Milan-based online luxury retailer Yoox Net-a-Porter is developing technology to allow customers to buy Prada and Versace goods through WhatsApp, according to a report by Bloomberg.
In an interview, Yoox Net-a-Porter CEO Federico Marchetti told Bloomberg that the firm is planning to expand its service on the mobile app as it witnessed some of its personal shoppers communicating to top clients on the messaging app.
In August last year it changed its privacy rules to test ways for people to communicate with businesses.
“We want to explore ways for you to communicate with businesses that matter to you too, while still giving you an experience without third-party banner ads and spam,” WhatsApp said in a blogpost.
The Facebook-owned instant messaging app had also hinted to expand its network in enterprises in India.
WhatsApp has over 1 billion active users worldwide and over 200 million in India alone.
Brian Acton, co-founder of WhatsApp confirmed the company’s work on a new platform targeted at small businesses in India, “WhatsApp for Business is all about small and medium businesses, where you have a small employee count and have a large customer count, and the goals are very different,” Acton said.
