Vroom, America’s largest direct online car retailer, today announced the launch of its new virtual reality showroom, bringing a groundbreaking immersive experience to online car buying. Advanced virtual reality technology allows customers to explore a three-dimensional showroom stocked with vehicles currently for sale on Vroom’s website. Using HTC Vive headsets, users can go on 360-degree-view test drives, access vehicle information, and hear the real sounds of specific engines roaring to life, all without having to spend the day at a dealership.
The virtual showroom provides an authentic, easy, and fun experience in line with Vroom’s commitment to empowering customers to shop on their terms. The experience will be available to try at Vroom’s facilities in Dallas and Houston, as well as at a pop-up location in the Phoenix area, with additional locations planned for the future.
Vroom has a pop-up location at the Fashion Square Mall (7014 E Camelback Rd in Scottsdale), where shoppers can put on an HTC Vive headset to explore and compare several cars side by side in just minutes, plus take a test drive and hear the engine.
The pop-up will be open to the public starting the week of August 15.
“The majority of shoppers enter the market not knowing what car they want, so we are excited to use VR to give car buyers a truly immersive experience that lets them discover and explore cars at their leisure,” said Gaurav Misra, CMO of Vroom. “To date, there’s been a lot of noise about VR experiences related to entertainment and gaming, so we are thrilled to be one of the first innovators offering a real-world shopping experience that is rich, meaningful, useful and entertaining.”
The first VR showroom available will feature 15 different makes and models of cars in Vroom’s Affordable Performance category, and features a curated set of sports cars with a price range of between $25,000 to $60,000. These models were chosen for the initial launch because they represent the optimal mix of marketplace popularity and cover 155 cars in Vroom’s typical inventory. Customers can easily access Vroom’s real-time inventory within the experience and seven other vehicle categories will be rolling out in the future, representing nearly 300 makes and 1,600 individual cars. These additional car collections will include ultra sports cars, luxury SUVs, standard SUVs, pickup trucks, luxury sedans and standard sedans. The VR experience was created in partnership with 900lbs of Creative, a Dallas creative agency.
“Our VR showroom allows our customers to virtually test-drive 10 cars in 10 minutes, rather than spending 10 hours at dealerships,” said Paul Hennessy, CEO of Vroom. “We’re committed to leveraging cutting-edge technology to simplify the car buying process and Vroom’s new virtual showroom inspires trust and confidence, while demonstrating the high quality of the cars we sell. Our goal is to enable customers to shop on their own terms.”
Vroom continues to lead the disruption of the traditional car dealership business model by combining innovative technology with a deep automotive acumen and a commitment to empowering its customers. Vroom enables shoppers to easily find masterfully refurbished, pre-owned cars at no-haggle prices for 8% less than market value on average. The company provides 100% free car delivery nationwide, a 7-day money back guarantee, and a 90-day bumper-to-bumper warranty.
For more information, visit Vroom.com.
