Australia’s largest retailer and marketer Myer have joined partnership with the online marketplace, eBay in introducing the virtual reality concept in the fashion industry.
Virtual reality – simulation of 3D environment
The concept of virtual reality is the a part of the computer technology that makes use of the software to generate the realistic sounds, images and other sensational aspects that replicate the real time environment that simulates the presence of the person in the same environment, so that the person can interact with the objects and space with the help of a projector or special device or display screen. With the help of the VR equipment, a person can live in the artificial world and interact with the items and the features that are depicted on the display screen or device. The sensory experience is created using the virtual reality that includes the touch, hearing, sight and little bit of a smell.
In recent times the virtual realities are displayed on a projector screen or display monitors or with the help of the VR headsets that are known as head mounted displays. This head mounted displays are in the form of the head mounted goggle that has a screen in front of the eyes. The simulation has added features that offer the musical effect using the headphones or the speakers.
Some of the VR systems that were launched in 2010 has some advanced features include in them like the tactile details in the medical that are known as the force feedback, military training applications and video gaming applications. In the video games, the VR system transmits sensations and vibrations through the game controller that can be sensed by the game players. The VR also includes the remote communication option that offers a virtual presence of the users via tele-existence or tele-presence and by the VA (virtual artifacts) using the mouse and the keyboard or by using multimodal devices like the Omni-directional treadmills or wired gloves. This immersive domain looks like the real world that offers a real time experience for the users.
The virtual reality can be divided into
- The development of a creative domain for the interactive story or a game
- The simulation of the real time environment helps mainly for the purpose of education and training.
The VRML (Virtual reality modeling language) permits the creator specify the images and the rules that are used for the display and the interaction using the textual language statements.
New shopping experience
The customers in Australia can experience a new revolution in the fashion industry because the largest retailer in the country, the Myer has launched the Virtual reality departmental store that connects to the existing application programming interface of the online marketplace eBay. So those who love and enjoy shopping, but are not comfortable with the large crowd or long queues can be at ease with the launch of the virtual store.
Jooman Park, the Managing Director of Australia and New Zealand said that their new pilot program of the virtual reality departmental store can be a new experience for the customers and the response of the customers trying the technological innovation gives them the opportunity to transfer their business to the next level in the retailing industry. This first virtual reality departmental store that is introduced by the joint venture of the online ,marketplace, eBay and the Australian retailer, Myer allows the customers to browse more than twelve thousand five hundred products before they add the products to their cart.
The new VR department store connects with the existing eBay collections and includes the Myer’s collection that displays the range of the products that are available, the cost of the products and the details that are related to the stock. Both the companies offer their customers the chance to get their customized shopticals to start with the virtual reality shopping experience. A report said that around fifteen thousand shopticals are available on the official website of eBay that offers them for free of charge.
Innovative market trends
The Senior Director of Retail Innovation and the CMO, Steve Brennen said that the online marketplace always does business by predicting the future of the retail industry and are the main participants by creating an innovation in the market trends. He said that their pilot program is a challenge for them to make the shopping experience an exciting and simple process that allows them to select the products and the items without any haste.
The residents of Sydney were able to see the Virtual reality departmental shopping experience in an exhibition that took place on May 19th, 2016 and May 20th, 2016 at Harbourside Room in Sydney. The customers and the viewers have to book the tickets well in advance and are available at their official website. The people in Australia can also download the app in the VR departmental store eBay on their mobile phone and can add their contact number in the shopticals that will allow the app to open the platform to start the virtual shopping experience. As an initial promotion, the company offers fifteen thousand shopticals to the people in Australia and they are interested to receive the feedback and the insight of the customers that elevates the retail marketing to a new stage.
Process of the Virtual reality store
The virtual reality technology in the store connects with the online marketplace that allows the customers to search for the area that they are interested in, so that they can have a hassle free shopping experience. Once when the search is over, the app allows the customers to browse for the relevant items and at the same time they can see the information about the product that includes the range of the selected product the stock details and the price of the product in the real world. This allows the customers to be in the up-to-date fashion trends that are offered from the leading brand in the country.
When the browsers follow the specific product, the advanced technology in the app also shows the customers the products that are related to the product they they are searching and shows the other items that they are interested in. Therefore, with the use of the virtual reality software application the process of shopping is made simple and swift because the customers can skim through all the departments in no time.
Using the eBay search website, the customers can view the items in the store by simply holding the device on it, and then the item is moved towards the customers. There are around hundred items that are available in the 3D and there are eight thousand items that can be seen in the 2D form. The shoppers have to simply look at the info icon that gives the complete information pertaining to the product. And they have to simply eye on the ’Add to basket’ option to add the product to the cart. Once when all the required items are added to the cart, the customer has to remove the shopticals and login to the online market place to finalize the transaction.
Richard Umber, the Managing Director and the CEO of Myer said in an interview that the new VR departmental store combines the virtual world and the real world and makes shopping interesting than ever. This technology proves that shopping can be even more exciting when they combine the normal and the fantasy world.
With the distribution of more than fifteen thousand shopticals, the customers of the online marketplace are the first ones to experience the shopping by using the virtual reality technology.
Guest article written by: Anand Rajendran is the Co-Founder and CEO of Zoplay a well known Software products development and Mobile App Development Company based in Chennai, India. He has extensive experience in building and leading innovative and collaborative software development teams to deliver major software applications like Zobay an Ebay Clone script developed by Zoplay. He loves exploring new things and sharing his knowledge with others.
Ultimately, these technologies come together to solve a fundamental challenge in ecommerce: integrating feeling – both physical and emotional – into the buying experience. In retail terms, it’s a case of back to the future, with next generation online sellers finding ways to restore old-school touch-and-try charm.