Case study · Connected Commerce
Exposed Layers: Building a customer journey beyond checkout.
A physical fashion product, connected to evolving digital layers, owner experiences and real-world activations.
Live experiment · Hong Kong · 2026
One product. More than one moment.
Exposed Layers began with a simple question: what could happen if the relationship between a product, its owner and the brand continued after purchase?
Co-created by CULT ALARA and LIVVIUM, the project uses a physical garment as the entry point to product information, digital experiences, owner registration and evolving content.
- Co-created by
- CULT ALARA × LIVVIUM
- First product
- What Lies Beneath
- Edition
- 120 garments
- Activations
- Destination 001 · Destination 002
- Status
- Owner registration and Owners Gateway live
The starting point
What happens after checkout?
Most retail technology concentrates on reaching the transaction. Exposed Layers explores what can happen when the physical product becomes the beginning of an ongoing customer and owner experience.
A shirt that keeps evolving.
What was created
Physical product
What Lies Beneath garment
Connected entry
NFC and QR
Public product layer
Materials, care, production and product story
Owner layer
Registration, edition confirmation and Owners Gateway
Working owner experience
Evolving experience
AR layers, exhibitions, messages and new content
Live experiment
Built through different forms of expertise.
CULT ALARA
Creative direction and fashion design
The fashion label, garment direction and creative world of Exposed Layers.
LIVVIUM
Connected journey, digital layers, owner experience and experimentation framework
How the product, the digital layers and the owner relationship connect, and how the experiment is observed.
Nice Tones
Production partners
Garment development, production and material expertise.
Technology partners
Supporting technologies
AR, NFC, platform and supporting technologies used within the experience.
Activation timeline
Activation
Destination 001
Hong Kong Design Centre pop-upJune–July 2026
A physical introduction to the garment, connected experience and wider Exposed Layers concept.
Destination 001 Activation
Destination 002
HKTDC CENTRESTAGESeptember 2026
The experience expanded through a runway AR layer, exhibition demonstrations and the public conversation around what happens after checkout.
Destination 002
What happened in the real world.
- More than 100 people participated in private tours and demonstrations during the Hong Kong Design Centre activation period.
- Guided walkthroughs helped visitors understand how the physical and digital layers connected.
- Visitors entered through different points of curiosity: the garment, AR, connected products, ownership and post-purchase experiences.
- The activations showed that explaining the journey is as important as building the technology.
The experience needs more than one entry point.
Some visitors were interested in the physical product first. Others were drawn to AR, ownership or the idea of an evolving product relationship. The project showed that connected experiences need multiple routes into the story—and a clear way to explain how the layers work together.
Clarity
Customers need to understand the physical product before being introduced to every digital layer.
Guidance
A guided demonstration can change how people interpret an unfamiliar experience.
Continuity
The strongest opportunity begins when the interaction can continue after the event or purchase.
Capabilities demonstrated
Developing commercial capability. Tested through a live experiment, not offered as a finished platform.
Continue the product journey
What could your product become after purchase?
Explore how a physical product can connect to content, services, ownership and an evolving customer relationship.