Lowe’s releases free metaverse assets
Lowe’s Companies Inc. is taking a slightly different approach to metaverse commerce.
The home improvement giant is debuting in the metaverse by making more than 500 3D product assets available for download for free via Lowe's Open Builder, a new asset hub designed to be available to all Web 3.0 creators.
Lowe's will also release a limited NFT wearable collection for builders in the Decentraland metaverse environment to the first 1,000 Lowe’s Open Builder hub participants who link to their MetaMask cryptocurrency wallet. The NFTs will be accessible via a free airdrop.
3D assets that will be available include such items as lighting, patio furniture, area rugs, kitchen and bath accessories, and décor accents. Assets will be usable across metaverse and non-metaverse environments, such as gaming, augmented reality, and creative design. Meanwhile, custom, wearable NFTs will focus on the outfitting of metaverse builders.
Lowe’s builds on AR offerings
Lowe’s is entering the metaverse commerce space following a couple of years of developing offerings that leverage augmented reality (AR) technology. These include the beta version of an end-to-end room scanning, measurement and estimate tool called “Measure Your Space” in its iOS app.
The app guides customers to scan a room, automatically generating a floor plan, room measurements and a personalized estimate. iPhones and iPads with the LiDAR ((light detection and ranging) scanner use purpose-built sensors and software to sense depth and map dimensions of a space and the objects in it.
Measure Your Space will start with flooring. Over time, Lowe’s intent is to expand the experience to include other features, such as the ability to visualize flooring changes in real-time, with the potential to incorporate other product categories and expand to additional smartphones and devices.
According to Lowe’s, Measure Your Space is an example of it broader vision for “spatial commerce,” a future omnichannel shopping environment where emerging technologies will put home data at customers' fingertips, making home improvement more accessible.
This offering follows the June 2020 release of Lowe’s for Pros JobSight, an augmented video chat service based on Streem technology that allows plumbers, contractors and other professionals (“pros”) to conduct virtual home visits with customers.
“We've been at the forefront of building since the beginning, and the metaverse is in a pivotal stage of development. It's only natural that we would be interested in working alongside and in service of the emerging community of builders creating this new world, with the democratization of possibility in mind," said Marisa Thalberg, Lowe's chief brand and marketing officer. "At the same time, we are also very clear on our reason for being – to make homes better for all by helping our customers to create real world value in their homes, in their jobs and in their communities. This will continue to be our North Star in the metaverse."
"Over the past several years, we have infused new technologies into the planning and shopping experience and know our customers have benefitted greatly from being able to explore and test home improvement projects in the virtual world before taking the leap to implementation in their real-world homes or job sites," said Seemantini Godbole, CIO of Lowe's. "By entering the metaverse now, we can explore new opportunities to serve, enable and inspire our customers in a way no other home improvement retailer today is doing."
Starting today, users can visit LowesOpenBuilder.com to access and download Lowe's 3D product assets and NFT.LowesOpenBuilder.com through July 20, 2022 to link their MetaMask wallet and sign up for the airdrop.
Based in Mooresville, N.C., Lowe's and its related businesses operate or service more than 2,200 home improvement and hardware stores.