The Bathroom Showroom at City Plumbing story
The Bathroom Showroom is part of the award-winning Highbourne Group with a brand portfolio that includes some of the sector's most well-known and respected names, including City Plumbing and PTS. City Plumbing, with over 360 branches and more than 3,000 colleagues, and The Bathroom Showroom, with 290 showrooms nationally, has a unique place in the market. Supporting the trade, it offers a one-stop solution in which tradespeople can be confident of sending their customers for outstanding service and advice.
Keen to build on its success and create an even stronger customer experience, The Bathroom Showroom made the strategic decision to implement Cyncly’s Virtual Worlds 3D bathroom design software across 290 showrooms nationwide the largest rollout of Virtual Worlds by any company in the UK to date.
A typical Bathroom Showroom spans 1,400 sq ft (with the smallest at around 600 sq ft) and is designed to showcase a range of products and inspire trade and retail customers. Low-level walls ensure clear sightlines across inspirational bays, cameo displays, taps, showers and tile selections, creating a welcoming and aspirational space for customers.
The Bathroom Showroom recognised that evolving customer expectations and the demand for a more visual, immersive buying experience meant that upgrading its design capability was crucial. While the brand had used another Cyncly product, Fusion, for over 13 years alongside internal systems for pricing, the time had come for a transformation. Stephen Smith, Managing Director of The Bathroom Showroom explained:
"We wanted to align with the direction Cyncly was moving in, and Virtual Worlds was clearly the future for bathroom design. It also offered the supplier catalogue breadth we needed to support our expanding product offering."
The scale of the transition presented several key challenges:
- Content readiness: Before training could begin, The Bathroom Showroom’s full range of catalogues needed to be accurately represented within the Virtual Worlds platform.
- Training at scale: With over 300 showroom colleagues to upskill, a full training programme had to be delivered within a tight 3-4 week window.
- Change management: Moving from predominantly 2D design to a fully 3D environment meant a major shift in how showroom teams operated and engaged customers.
To support the transition, Cyncly worked closely with the Bathroom Showroom team to train internal champions, who could then coach their peers across the estate. A dual-running period was also introduced, with Fusion and Virtual Worlds available side-by-side for a month to ease the learning curve.
The Bathroom Showroom went live with Virtual Worlds across its network in November 2024, timed to be ready for the critical January sales period.
“Any change is difficult, and this was a huge undertaking," said Stephen Smith. "But as our teams became more confident, we saw incredible designs emerging some are already causing a real stir on social media. We’re getting through the change curve and starting to see the real potential.”
With Virtual Worlds, Showroom Managers can now create highly realistic, compelling 3D designs that bring customers’ visions to life faster and more effectively. This not only supports direct-to-consumer sales but also strengthens The Bathroom Showroom’s way of working partnering with trade professionals by handling the design aspect, saving time and helping them be more profitable.
Additionally, with The Bathroom Showroom’s fast-paced product development cycle, Virtual Worlds ensures that catalogues are always up to date, helping showroom teams access the latest ranges immediately and respond quickly to customer needs.
The Benefits
Since implementing Virtual Worlds, City Plumbing has seen significant early wins:
“The photo realism is brilliant. When customers see the images, it really helps sell the dream because it looks so realistic.”
– Ellie Borrows, Showroom Manager, Aintree
“The realistic renders are fabulous and give a truer vision. I like that a majority of our brochure is loaded and ready to go-encouraging me to go directly to our brochure products as opposed to third party suppliers.”
– Mia Lord, Showroom Manager, Grimsby
Looking ahead
The Bathroom Showroom’s investment in Virtual Worlds is already delivering results - and the future looks even brighter. As teams continue to build confidence and refine their 3D design skills, the business expects even greater gains in customer satisfaction, sales conversion and brand loyalty.
"We’re excited about what’s next. The more skilled our teams become with Virtual Worlds, the stronger our designs, and our customer relationships, will be,” concludes Stephen Smith.
Transforming customer experiences
By adopting Virtual Worlds, The Bathroom Showroom City Plumbing has taken a major step forward in bringing innovation, efficiency and outstanding customer service to the heart of its bathroom design offering. With Cyncly’s cutting-edge technology, The Bathroom Showroom can create immersive, personalised experiences that inspire customers and drive sales.
