The founder of an ambitious virtual and augmented reality company wants to double turnover in the next 12 months, as well as launching a second business.

The founder of an ambitious virtual and augmented reality company wants to double turnover in the next 12 months, as well as launching a second business.

Matthew Martin's Norwich-based firm Immersive VR is undergoing a transformation to Immersive Studios – a re-brand designed to better reflect the gamut of services it now offers, from 360-degree videos to creating augmented reality platforms and building apps to allow customers access to the services they have commissioned.

Mr Martin said he and partner James Burrows want the business to 'grow aggressively', with plans to double turnover from £900,000 in the next year, part of which will come from the launch of their immersive experience company launch, X1st.

X1st will allow customers to enter virtual reality experiences together and play games in specially equipped venues.

Mr Martin said: 'X1st will be the next major project. Though it is a separate company it will be Immersive Studios' biggest client.

'X1st will launch in mid-November. The idea is that customers in groups of five enter a venue, have their picture taken, and then will enter a virtual reality experience which they will play together.'

X1st venues – the first of which expected to be launched in the second quarter of 2019, though its location has not been confirmed – will marry up the physical environment with the virtual by tracking players.

'If you put your hand out to touch a wall, there will be a wall there. We're working to make sure the tracking is really accurate at the moment,' Mr Martin said.

'We want it to be an entertainment activity just as much as going to the cinema or going to a laser quest game. We're working on the realities which means one time you could go in it would be Victorian England, the next it would be the Wild West.'

Immersive Studios has some major clients on its books, having worked with Ikea to launch a VR room set up which customers could adapt with their own product or textile favourites.

The latest project has been with super-car brand Brabham. Mr Martin said: 'These cars are £1.1m, and models can't be taken to clients across the world, so we made them a programme where life-sized models appeared via a headset, and trims and colours could be changed by the customer.'

Immersive VR was the winner of the Tech Innovator award at the EDP Business Awards in 2016.