Serial Entrepreneur, Godard Abel, Leads $10 Million Investment in 3D Product Visualization Technology, ThreeKit

Customer Experience ManagementTechnology

By MTS Staff Writer On Jan 23, 2019

Strategic Investment Further Strengthens 3D Visualization Capabilities, Allowing Brands to Create More Interactive and Personalized Online Shopping Experiences

Serial entrepreneur, Godard Abel, has led a $10 million seed round investment in ThreeKit, a 3D product configuration and visualization platform, to help the company further meet the demands of brands for more interactive and personalized e-commerce experiences. The investment will fund talent acquisition, and product and business development for the rapidly growing company.

ThreeKit was founded by Ben Houston, a 15-year veteran in Hollywood Visual FX software, and a dedicated group of 3D pioneers and visual effects professionals. After creating 3D visualization technology for the special effects used in some of Hollywood’s biggest blockbuster movies, the group has been working with brands to use this same technology to revolutionize the online experience. Houston will now serve as Chief Technology Officer of ThreeKit.

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Abel will take the role of executive chairman of ThreeKit. The leadership team will be comprised of B2B commerce veterans from several well-known companies in the space, including BigMachines (acquired by Oracle), SteelBrick (acquired by Salesforce), CloudCraze (acquired by Salesforce), and G2 Crowd. Executives will include:

Joachim Klein, President and COO
John Kim, SVP of Sales
Slava Kovelman, VP of Operations
Kelly Wilson, VP of Customer Success
Nancy Rizkallah, VP of Finance

Together, the team has created over $1 billion in investor value and over 1,000 high-tech jobs. Now, they will leverage their expertise to give brands the ability to differentiate their customer experiences through next-generation 3D product visualization, virtual photography and augmented reality (AR).

“Traditionally visualization technologies have been clunky and difficult to use, but ThreeKit is a holistic platform that allows sellers to create their own interactive product experiences for their web stores,” said Houston. “Originally built for Hollywood, we saw a major opportunity to bring this technology to e-commerce, and are leading a new standard of product experience in the industry.”

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ThreeKit’s solutions allow brands to move from static images to a completely interactive 3D experience online, with features such as custom product designs, product tours and more. Additionally, powerful AR and virtual photography capabilities allow customers to preview their customizations before making their purchase decision. By using these tools and showing consumers exactly what they’re getting, brands can see a 40 percent increase in online conversions and an 80 percent reduction in online returns. Brands already leveraging ThreeKit technology include Crate & Barrel, Steelcase and CÎROC.

“There has been a critical gap in the ability of brands to provide engaging product experiences in their web stores, but ThreeKit is solving for this by fulfilling the touch and feel needs consumers have when shopping online,” said Abel. “It’s clear the company is leading a new generation of immersive and experiential commerce, and I look forward to accelerating its momentum to be a world market leader in 3D visualization technology.”