This state-of-the-art design tool, which can be found at www.homedepot.com/designcenter, enables customers to experiment with 9,500 branded products in millions of combinations, allowing them to dream, design and visualize their new kitchen or bathroom online, create a shopping list and purchase products in-store.
"Our kitchen & bath design center helps customers through one of the most challenging and time consuming phases of remodeling: visualizing how specific products look together before purchasing," said Chuck Elias, Vice President of eBusiness for Home Depot. "When a customer comes into the store with ideas already identified -- and actual products they prefer -- our experts are able to help them plan more efficiently and effectively."
According to Jupiter Media Metrix, a provider of Internet and new technology analysis and measurement, home improvement retailers have the highest potential of any retailer to benefit from in-store sales based on online research. Jupiter says that online tools help customers find products and help the stores to operate more effectively by having the customer come in pre-educated about products.
Home Depot's Online Kitchen & Bath Design Center allows customers to select from more than 75 kitchens and bathrooms in different styles, ranging from country to eclectic. Within each room, the customer can point-and-click to customize thousands of cabinets, countertops, flooring, wallpaper, fixtures, paint, appliances and other options. The customer can then print a summary with visuals of each product and take it to a Home Depot store to work with a kitchen and bath sales associate.
The design center represents an entirely new way for vendors to market their products. These vendors include Kohler, Kraftmaid, American Standard, DuPont Corian, Armstrong and more. Customers can change out and view products together in a way that could never be done before.
Scene7's proprietary Infinite Imaging technology lets customers instantly change out elements of an image - including color, material, pattern, trim, texture and surface. This one-of-a-kind technology enables customers to mix and match an almost endless number of options and see them instantly in an actual room environment. Every option is presented in absolute photo-realism, highlighting colors, reflections, textures, lighting and shadows.
