, Amazon will be exclusively streaming Rihanna's Savage X Fenty fashion show on Sept. 20, as part of New York Fashion Week.

The move gives Amazon some clout in the fashion world, given that Rihanna's fashion line has a ton of fans.

3. Amazon Tests "Top Brands" Classification

In an effort to promote its higher-profile clothing brands, Amazon has introduced the "Top Brand" classification badge. According to Business Insider, brands like Fruit of the Loom, Under Armour and New Balance will be some of the brands that claim this new badge.

So far, we don't really know what classifies a company as a "Top Brand," and whether it's a pay-to-play model or based on algorithmic data. But it's clear that the company is continuing to look for ways to change and improve the shopping experience for customers.