One of the dreams of e-commerce is to bring together the richness of data on the web with the experience of actually being in a store. To date this has been done using mobiles to add to the in-store experience. But think again. Now Avenue Imperial is bring the ability to walk around icon stores from your laptop, tablet or mobile from wherever you may be.
Launching with Start London in Shoreditch and The Corner in Berlin, high-definition panoramic imagery, updated on a weekly basis, recreates these iconic stores online. Customers virtually ‘walk’ through the store and shop the collections available.
Some stores will include a SnapShot function in their service, which allows customers to take a snapshot of a product they like and instantly connects them with a live in-store assistant for detailed advice and the ability to buy. Customers will now be able to get the full physical shopping experience online, including the personal service that comes with it.
The transaction and delivery arrangement with the store will use the existing e-commerce channels, including click and collect. Transatlantic shopping travel will become a thing of the past as shoppers in Shanghai, Hong Kong or LA a will browse stores in Paris, London or Milan – and vice versa – without leaving their homes.
The service also allows you to connect with friends across the world to share the shopping experience together from their respective laptops and mobiles. Perfect for choosing gifts for family spread across the world.
Nick Rossi, CEO of Avenue Imperial explains: “A store is much more than just a product catalogue and we want to bring the excitement of shopping back to consumers. Stores and brands put a huge amount of effort into product selection, the store layout, the display, and the expertise of their staff. Using Avenue Imperial, customers can now benefit from all of that from the comfort of their own homes. From initial feedback we can see how fresh and immersive Avenue Imperial makes online shopping compared to the flat catalogue style e-commerce we have all got used to over the past 20 years.”
Julian Ball, CTO, adds: “The quality of the technology and imagery we have developed over the past 12 months is outstanding and really pushes the boundaries of online shopping expectations. We are starting with fashion and see future for galleries, furniture stores and specialist shops, anything with a unique offer and store experience to share with the world.”
