Edgewater, N.J.—Only one shopper had walked into the spacious Men’s Wearhouse store here in the first hour after it opened on a recent Wednesday. But Will Muñoz, the store’s manager, chatted with 13 customers.
That is because the struggling apparel chain is starting to deploy its army of salespeople on shoppers browsing its website. Using their smartphones, the store workers can message, video chat and send photos of shirts or ties—and then get paid commissions for online orders the same way they do for ringing up items at...