EXCLUSIVE: Uber-esque Personal Shopping App Beamble Launches at Printemps, Aims to ‘Bring Back the Essence of Luxury’

PARIS — Artistic director and creative consultant Sophia Elizabeth has launched personal shopping-on-demand app Beamble exclusively at Printemps until Jan. 15.

The app will then roll out in London on Feb. 5 through an exclusive with Linda Farrow, followed by New York City with an exclusive at The Webster. The U.S. expansion is slated for early in the second quarter.

Beamble is positioned as the Uber of shopping and allows users to summon a shopper in minutes to assist with purchases across categories via video call. For the launch, Printemps has dedicated five shoppers to service clients. Purchases via the app so far have included luxury handbags and children’s toys, with an average basket of 600 euros.

To emphasize the on-demand aspect, the app has partnered with Uber Direct for delivery in one-hour within a 10-kilometer radius.

Once the app goes wide, stylists can join the service, which will be available in tiers: direct independent shopping services, such as finding a specific item; advanced overall styling and home decor direction and buying; and celebrity-level styling and VIP services, which will have access to private showrooms. The latter will be most applicable when the app rolls out to Los Angeles, expected in the second half of 2025.

Elizabeth already has a roster of 15 stylists in Paris, London and New York.

Clients can search by brand and wishlist their favorite products, as well as by location, such as finding a store with connected staff or an independent personal shopper in proximity on a map.

Both brands and shoppers can upload their own content and profiles, so that a client can scroll through feeds and if they see a product or a person they like, they can connect.

The app is also equipped with AI translation, so there is no language barrier for tourists, for example. Travelers can also file for tax refunds through the app.

It’s not Elizabeth’s first retail rodeo. She founded the vintage platform Spaghetti Archives in 2021. She started her career in sales at Hugo Boss and Valentino, before working in a showroom and consulting for luxury brands.

At home following the birth of her child, Elizabeth found online shopping visuals flat, the experience less fulfilling and missed the personal touch and immediate gratification of in-person shopping. Looking at it from her background, on one hand she understood how difficult it is for small designers to photograph individual products, upload them to a website one-by-one and organize delivery logistics, which can lead to a less-than-satisfying sales process on the consumer end. Smaller stores also grapple with downtime, especially in the mid-afternoons when they have emptier sales floors.

“It came together with my experiences in all the different fields, either as a stylist or a designer or a curator, as a client, working in retail as a business owner — everything my experience brought me and all the pain points I realized, have been treated in the app,” she said.

“It’s really about the service. I really believe that we lost the sense of luxury when you walk in a store, even though it’s a luxury store, where the service sometimes can be deceiving,” she said. “With the one-on-one personal service, you’re listening to the person and you’re taking care of your customer. That’s what I wanted to bring back — the essence of luxury.”