Meta Plans to Expand Retail Presence Amid Rising Smart Glasses Competition

Sure thing, let’s dive in.

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Okay, so there’s this whole thing about Meta, right? You know, the folks over in Silicon Valley chasing those dreams of bringing tech into every nook and cranny of our lives. Apparently, they’ve been tiptoeing around the idea of doing more with retail. You know, like actual brick-and-mortar stuff. Yeah, sounds kinda old school, but maybe that’s the charm?

Anyway, according to this chatty piece from Business Insider, it seems Meta’s finally gearing up to open up more stores. Not those quick pop-ups that vanish into thin air once you just start to like them. Nah, we’re talking legit stores with staff wearing name badges and everything. You can almost imagine it, right? Escaping into the air-con after a long day just to look at some shiny tech.

Someone over there must be rolling their eyes at my excitement, but it seems like this Apple strategy idea is floating around. And insiders? Guess they’re just all “hush-hush,” but come on, can’t you see this is gonna stir up the retail world a bit?

Oh, and if you’ve been living under a rock, Meta’s been fiddling with pop-ups since 2016, and they’ve even played nice with Best Buy to showcase their XR headsets. I mean, who knew virtual reality gear would be the next big thing? I’m still wrapping my head around it.

Now, let’s talk about the snazzy LA pop-up they had last year that got folks buzzing. But besides that, there’s only one Meta Store – a Cinderella standing proudly in Burlingame, California. It’s where you can mess around with Quest 3 or those mighty fancy Ray-Ban Meta glasses.

Yeah, those Ray-Bans are kinda the big deal here, mainly because they’re bedazzled with cameras, a Meta AI assistant, and speakers that whisper sweet nothings. I got distracted at first – AI in glasses, really? But, here we are. They’ve sold a cool million in just 2024 alone, which makes Zuckerberg quite a happy camper.

The company they teamed up with – EssilorLuxottica – has their eyes on boosting production to about 10 million units by 2026. It’s ambitious, sure, but nothing ventured, nothing gained, right? Maybe I should get a pair…or maybe not. Decisions, decisions.

But hold up – there’s a rumor mill spinning around about some new types of smart glasses. Bloomberg spilled some beans in April, suggesting Meta’s cooking up designs like Oakley sport glasses with displays. I’m guessing there’s a long wait list already forming somewhere.

Oh, and did I mention the plot thickens with Google and Apple jumping into the smart glasses pond? Google’s buddy-buddy with Warby Parker to come up with Android XR glasses. And Apple? They’re tinkering in the lab with chips akin to those in Apple Watches. Talk about tech wars, huh?

So, yeah, Meta’s retail game might just shake things up. Or maybe they’ll just blend into the background. Who knows, really? Just keep your eyes peeled next time you stroll through the mall. Something might catch your attention — or maybe I just got sidetracked again. Whoops.