Blog4 min read
A 3D virtual store for e-commerce: who is it for and how do you plan one?
A 3D virtual store adds, next to the product list on your e-commerce site, a space people can walk through where products are seen in place, as in a store, and bought. This article covers how a virtual store differs from a classic product page, who it makes sense for and how it is planned.
VinionaPublished:
In short
- A 3D virtual store adds, next to the product list, a walkable space where products are seen in their place in the store, at true scale.
- It makes sense when the store’s atmosphere, the product’s size or the brand’s story matters in selling; a physical store is not required.
- Planning starts with the store concept and ends with the Shopify connection; shopping runs in sync through the official Shopify integration.
In this article
Your e-commerce site is tidy: categories, filters, product photos on white backgrounds. But what someone feels when they step into a physical store, the light, the layout, coming across a product while walking between the shelves, isn’t on those pages. The product list says what you sell; it doesn’t say what kind of place your brand is.
A 3D virtual store adds that missing layer. This article covers how a virtual store differs from a classic product page, who it makes sense for and how it is planned.
How is it different from a classic product page?
A classic e-commerce page shows products as a list. A 3D virtual store shows products in their place in the store, at true scale; customers come across products while walking around the store.
| Classic product list | 3D virtual store | |
|---|---|---|
| How is the product seen? | In photos and descriptions | In its place in the store, at true scale |
| How do customers browse? | With categories and filters | By walking freely through the store |
| How is the brand told? | Through page design | Through the space’s architecture, light and materials |
| Buying | Cart and checkout page | Through the official Shopify integration, in sync with your Shopify store |
A 3D virtual store doesn’t have to replace the product list; it adds a layer of experience people can walk through.
Who is it for?
A 3D virtual store makes sense when the store’s atmosphere, the product’s size or the brand’s story plays an important part in selling:
Brands with a physical store
The store’s atmosphere moves online; the store never closes.
Online-only brands
You describe what your store should be like and we design it; your brand gets a space.
Retail and fashion brands
Products are seen on the shelves, in their store layout.
If presenting the product comes first and buying isn’t required, a virtual showroom may be the better fit.
How is a 3D virtual store planned?
Planning starts with the store concept and is completed with the Shopify connection. If you have an architectural plan we work from it; if not, from your description.
- ConceptPlan or description
- 3D storeAt true scale
- Products3D files (.glb)
- ShopifySynced shopping
- Test & launchOne link
We shape your store together.
If you have an architectural plan, we build from it. If not, tell us how you picture your store and we'll design it — or leave the design entirely to us.
Your store takes shape in 3D.
The plan or brief becomes a 3D store you can walk through.
Your products take their place.
You send us your products' 3D files; we place each one where it belongs in the store.
Shopping, in exact sync.
Through the official Shopify integration, shopping in your 3D store runs in exact sync with your Shopify store.
Tested, then opened to the world.
Once the system is tested, your store goes live — reachable from anywhere in the world.
Example: the Blackbörk virtual store
Blackbörk virtual store
In the virtual store we built for Blackbörk, visitors can walk around, shop and take part in a range of interactions. The store opens from a single link with no app, plug-in or installation; lighting, material textures and scale were kept true to the original space.
Your next step
Answer two questions: does your store have a plan, or will you describe it? Are the 3D files of the products that will be in the virtual store ready? Those two answers are the first item on the planning agenda.
When you’re ready, choose the “Increase sales” goal in the Quote Wizard. If you’re curious about the Shopify side, see our article Adding a 3D virtual showroom to a Shopify store.
