Hatil sets up virtual showroom in Dhaka

A showroom introduced at Dhaka trade fair by Hatil showcased all of its 800 products. The products were also visible through augmented reality (AR) glasses.

Hatil major distributor of furniture in Bangladesh has come up with a virtual reality showroom a platform for checking or purchasing furniture online.

The online store Hatil V will allow experience 360-degree views of furniture to the customers through mobile virtual reality (VR) headsets and order it online.

A showroom introduced at Dhaka trade fair by Hatil showcased all of its 800 products. The products were also visible through augmented reality (AR) glasses.

Selim H Rahman, the company's managing director said, State Minister for ICT Zunaid Ahmed Palak launched the VR and AR views of Hatil's products. Through this service, customers on a virtual journey will get to see each and every detail of Hatil's furniture in a simulated room environment, On top of that, customers can also change the wood and fabric colour of the furniture as per their choice and compare them side by side.

He said Hatil has done it as part of efforts to gradually replace its traditional sales stores and cut operational expenses to a great extent. A virtual showroom will help save the company around Tk 1.5 lakh a month, which Hatil has to spend to rent a 3,000 square feet space to open its smallest display store. The vendors will also prefer using the state-of-the-art technology now and lose their interest to display products on traditional physical showrooms.

He added, the country has started gaining momentum from digitisation and the virtual showroom for furniture is a part of that.

He said People have now started shopping online for almost all of their needs. That's what has prompted Hatil to introduce something like this.

Hatil, one of the country's largest furniture brands, is now working on it and wants to replace some of its 24 physical showrooms in the capital with the virtual ones in three months. More virtual showrooms across the country will be set up gradually.

Dewan Atif Rashid, business development adviser to Hatil said, People placed 30 orders through the virtual store in the first eight days of the trade fair. We are taking customers' feedback and compiling all of their ideas and opinions so that we can upgrade our virtual showroom.

The furniture brand also demonstrated the virtual showroom concept in one of its distributors' meeting. The company's distributors in India showed interest in using the technology there.

Rahman said, After Dhaka, Hatil will introduce this kind of showroom in Chittagong and then will go for overseas markets, including Canada, Australia, Bhutan and Nepal, where the company has operations. This is the first-of-its-kind service in the subcontinent and we have no idea whether this kind of service exists anywhere in the world or not.

The solution for Hatil after has been produced by a local technology firm Auleek Ltd after conducting one year research.