• by Laurie Sullivan , Staff Writer @lauriesullivan, November 7, 2014

A feature in the Neiman Marcus mobile app released Wednesday allows consumers to snap a photo, search for a similar item, and purchase it. The technology matches photos to help consumers connect with that must-have handbag or shoes.

When consumers see a handbag in a magazine or a skirt on someone walking down the street, they can snap a photo and run it through the NM Snap, Find, and Shop app to discover similar styled items. For now it seems the app only recognizes shoes and handbags.

Snapping a photo of my black Sorel boots pulled out of the closest in preparation for the trip to the MediaPost Search Insider Summit, Park City, Utah, in December returned three pairs of boots from Aquatalia, Salvatore Farrogamo, and Moncler. I clicked on Aquatalia. It provided an option to find it in a store or add it to my shopping bag.

The tech-savvy retailer, since the company sold to Ares Management and Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board in 2013 for $6 billion, gets a bad rap when it comes to the price of items. Yes, there are the $425,000 trips to the Academy Awards, complete with invitations to the Vanity Fair Oscar party, for holiday shoppers with a limitless budget. Their annual Neiman Marcus Christmas Book also includes 10 fantasy gifts like an ultimate slot car raceway for $300,000 based on a scale replica of the consume's favorite car track and an inaugural race party co-hosted by race car drivers Vic Elford and David Hobbs.

Neiman Marcus' loyalty program, InCircle, gives even regular folk deals like $100 off a sweater -- a price Bloomingdales wouldn't match because it wasn't advertised. The price only advertised to InCircle members. I'll never get to the "President's InCircle" experience, but as an InCircle member enjoy the customer service and deals.