Meta, a.k.a. the company previously known as Facebook, might be looking at opening brick-and-mortar shops. The New York Times reported that the company had been discussing this option since last year and before it rebranded into Meta. Nothing has been finalized about the plans, though, and Meta could still scrap it.
But if it does happen, the brand wants to use these stores to showcase the devices its Reality Labs division has developed. These include the Oculus Quest (or soon-to-be Meta Quest) virtual reality headsets, Portal devices, and the Facebook x Ray-Ban Stories smart glasses. The company's goal is reportedly to spark "curiosity" and "closeness" with its stores and where they can have a "judgment free journey" while experimenting with headsets.
According to the documents The Times saw, the stores are envisioned to have a modern, minimalistic look with subtle branding placement. It was supposedly going to be named Facebook Store, but if it pushes through, that will need to change now that the company has a new name. If Meta pushes through with the plan, the first "experience store" will be at Burlingame, California, where the Reality Labs office is located. But there are plans to bring the project to different countries.
Source: Engadget