According to a new report, Meta, formerly Facebook, plans to open retail stores where potential customers can experience the wide range of products the company offers in a “welcoming” and “judgment-free” atmosphere.
In the New York Times report It is said that Facebook executives floated the idea of a physical retail store last year. But after the company rebranded itself as "Meta," the project is now gaining a little more momentum. According to the New York Times, initial sketches of the store show a minimalist and modern design that is intended to make customers feel curious and close. The company has considered several names for its chain of stores, with "Facebook Store" apparently being the top choice. The report states:
Facebook Store aims to make the world “more open and connected”
The goal of the stores is to make the world "more open and connected," according to company documents seen by The Times. They are also designed to evoke emotions such as "curiosity, closeness" and a feeling of being "welcome" while experimenting with headsets in a "judgment-free journey," the documents say. Initial designs for Meta's stores looked modern, with a flat, minimalist aesthetic to the buildings and subtle placement of the Facebook brand, according to the documents. The company considered naming its stores Facebook Hub, Facebook Commons, Facebook Innovations, Facebook Reality Store and From Facebook before finally settling on the Facebook Store.
The renaming from Facebook to Meta is part of Mark Zuckerberg's vision to transform the company into a metaverse company. Zuckerberg said that the renaming laid the foundation for the next chapter in his company's history. When Meta opens a physical store, which according to the report will be located in Burlingame, California, it would be the first physical branch of Meta, which has more than 3.5 billion digital users worldwide. In the "Facebook Store" you could try out a number of Oculus products, which will also be called Meta as part of the renaming. This means that products like the Oculus Quest will be renamed Meta Quest. Whether the whole thing will ultimately be realized remains to be seen, of course. (Image: Meta)