eBay and Myer have joined forces to provide a glimpse into the future of shopping by creating the world’s first virtual reality (VR) department store.

Within the experience more than 12,500 products from Myer can be browsed, selected and added to their cart using eBay Sight Search.

“Until now we have not had the opportunity to physically experience the transformative effect VR could have on retail,” said eBay ANZ managing director Jooman Park.

“By building the world’s first VR department store here in Australia and observing the reactions of thousands of consumers who trial the experience, we have the opportunity to lead the world into the next phase of retailing.

“It’s been important to us that we don’t just replicate the ecommerce experience in a virtual environment. We are taking the best elements of traditional retail and expanding on them to improve browsing, selection, personalisation and efficiency.”

Myer chief executive Richard Umbers said: “This exciting collaboration with eBay reaffirms our commitment to omni-channel and building a truly contemporary and innovative retail offer.

“Our customers can now immerse themselves in the experience of shopping inside a Myer store from wherever they may be, with product information updated in real time to ensure everyone can keep up with the latest offers from Myer.

“This really showcases a department store that can bring the love of shopping to life across both physical and digital environments.”

The VR department store connects to the existing eBay.com.au Application Programming Interface which allows Myer’s product range, pricing and stock information to be updated in real time, a first for virtual reality experiences globally.

eBay and Myer are now offering customers the opportunity to receive their own shopticals (specially designed virtual reality viewers) to start their VR shopping experience. 15,000 shopticals will be available free of charge from www.ebay.com.au/VR.

Owners of shopticals simply download the eBay VR department store app on their smart phone and insert their phone into the shopticals with the app open to start their virtual shopping experience.

“We hope our shopticals make it into the hands of technology lovers, but more importantly, shoppers who might not live close to a department store and can now experience virtual shopping from the comfort of their own home,” Jooman said.