How IKEA is using virtual reality to launch a new shopping experience

Virtual reality has now become a part of the shopping experience with home furnishing store IKEA launching an app that will give customer a completely new way to explore before they buy.

The IKEA VR Experience is a new app that’s been developed for the HTC Vive headset in a pilot program that will explore new ways to empower customers.

For IKEA, the VR app will be initially used in its kitchen department.

This means a customer can not only customise the design, colours and features of their future kitchen but, thanks to the VR technology, step inside it and move around the virtual room.

It is made to appear like it would in the real world and even has option to experience the kitchen at your own height as well as the height of a child to ensure there are no hidden dangers.

Customer will also be able to interact with various objects like drawers and doors and also place a frying pan on the stove and put objects into a waste sorting station.

“Virtual reality is developing fast and in five to ten years it will be an integrated part of people’s lives,” says Jesper Brodin, managing director at IKEA of Sweden and Range & Supply Manager at IKEA Group

“We see that virtual reality will play a major role in the future of our customers, for instance it could be used to enable customers to try out a variety of home furnishing solutions before buying them.”

Tim Prevade, Range Manager for IKEA Australia, added: “Australians are known for embracing the latest technology and innovations, so virtual reality has the potential to transform the way people interact with our products in the home.

“We look forward to hearing our customers’ feedback on the experience as we continue to explore this space in the future.”

The app has been created using the Unreal Engine 4 from Epic Games and has been adapted to the HTC Vive VR headset.