Virtual Shopping and The Retail Environment of the Future
Walking around the aisles of a local grocery store is an experience that is part of our lives. You might do so in a rush of getting home after a hard day at work, in the company of your family dunning a Sunday shopping trip, or looking for a ready meal to enjoy while catching up on your favourite TV shows.
In any case, going to the supermarket is an important event which has been impacted by the consequences of the current pandemic. While ordering your food online can do the job, there is nothing quite like walking around your local grocery store.
Today, thanks to the partnership between Lightbound 3D, InaBuggy and The McEwan Group, you can go back to stroll through the snacks aisle and take your time looking at your favourite products. (Want to experience it first hand? Skip to the bottom!)
Matterport 3D and Virtual Shopping systems have brought us back the enjoyment of visiting the local store - but it is only the beginning of how virtual tours are changing the retail environment.
Indeed, supermarkets have started to catch up with the idea that online shopping and retail - as well as the consequences of the pandemic - are not going to disappear soon. So, they have started to invest in systems that can offer their customers a real, social experience.
Here is how, encompassing small startups and larger supermarket chains, virtual tours are becoming the way forward.
A Safer Experience for All
The covid-19 vaccine is becoming a lot more than just a distant mirage, and some of the restrictions are lifting across the globe. Nonetheless, some other pandemic consequences are still as present as always, and they are not bound to leave us for many months to come.
Indeed, public places and gatherings still involve some risks that we don’t want to expose our families to or run ourselves. Something as simple as going to the local grocery store to pick up food for the week has become more of a mission we gear up for with face coverings and hand sanitizer.
But what if technology can give us back a safe, enjoyable experience? Virtual shopping tours and Matterport technology offer us an unprecedented chance to browse the aisles and shelves in total safety.
Whether you wish to enjoy this moment with your little ones or with others in your household, this powerful - yet user-friendly - technology has made it possible.
Groceries at Your Fingertips - At All Times
Whether you are a quick-shopper or you love browsing the shelves of your local store for the best deals, going to the supermarket is almost always an event we plan for. When deciding when to go, the store’s opening times or busiest hours are something we all consider - especially when planning to buy a whole week’s worth of food.
However, some local shops might be open only for certain hours during the day or affected so much by the local restrictions following the spread of Covid that their operating times are restricted.
A virtual shopping experience offers you everything you have always wanted - a perfectly-presented, clean, and quiet supermarket where you can take all the time you need to select the best products. And, you can do so when it’s most convenient for you and from anywhere.
The Matterport 3D technology is supported on most devices, including laptops, phones, and tablets. It allows you to walk around the aisle, check the shelves, and even zoom in to have a better look at what you are buying. All this has never been possible with standard eCommerce websites.
Looking at The Future of Grocery Shopping
It is undeniable that the pandemic has had a significant impact on almost all aspects of our lives, from our jobs to how we go about our days. Some of the consequences of this historical time are not yet even clear to us. However, we do know that technology is an irresistible force that is changing our daily lives, mostly for the better.
In this case, it gives customers a chance to enjoy their shopping trips in a safe, comfortable, and extremely convenient environment. Instead, to shop owners, this technology might mean that they can open their doors for longer and provide a much better service to their audience.
So far, we are only aware of the tip of the iceberg of the benefits that technology can bring to the world of retail. However, for now, virtual shopping allows you to take a trip to your local store, browse the shelves, make the most of daily offers, and even let a snack tempt you!
Do you want to experience Virtual Shopping first hand? Click here to see what we help create!