Amazon is taking a big step towards the Metaverse with its immersive shopping experience

Amazon now allows its customers to buy real goods in storefronts in virtual worlds.

The email giant unveils Amazon Anywhere, an offering that for the first time allows customers to shop and buy physical Amazon products in virtual environments such as video games, augmented reality (AR) and third-party mobile apps.

Amazon is rolling out the feature in Peridot, a new mobile game from Niantic that features artificial intelligence AI-powered virtual pets and overlays AR imagery over “real world” environments. After seamlessly connecting their Amazon account to Peridot, customers can discover and buy Peridot-branded products on Amazon directly from within the game.

Items available for purchase include t-shirts, hoodies, phone accessories, and throw pillows. In the Peridot environment, customers see product details, images, availability, Prime eligibility, price and estimated delivery date just like in Amazon stores.

After customers add a Peridot product to their cart, they can tap the Buy button within the experience to checkout through their linked Amazon account. Products are shipped to customers just like any other Amazon purchase and they can track and manage orders through the Amazon app.

Amazon offers this new immersive shopping opportunity to developers and creators of virtual worlds, video games and mobile apps. The e-merchant provides product selection, shipping and fulfillment functions.

Amazon launches Metaverse in India

Amazon Anywhere follows the company September 2022 pilot project of “Amazonmetaworld“, a metaverse of digital gamification experiences in five Indian cities – Kanpur, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Nagpur and Chandigarh. Consumers could go to physical experience centers where they create a virtual avatar and don a virtual reality (VR) headset.

Activities available on Amazon’s Indian Metaverse platform included competing in virtual games with other customers to earn points and win prizes, and meeting social media influencers virtually, but no direct e-commerce.

Retailers jump into the metaverse

While most surveys indicate that the majority of consumers are not yet active Metaverse participants, more and more retailers are establishing themselves as pioneers in Metaverse commerce.

gap, PacsunAnd Facebook parent meta (which has changed its corporate identity to reflect a metaverse orientation) and Amazon’s main competitor Walmart are just some of them.

“By working with developers like Niantic, we can show customers new and creative ways to discover relevant products beyond traditional online stores, enabling more immersive and engaging experiences both inside and outside of virtual worlds,” said Steve Downer, VP of Consumer electronics at Amazon.

“We’re excited to bring amazing new features to our players through Amazon Anywhere in Peridot,” said Ziah Fogel, director of production at Peridot. “It’s never been easier for our fans to purchase physical branded items directly in the experience, without ever having to leave the game. This really brings the Peridot universe to life, creating more ways for our players to engage with the brand and helping to merge the virtual and physical worlds.”