Carrefour invents the merchandising showroom. 

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Carrefour, in partnership with Retail VR, is launching an innovative virtual showroom in 2022.  

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An essential complement to the physical showroom in Massy, this virtual showroom is presented to all Carrefour teams directly or indirectly involved in purchasing. 

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Traditionally, twice a year, store managers from all over Europe would visit the Massy showroom (formerly at Les Ulis) to discover and select the new non-food collections. Installed under the company's headquarters, the showroom occupies a large part of the basement and recreates a typical store layout.  

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However, this approach limited access to those who could physically move around. Thanks to Retail VR, Carrefour now provides outlets and franchisees with an immersive digital twin, enabling all store managers and teams to virtually access new products, regardless of their location.

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The virtual showroom faithfully reproduces the physical environment via 360° capture, and incorporates interactive videos in which category managers explain product functionalities. Visitors can navigate through the different spaces, interact with the items, and even order them directly via QR codes made available on certain markets. 

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This solution also offers customization functions adapted to the specific needs of each store, taking into account variations in format, geography and assortment.

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A solution acclaimed by users : 

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After 3 years of use, the company is still a success, and user feedback is clear: 75% of those surveyed are satisfied or very satisfied with the experience. 

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What users remember most is : 

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• the possibility of viewing typical layouts for each category without having to travel. 
• videos integrated into the showroom, providing users with explanations from category managers on the choice of products selected and highlighted. 
• explanatory videos integrated into the showroom to help buyers understand the strategic choices they make when selecting call products. 

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Part of the Carrefour Group's policy to reduce its carbon footprint

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This initiative enables Carrefour to break down geographical barriers, offering an enriched experience accessible to all from a simple computer or even a telephone. 

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The tool offers fluid navigation and features tailored to user profiles. Following the success of the first editions, Carrefour has renewed the experiment every six months. Considering a target population of nearly 6,000 people, that's as many trips that don't take place. The virtual showroom fulfils its role: immersing visitors in the physical showroom in Massy, discovering merchandising recommendations and all the latest non-food products, while limiting physical travel, thus helping to reduce CO2 emissions.

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In short, Carrefour and Retail VR are revolutionizing the way store teams interact with new collections, combining technological innovation, flexibility and ecological commitment.

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How does it work? 

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Shooting teams visit the showroom. In the space of a day, using several cameras, the entire showroom is modeled. 

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During the photo shoot, the focus is on the items that will be showcased in the showroom. 

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After a post-production stage, the showroom is integrated into the Retail VR platform. Media content (pdf, photos and videos) is imported into the tool. Then comes the customization stage, with points of interest (POIs) placed in the scene, enabling visitors to open carousels of product sheets, or directly product sheets in which visuals, videos and all the information buyers need to discover the products are integrated. 

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Then comes the final touches, setting up the home pages, adding 3D signage, and deploying the menus and search bar. 

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The showrooms are organized by market, as the needs and products showcased are not the same from one market to another. 

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A Virtual Collaboration That Continues

This solution, initially incubated by the innovation team under the leadership of Hélène Labaume, is now fully integrated into the operations of the sales teams. Now led by Miguel Perez Vivez, Project Manager non food International, together with the Retail VR teams, Carrefour continues to explore areas of virtual collaboration that are fully in line with the group's "Digital Retail Company" strategy. 

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Video use cases

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Find out in this article how Carrefour integrated the virtual showroom solution into its sales teams' operations, transforming its physical showroom into an immersive virtual space.

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https://horizons.carrefour.com/tech/virtual-showroom-showcasing-new-products-to-our-shop-managers 

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