Home goods retailer jumps into augmented reality app

Pottery Barn customers in the San Francisco area will soon be able to see how a product will look in their home before they buy it.



The retailer, a division of Williams-Sonoma, will launch its first smartphone augmented reality app later this month. Called 3D Room View, the app is powered by Tango technology from Google. (It can be used only on Tango enabled smartphones.)



In launching its new app, Pottery Barn is following in the footsteps of such other home goods brands as Ikea and Wayfair, which already offer AR apps.



The Pottery Barn app will launch with a focus on the living room and add additional spaces during the year. It allows customers to either add products to an existing room, enabling them to see how new products will look with their current furniture and decor, or they can empty the room to start the design process from scratch. The app will offer five living room features to start: customers can add, move and remove furniture, rugs, lamps and pillows, change the color of the upholstery or pillows, and zoom in to see details or finish, and more.



Customers will also have access to 3D Room View with the help and expertise of in-store design specialists at select Pottery Barn stores in the San Francisco Bay Area, with plans to roll out across the country.



In addition, Pottery Barn is launching two 3D design and visualization room-planning tools this month, 360 Spin by Pottery Barn and Design Your Perfect Desk by PBteen, available on Web and mobile. With 360 Spin, customers can view a Pottery Barn sofa from all angles, with 120 sofa styles available to start and more being added every week. With Design Your Perfect Desk, PBteen customers can pick their favorite desk and build a room around it, from the paint color on the walls to the accessories on the desk.



“Our brands have always been a source of inspiration for customers, and we’re excited to enhance that experience by introducing the latest AR technology and visualization tools to help customers design a room by envisioning how Pottery Barn products will look and fit in their actual space,” said John Strain, executive VP , chief digital and technology officer of Williams-Sonoma. “Our vision is to offer innovative shopping and design capabilities across all Williams-Sonoma, Inc. brands, starting with Pottery Barn and PBteen this spring.”