Registering for your baby – in the metaverse
A digital baby product registry and an augmented reality/virtual reality (AR/VR) shopping platform are teaming up in virtual space.
Babylist is partnering with Obsess to launch the Babylist Cribs Virtual Showroom. This digital store offers a metaverse shopping experience, where consumers can discover, explore and engage with an array of products in a realistic, 3D virtual home and purchase or add those items to their registry.
The metaverse is an omnichannel environment where consumers use AR and VR technology to digitally engage with each other and their surroundings, with crossovers into the physical world.
[Editor’s commentary: What could the ‘Metaverse’ mean for retail?]
Customers can travel through the entire virtual house, checking out a shoppable collection of items including strollers, car seats, sleep essentials, and play gear. Shoppers can click on items to learn about and interact with them as they would in a physical store. In addition, customers can watch videos, read articles, and review Babylist’s expert guides as they navigate the virtual store.
Babylist may be positioning itself at the beginning of a trend. A recent survey from Obsess indicates that 70% of all consumers who have shopped online in a virtual store have made a purchase in one. Overall, one-quarter of respondents have shopped online in a 3D virtual store, and among respondents who had previously shopped online in a virtual store, 60% indicated that they are likely to do so again.
“The retail experience for baby products can be incredibly time-consuming and frankly overwhelming to many parents and gift givers. We are always trying to enhance our customers’ discovery and shopping experience,” said Natalie Gordon, founder and CEO of Babylist. “We’re proud to partner with Obsess to launch this virtual store that gives our customers a new way to learn about and interact with our brand partners’ products, envision how items will look and function in their own home, and easily add them to their baby registry.”
“For many expectant parents, a key part of creating a baby registry is discovering and learning about products that will help keep their growing family happy, healthy and comfortable,” said Neha Singh, founder and CEO of Obsess. “We’re thrilled to partner with Babylist to launch this first-of-its-kind experience at a moment when consumers are looking for more engaging, intuitive and human-centered online shopping environments. Our goal is to make the online registry experience easy, fun and interactive, while helping parents-to-be discover products they didn’t know about before and visualize how they might use them in their own home when their new baby arrives.”
Charlotte Tilbury – metaverse pioneer
Babylist is following in the footsteps of vertical beauty retailer Charlotte Tilbury, which is expanding the functionality of its immersive virtual shopping experience. The retailer initially launched the digitalized version of a brick-and-mortar store, leveraging Obsess technology, on its e-commerce site in November 2020, and more recently rolled out the “Shop with Friends” social shopping tool from Obsess.
The Charlotte Tilbury virtual store is an immersive, three-dimensional shopping environment where customers are guided by a “Magic Charlotte” avatar to virtually duplicate an in-store visit from their own home. Within the virtual store, customers can explore, shop, receive personalized advice and product recommendations, join live events with Tilbury and special guests, and watch makeup and skincare tutorials.