Modular Product Configurator: Benefits, Use Case and Costs

Imagine shopping online for a modular shelving system.

You find a design you like, but you're not sure which combination fits your wall, how the finishes will look together, or what the wall you have in mind will cost. You look through the product photos, check the measurements and try to picture the result in your home.

For many customers, that uncertainty is enough to leave without buying.

A modular product configurator changes the experience. Instead of asking customers to imagine their shelving, you let them build it on your product page. With CharpstAR's 3D configurator, shoppers can add and remove modules, choose finishes, see the size and the price of their wall, and place it in their own room with augmented reality (AR).

Try the shelving configurator we built. The shelving system and its prices are examples we made for this demo.

What Is a Modular Product Configurator?

A modular product configurator is an interactive tool on your product page that lets customers build a product from its parts, within your product rules, and see it in 3D while they build it.

In our shelving configurator, customers can:

• Start from a ready-made layout or from a single frame
• Add frames where they fit and remove the ones they don't need
• Give each frame a door, drawers or a back panel
• Choose the frame colour and the finish for boards and doors
• Enter the size of their wall and let the configurator fill it
• See the price and the overall size of the wall they've built
• Save the wall as a link and share it
• Place the finished wall in their room with AR

A configurator like this suits any product that is sold in modules or with many variations, such as shelving, modular sofas, wardrobes, kitchens, office furniture and outdoor structures.

Why Use a Modular Product Configurator for E-commerce?

Selling modular products online is hard. A single shelving system can be put together in thousands of ways, and photographing every combination isn't possible. A configurator turns your range into something customers can explore and buy on their own.

Increase Conversion by Removing Uncertainty

Customers buy with more confidence when they can see exactly what they're getting. They can build the wall, check its size against their space and see it in their room before they order. That leaves fewer reasons to hesitate, contact support or put the decision off.

Increase Average Order Value

Every door, drawer and back panel shows its price, and the total for the wall is always on screen, so adding to it is easy. A customer who starts with a small configuration may decide that an extra column or a cupboard suits them better, and they can see what it adds straight away.

Reduce Returns and Ordering Mistakes

Large products are expensive to send back when the size or the combination turns out to be wrong. With the measurements on screen and the wall shown in their room, customers know what they're ordering. And because the configurator only offers combinations that can be manufactured, the orders you receive can be made.

Simplify the Buying Process

Customers make every choice in one place, without comparing product pages, specification sheets and price lists or waiting for a reply from customer service.

Reduce Photography and Content Costs

One set of 3D models shows every combination, finish and colour. New finishes and modules are added to the same models, so your range can grow without a new photo shoot for every version.

Use Case: Modular Shelving

Shelving is a strong fit for a configurator, because customers have to balance looks, storage, the space they have and their budget at the same time.

How the Shelving Configurator Works

Customers start from a ready-made layout, such as a living room or a hallway wall, or from a single frame. Then they:

1. Add frames wherever a plus mark shows that a frame can go
2. Tap a frame to give it a door, drawers or a back panel
3. Choose the frame colour and the finish, or give one frame a colour of its own
4. Enter the width and height of their wall to fill the space automatically
5. Check the price, the overall size and the parts list
6. Save the wall as a link, or place it in their room with AR

The configurator follows your product rules, so customers can only build walls that can be made.

What Reaches You When Someone Orders

The order arrives in your shop or order system with the option codes, a plain-text description, the price and a link to the saved wall. On Shopify, where a product can only have three options, the wall goes into the cart as one line item with the chosen parts attached. The living room wall in the demo would arrive like this:

Brands Already Using CharpstAR Configurators

We built Sweef's modular sofa configurator from 3D files Sweef already had, and you can try it on sweef.se. In the words of Sweef's founder: "For us, the value was in making a complex modular product feel simple for the customer."

Together with Contura we made the Build Your Stove configurator, which shoppers use online and Contura's retailers use in their shops. Contura saw more engagement with stove specifications and downloads, and customers often arrived at retailers with a clearer idea of which stove they wanted.

How to Add a Modular Configurator to Your Website

You don't need to rebuild your online shop. The configurator goes on your existing product pages, and orders go through your own checkout.

Step 1: Share Your Product Information

Send us a link to the product page and your list of modules and finishes with their prices. CAD files help but aren't required, and we'll ask for samples or close photos of your finishes.

Step 2: Get a Plan and a Price

Within a working day, we tell you what your range needs and what it would cost.

Step 3: We Build the Models and the Rules

We create the 3D models and set up which parts fit together and what each combination measures and costs. Then you test the configurator on your own page. A colour and material configurator is live in about two weeks, and a modular range, with more rules to build, takes longer.

Step 4: Go Live

The configurator goes on your product page as one snippet on Shopify, Shopware, Magento, WooCommerce or a custom-built site, and we help you place it.

How to Measure the ROI of a Modular Configurator

Measure the configurator against the figures you already track:

Results depend on your products, your traffic and your prices, so compare the same products before and after, or run an A/B test.

How Much Does a Modular Product Configurator Cost?

A modular range has more rules than a product with colour options, so we quote it per range. The quote covers the 3D models of your modules, the rules for which parts fit and what each combination measures and costs, and the hand-over of orders to your shop or your CPQ system. Before you decide, we build a working demo on one of your own products, and there's no contract until you've tested the configurator on your page.

For products with colour and material options only, the Value plan starts at 20 dollars per model per month, for at least 100 models over 24 months, with the 3D models, hosting, updates and implementation included.

Is a Modular Product Configurator Right for Your Business?

A modular configurator may be a strong fit if your products:

• Are sold in modules or come in many combinations
• Come in finishes or colours that customers choose between
• Need to fit a specific space
• Have a high order value
• Are hard to show with product photos alone

Common uses include shelving and storage systems, modular sofas, wardrobes, kitchens, office furniture and outdoor structures.

Turn Your Shelving Range Into an Interactive Shopping Experience

A modular product configurator helps shelving brands present a complex range in a way that is easy to understand, customize and buy. Customers can try different layouts, compare finishes, check the size and see the finished wall in their own room before they order.

CharpstAR handles the whole process, from the 3D models to the configurator on your product page, so you can focus on selling.

Want to see how your range could work in 3D? Send us your range and we'll reply within a working day with what it would take, or explore our other configurator demos.