inVRsion

inVRsion, founded in Milan in 2015, specializes in creating hyper-realistic virtual reality simulations for the retail and consumer packaged goods (CPG) industries. The company was established by Matteo Esposito, Flora Caroli, Paolo Pascolo, and Luca Ferrari Trecate with the vision of applying VR technology, then primarily associated with gaming, to transform the future of the shopping experience. Co-founder and CEO Matteo Esposito brought experience from the digital communications and multimedia application development fields, having previously co-founded the digital agency Imille. Flora Caroli's background in graphic design and illustration contributes to the company's focus on visual realism.

The company's core business revolves around its proprietary, cloud-based SaaS platform, ShelfZone. This platform enables B2B clients, including major brands like Nestlé and PepsiCo, to design, test, and showcase retail environments in a virtual space. Key use cases include trade marketing presentations, store and category management, planogram optimization, and shopper behavior analysis. By integrating biometric and neuroscientific devices like eye-tracking and EEG, clients can gather in-depth data on consumer engagement and decision-making before committing to physical store implementations. The business model is primarily subscription-based, providing clients with the software to autonomously manage their virtual projects, supplemented by services like consulting.

inVRsion's technology focuses on creating high-fidelity '3D Digital Twins' of products using a patented, AI-driven digitization process. This allows for the rapid creation of scalable, photorealistic digital assets that can be used across various platforms, from VR simulations to web-based 3D e-commerce and augmented reality applications. The company has received multiple awards for its solutions, including honors from Popai and the Retail Institute. After several funding rounds totaling over $13 million, inVRsion was acquired by Vection Technologies in August 2023 and now operates as a subsidiary, with offices in Milan and New York.

Keywords: retail virtual reality, CPG simulation, 3D digital twins, shopper research, category management, ShelfZone, trade marketing technology, virtual store simulation, planogram optimization, immersive retail solutions, V-Commerce, consumer behavior analysis, 3D product digitization, retail analytics, virtual reality e-commerce, B2B SaaS, retail technology, virtual showroom, augmented reality retail, neuroscientific marketing, Matteo Esposito, Vection Technologies