Snap36 specializes in high volume, cost efficient 3D and 360 degree product photography, providing spin photography services & solutions for ecommerce sites.
Source: Snap36: 360 Degree Product Photography & 3D Spin Photography Services
One of the most exciting things in the sneaker industry this year has been the acquisition of technology companies by both brands and retailers:
Footlocker invested into both Rockets of Awesome and Super Heroic as well as Carbon38. Those aren’t “tech” companies, but they are all digitally native companies. They capped off their round of investments by nabbing a share of sneaker resale app GOAT.
Nike has invested in Invertex and Grabit, both technology companies.
adidas aligned with Station F in Paris to launch an incubator for startups.
ASICS created its own incubator and recently invested into motion capturing company Curv Labs.
The sneaker industry even has its own unicorn in StockX.
All of this is to say that the startup environment in the sneaker industry looks like the dot com boom of the 90s… Okay that’s a bit of hyperbole, but there is a considerable amount of money floating between established brands and retailers into startups that can create a better shopping experience for the consumer.
What is Snap36?
Many in the sneaker industry are unaware of the company, but they also interact with the company on a daily basis. Snap36 has delivered one of the most efficient and effective 360 degree product photography businesses in the industry. The list of companies utilizing the tech is extensive: Amazon, Lowes, Siemens and Home Depot, to name a few. On the sneaker side, which comprises a small amount of the company’s business, the list is just as impressive: Puma, Rack Room and even the latest unicorn StockX.
The question is, why do I see Snap36 as the next acquisition in the sneaker industry? Watch this video. It’s about a minute long.
Understand that this model isn’t walking on an actual catwalk. This is the Virtual Rotating Runway by Snap36. Snap36 has been around for almost ten years. They have been able to work as a privately held company, so why would I make a prediction like this at this moment? My reasoning deals with the need for proprietary tech ownership for brands. As every brand jockeys for position by declaring their goals for sustainability, consumers aren’t quite as engaged in how they shape the eco-system. What the consumer does want is a more three dimensional way to see how the product they are interested in looks when shopping on their phone and computers.
Snap36 can continue moving forward and acquiring end users for their technology. But their work with one athletic company sparked my interest in seeing more than just a sneaker product in 360. At the root of my prediction is the use of the VRR shown above and discussed in the video below.
The company worked with Puma recently.
PUMA North America Headquarters (PNA) chose to work with Snap36 because of its fully automated, best-in-class, robotic photography systems. With Snap36 equipment now in its Westford in-house studio, PUMA is producing images for multiple SKUs the same day the samples are received. Immediate access to these images improves the internal sell-in process and accelerates getting product samples back into rotation with the sales team.
With the growth of online shopping, PUMA faces strict image requirements from its numerous ecommerce channels, including DICK’S Sporting Goods, Costco, Kohl’s, and JC Penney. One such request came from Footlocker.com in preparation for the RS-0 X Roland launch. The PUMA studio shot multiple angles of the product and received feedback that the images looked vastly better than the photography previously provided by Footlocker itself, in terms of styling and image quality.
When I discovered this I saw an opportunity based on an old video of a Fenty show.
Why Would a Sneaker or Retail Brand Attempt to Acquire Snap36?
Predicting mergers/acquisitions is typically the realm of those who operate in the stock market and with venture capital firms. One of the perks of operating an independent site is being able to play around with ideas. If I were consulting Puma I would tell the brand to make a proprietary play and consider investing into Snap36.
Every sneaker brand is investing in technology. I didn’t mention Puma at the lead, but they are working on a program called BioEvolution to create uppers made with microorganisms.That tech isn’t nearly as exciting as an acquisition of Snap36 would be, let me explain why.
Puma is a fashion forward brand. Imagine bringing Snap36 under the umbrella of the company and then generating both a fashion house styled presence at shows in Paris and NYC, and also generating a virtual runway show for each fashion/hyped release of footwear. These virtual shows can then be incorporated into content on YT and social media. Footwear and apparel take on three dimensional aspects as opposed to flat pictures being shared by media outlets.
Imagine this, an athlete is debuting a new colorway of their signature sneaker. Around the VRR (on green screen) is content generated by Instagram users. The IG user can insert themselves into the video uploaded to the site and the athlete can actually walk in the city with the fan and give them a shoutout.
Snap36 offers brands or retailers a unique opportunity to create fashion shows independent of the grand displays required by a physical location. The speed and ease in which this can be done creates a unique opportunity to generate content unlike any other company in the sneaker industry.
The opportunities are amazing and beyond the basic 360 rotation of a product, which in all honesty, is currently one of the best selling points of the technology. Snap36 could continue to exist as it is, but for selfish reasons I really think a sports brand should consider adding the tech company to their portfolio. Use the source link at the lead to read more about Snap36.
