Emperia helps brands like Bloomingdales create VR shopping experiences

Does the ordinary citizen want to buy clothes in virtual reality (VR)? It seems quite cumbersome to have to put on a helmet to search for, say, pants, instead of clicking through some galleries. But not everyone agrees, especially those hoping to do VR retail business.

Log in Emperia, an “immersive” retail startup that – to its credit – has already created virtual stores for brands like Bloomingdales, Dior, Ralph Lauren and Lacoste. Launched in 2019, the idea came from one of the co-founders, Olga Dogadkina, who previously worked in the luxury retail sector.

“It became clear to me that while eCommerce was the future of retail, 2D websites were simply a tool that enabled an online purchase through a simple grid of images and text, but lacked the customer journey, storytelling and the ability to provide the customer experience and product discovery that retailers' brick-and-mortar stores strive to achieve,” Dogadkina said. “My other co-founder, Simonas Holcmann, and I launched Emperia to bridge the gap between the transactional nature of a security purchase E-commerce and the personalized shopping experience that brands can cultivate in-store.”

Emperia's platform offers tools that brands can use to create virtual experiences, including VR stores. Se integrates with existing eCommerce software and stock management, tracking demographics, store activity, and purchases. With Emperia, brands can host live events with hosts who guide them through a virtual space, or customize exhibits and displays with 3D models and real-world inventory images.

"Visitors" to Emperia's virtual spaces do not have to wear virtual reality glasses. The platform, which can be integrated into existing websites, is compatible with phones, laptops, and tablets, and does not require the installation of any apps or software.

“Through the use of technology, Emperia aims to make virtual worlds the future of e-commerce, expanding reach to new and future online shoppers, increasing brand loyalty and creating a completely new shopping experience,” says Dogadkina. . “Emperia works directly with retailers' eCommerce managers, solving the user experience, data analytics, and online engagement issues they've been struggling with since the inception of ecommerce, providing a new solution that leverages the power of virtual worlds to match and exceed the in-store customer experience and attract new target audiences, who use their mobile devices as an escape to retail.”

Emperia collects a lot of data, data that not all buyers are comfortable sharing. Studies show that many VR and "metaverse" platforms record information that could be used to identify a person, even if their data is de-identified on the device.

Dogadkina claims that Emperia only collects interaction, transaction, and demographic data to give brands "visibility into how users navigate and engage in [their] virtual spaces." She also points out that the data - which, according to her, is not personally identifiable - is stored for "a limited time", in compliance with GDPR regulations.

New verticals and better customization tools are on the horizon for Emperiasays Dogadkina. The startup is also experimenting with machine learning, focusing on the technology's ability to create 360-degree images and videos for product demonstrations.

"This is a nascent sector, so it is necessary to educate both the market and users so that they are aware of this technology and brands can take advantage of its potential," explains Dogadkina. As a relatively new industry, retailers are faced with the need to look for multiple solutions to build and design your virtual worlds. While solutions abound, from data to security, 3D modeling and digital tokens, to a wide variety of metaverse platforms, each with their own audience and specific capabilities, the options are out there, but integrating them all together is a daunting task. That is one of the driving forces behind our desire to bring complementary solutions under one roof.”

But will VR have staying power? Is VR retail catching on?

Maybe yes. According to a report by PwC As of August 2022, about a third of consumers had tried a VR app in the past six months, and 32% of them purchased products after viewing them in VR. Another November 2022 survey of more than 2.000 US shoppers revealed that approximately 37% planned to shop with VR and augmented reality.

On the other hand, a survey of Deloitte conducted in September revealed that only 5% of US internet users would shop with VR before the holidays of 2022. In a sign of the pressure platform developers face, AltspaceVR, one of the first social VR apps, was recently pulled by parent company Microsoft.

Dogadkina chooses to believe in optimistic predictions, and she has reason to. Despite competition from vendors like Obsess and ByondXR, Emperia has 45 clients in sectors including fashion, beauty, luxury apparel and sports. It has also attracted investment from A league $10 million led by Base10 Partners, joined by Daphni, Sony Ventures, Background Capital, Stanford Capital Partners and Concept Ventures.

Emperia expects to increase its workforce from 40 to 120 employees by the end of the year.

“The pandemic definitely accelerated awareness among retailers of what immersive, technology-driven e-commerce experiences could do and the role they could play in their sales strategy,” says Dogadkina. “The previous hype of an ephemeral, campaign-dependent virtual space has now evolved into a long-term, permanent e-commerce solution, treated as a 'flagship virtual store.' Retailers are much more experienced, with specific roles within those organizations specializing in and overseeing the creation and maintenance of these spaces, with the understanding that the online store is a whole new experience, different from the physical store environment, which presents a real opportunity to broaden the brand's appeal to future shoppers."